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Spotify Unveiled A Ton Of Upcoming Changes, Including A New AI DJ, Autoplay For Podcasts, And Much More

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Today, Spotify held their Spotify Stream On conference, which found them announcing a ton of upcoming changes to the app — some of which might surprise users.

“This marks the biggest change Spotify has undergone since we introduced mobile 10 years ago,” Spotify CEO Daniel Ek said, per The Hollywood Reporter. “This evolution is really about bringing Spotify to life.”

Chlöe Bailey, who appeared at the press event, revealed the new “Spotify Clips” service, which allows musicians to add 30-second videos to their profiles. “You can talk about an unreleased song, promote a new album, share the stories behind a song, or really anything you can come up with,” she said.

The streaming service has announced that they will now be adding autoplay for podcasts, which means that another episode will start playing automatically after the current one ends. The recommendations will also fit the user’s personalized interests. This continues a push for their podcasting and video section, as they are allowing those around the world to apply to use Spotify Labs for recording episodes and use Patreon as a payment partnership.

Spotify will also bring out “Previews,” which gives users audio and visual previews when they scroll down.

Some other new changes include the ability to use hashtags to search for music, a few of which reportedly are “#pop, #R&B, and #confident.” Users can view touring schedules for artists on the app under a new “Live Events” section.

Finally, they’re rolling out a new AI DJ that “will deliver a curated lineup of music alongside commentary around the tracks and artists we think you’ll like in a stunningly realistic voice,” according to the company’s website.

The Weeknd Becomes The First Artist To Reach 100 Million Monthly Listeners On Spotify

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A little over a year since the release of his colossal album Dawn FM, The Weeknd is still the center of attention. Just this month, there’s been the unveiling of The Weeknd: Live At SoFi Stadium and the collaboration with Ariana Grande for the “Die For You” remix.

Now, he’s broken a new record. As of today, February 27, he became the first artist in Spotify History to reach 100 million monthly listeners.

Last month, he broke Spotify’s record for most monthly listeners in the world with 94.73 million listeners.

Also in January, he spoke about his song for Avatar: The Way Of Water, “Nothing Is Lost (You Give Me Strength),” being placed on the shortlist for the upcoming Academy Awards. “I feel honored to be part of that list,” he said about the milestone. “Any kind of recognition for it feels like a blessing.”

“I didn’t know if I was going to be able to live to see tomorrow,” he added about when the original Avatar came out in 2009. “And I remember I somehow got to see the film in theaters. I don’t know how I got in. It was such an escape from my real life that the film is tattooed in my brain.”

SZA’s ‘SOS’ Crossed A Major Streaming Milestone On Spotify, Marking The Second Time For Her

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It hasn’t even been three months since SZA released SOS, and it’s already proven itself a commercial success.

The TDE singer’s long-awaited and critically acclaimed sophomore album debuted at No.1 on the Billboard 200 chart and has spent at least nine weeks atop the charts following its December release. The album was also certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) within weeks of its release. Additionally, the project helped the “Snooze” singer break the record for the US’s largest streaming week for an R&B album.

Recently, the singer’s album reached a major milestone on streaming giant Spotify with nearly 3 billion streams. This would be her second album to do so following her 2017 debut project, Ctrl.

“‘SOS’ by @SZA has reached 3 billion streams on Spotify. It’s her second album to achieve this,” Pop Crave reports.

https:/ twitter.com/PopCrave/status/1629681707203829760?s=20

To help promote the album (not that it’s necessary at this point), the singer kicked off her tour earlier this month, kicking off at The Jerome Schottenstein Center in Columbus, Ohio.

Joining her on the road as support is Grammy-nominated singer Omar Apollo. The tour is expected to go on until the end of March, with its final show at The Kia Forum in Los Angeles.

Omar Apollo is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Doja Cat’s ‘Planet Her’ Just Made Rap Music History On Spotify And Earned Her New A Career Accolade

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In 2021, Doja Cat released her third studio album, Planet Her. The album, which centers on the fictional planet that the “Say So” hitmaker created, not only launched her into pop superstardom but earned several chart-topping hits. It’s been nearly two years since its release, and now, Planet Her has surpassed six billion streams on Spotify, making it the most streamed album by a female rapper in the streaming platform’s history.

