Spotify & "Song Radio" is Essentially Just an Echo Chamber & Doesn't Breed Discovery

[cawul]

This hasn't always been the case, and I don't know if this has to do with the amount of time I've had my Spotify account or if something about the algorithm has drastically changed - but whenever I start a radio based off a song or artist (which is with the intention to find a NEW artist or NEW music that is related to the song/artist I'm starting the radio off of) it just creates essentially a playlist of music I've been listening to - and not even within the same genre off the song.

I've realized that I haven't found any new artists or any new music, and just continuously listen to the same things over and over again which is quite depressing. The point of the song radio or at least how I use it is to discover new artists that are in the same realm of the artist I'm listening to, and I think you all at Spotify are putting everyone - artist AND listener - at a huge detrimental disadvantage by having it go that way because then there is no discovery for new artists and there is no way for listeners to get into new music without scouring the platform instead of giving good recommendations based off your algorithm. More than anything I want to be able to discover new artists based off song radio, not just hear the same songs I've been listening to. If I wanted to listen to those songs, I would just continue to listen to them. Especially since maybe when I start a song radio off something that is midwest-emo/indie, it'll still play hyperpop/rap in the same playlist which are two completely different genre's and moods.

[tzachar2]

It used to be that when a playlist ended, it would jump to 'recommended songs.' 

Now, instead, it switches to your "Radio" or "Play Queue" which is not great because they are the same tracks every time your playlist ends.

Going to 'recommended songs' is better because it was new/fresh music every time your playlist ended, and let to so much new discovery.

Bringing back this feature and also adding a 'not interested' feature would be the icing on the cake.

[Luan]

Updated on 2021-02-03

Hello and thanks for bringing your feedback to the Idea Exchange. 

Just to make sure we are on the same page, could you give us more information about it? When you reach the end of a playlist or album, if it's activated, Spotify will start to play some similar songs to what you were listening to before. It's expected that it does not play the same song you had already listened to on your playlist, for instance. Is it happening to you when playing the 'Auto Play' feature? Let us know and give us more details.

Thanks in advance! 🙂

[tzachar2]

Hello thanks for hearing me on this one! I'll try to make this as succinct as possible.

A few updates ago, after any user created playlist that I was listening to finished, and assuming I have "Autoplay" turned on in my options, the queue order would jump immediately to "Recommended Songs - Based on the songs in this playlist" and start playing from the top.

I LOVED this feature. I would always discover new music and it would keep the vibe going, especially on road trips when I couldn't look at my phone or at work when I'm jamming.

Recently, however, a new update switched this turn order.  Now, after any user created playlist ends, it instead jumps to what's called "Radio."  The problem is, this "Radio" generates roughly the SAME tracks every single time I'm finished with my playlist.  For example, after my metal playlist ends, instead of finding new music, I end up hearing the same songs that I've already heard or liked.

I'm not sure why, but this "Play Queue" isn't random each time like the "Recommended songs - Based on the songs in this playlist" is.  That major difference is one leads to way more discovery than the other, and I have to manually click the first song of the Recommended playlist to start that queue.

I have troubleshooted this issue with tech support and I'm happy to share the case number, but the last representative pretty much told me that it was changed in an update.

I mentioned in my first post that the "icing on the cake" would be to introduce the "Not Interested" feature back into the "Recommended" playlist.. so that newly generated music becomes fine-tuned for the listener's enjoyment. 

Please let me know if you have any questions at all, I'm very happy to discuss this further. Thank you!

[Luan]

Hey again, @tzachar2 

Sorry for the delay in answering you...

Just for your information, I moved your post from the Idea board to the Help board, because I consider that you may be facing a little issue with your app. But don't worry, we will help you out. Let's go...

You mentioned that after your playlist, Spotify starts to play the queue with the exact same songs you've heard before, right? This way, I suggest, first of all, that you check if your queue is empty before you set to play a playlist. You can get the step-by-step in managing your queue here. Once your queue is empty, try to play a playlist and check what happens when all the songs on the playlist finish...

And there are some other things I'd like to make clear. "Recommended Songs" is just a list of tracks that is suggested by Spotify to be added to the playlist, basing on the songs that are already added.

The function "Autoplay" is what starts to play similar songs when your playlist finishes. You can get more information about this feature here. I suggest that you check if it is enabled on your Spotify settings.

Keep me posted! I'd love to continue helping you out! 

Best Regards,
hezorg

[tzachar2]

Hello

Unfortunately this is not the issue. I have tried troubleshooting this with customer service many times, and we came to the conclusion that an update from Spotify made it so that Autoplay jumps to 'Radio' after my created playlist ends. It used to be that Autoplay jumps to 'Recommended Songs' after my created playlist ends.

The difference is this 'Radio' actually plays the same songs that I've already liked or heard before every time. 'Recommended Songs' was a fresh set of songs. This was great for driving or playing video games because I did not have to manually start the 'Recommended songs' list myself.

I hope this makes sense, and I believe this thread still belongs to the Suggestions page. Thank you!

[CarlosE]

Hey there @tzachar2,

Thanks for keeping in touch.

We'd like to clarify that it's expected that when a playlist ends and Autoplay is on, a Radio based on that playlist is indeed played next. The Recommended Songs section is different, and it isn't what is played by default when your playlists end.

We're moving this back to our ideas board so other users can add their +Vote and show their support.

You can read more about how feedback on ideas reaches Spotify here.

If you have any questions, give us a shout.

Cheers!

[tzachar2]

Correct.  It used to be the other way around. The Radio is the same set of songs every time, which is unfortunate and doesn't lead to any new discovery.

Thank you

[Xenia]

Updated on 2021-02-19

We're marking this as 'New Suggestion' - which is a repost of this inactive idea.

[absolut991230]

Radio seems to be heavily based on the user instead of an actual song/artist.

This way I repeatedly find myself listening to songs that I already have in my playlists instead of being presented new music.

I recently compared my song radio to a friends radio based on the exact same song.

Totally different radio! I would love to see the songs that he was given in my playlist as I didn’t know any of the songs while it still matched my taste in music.

[allandude]

radio used to be such a great tool to discover new songs or get reminded of ones I hadn't heard in forever..

in what universe did you guys think it would be a good idea for Spotify to now beat me over the head with the same three songs every time it defaults to radio?!..