“‘Planet Her’ by Doja Cat has surpassed 6 BILLION streams on Spotify. It is the most streamed album by a female rapper in history,” Pop Base reports.

The album featured guest appearances from some of music’s biggest acts —Young Thug, Ariana Grande, The Weeknd, and SZA — showcasing her growth as an artist. Doja was no longer the “Mooo!” girl known for her quick-witted internet humor. Instead, she was a certified hitmaker. The project even helped the rapping songstress nab a Grammy nomination for Best Album at the 64th Grammy Awards.

While she didn’t walk away with the top award that night, she still got the Grammy for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for her mega-pop hit “Kiss Me More,” featuring SZA.

Regarding new music, what Doja Cat has under her sleeve is unclear. She noted that the album could be influenced by rap or maybe even “rave culture.” Most recently, she’s said she wants to take a more “masculine direction” with the album.

Either way, Doja has proved herself as more than a meme star, and the world will be waiting with its ear to the ground for her next project and whatever direction she takes it.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

India Arie Returns Catalog To Spotify After Calling Them Out Over Joe Rogan

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It was around this time last year when India Arie unleashed on Joe Rogan. The famed podcast host and comedian was in the thick of a viral controversy after several clips of him disparaging Black people and using the n-word went viral. His supporters, including Black entertainers, refused to label their friend racist. Rogan returned to say he was being targeted while also noting that the n-word wasn’t for him to use.

During that time, there was also a call from a faction of critics for Spotify to remove Rogan’s podcast from its platform. The streaming giant quickly responded by saying that wouldn’t happen, and many noted it was because Rogan’s podcast was one of its most popular shows. Arie didn’t appreciate the response, so she said her catalog would no longer be available on Spotify.

India Arie Announces The Removal Of Her Catalog

NEWARK, NJ – AUGUST 25: Singer India.Arie performs on stage during the 2019 Black Girls Rock! at NJ Performing Arts Center on August 25, 2019 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Gilbert Carrasquillo/Getty Images)

“I have decided to pull my music and podcast from Spotify,” she wrote. “Neil Young opened a door that I MUST walk through. I believe in freedom of speech. However, I find Joe Rogan problematic for reasons OTHER than his Covid interviews… FOR ME ITS ALSO HIS language around race. What I am talking about is RESPECT – who gets it and who doesn’t.”

“Paying musicians a Fraction of a penny? and HIM $100?” Arie questioned. “This shows the type of company they are and the company that they keep. I’m tired.” However, it seems that she has had a change of heart because she announced on Instagram that her catalog made a triumphant return to Spotify. “After a successful protest!” she wrote before urging her followers to view previous posts to understand the context.

India Arie Has A Message For Naysayers

“Also I must say. All the media outlets and even ‘friends’ who talked sh*t about me lets see if you care NOW that my stance impacted change,” Arie further stated. “I WISH we had a ZERO TOLERANCE POLICY AROUND THE USE OF THE N WORD. Sadly we let people get away with it. I can’t change that. But the way MY DIGNITY is set up! I STOOD FOR ME. AND IT WORKED.” She added that she’s all about protecting her peace throughout the year. Check it out above.

Even Spotify Is Getting In On The AI Trend With Its New Virtual DJ

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It seems that everyone is getting into the AI game these days (for better or for worse) and of course, that includes digital streaming platforms. Today, Spotify unveiled its own new AI feature, DJ, which according to Spotify’s press release, sounds a lot like the song radio function already on the platform.

DJ, using OpenAI technology, will look at the music you’ve played, and create what amounts to a virtual DJ set — complete with a realistic AI DJ voice. The voice is modeled by Spotify Head of Cultural Partnerships Xavier “X” Jernigan, but the DJ voice will come up with its dialogue in real-time using AI voice generator Sonatic.

According to Spotify, this is how premium users in the US and Canada can access the new function:

1. Head to your Music Feed on Home in the Spotify mobile app on your iOS or Android device.
2. Tap Play on the DJ card.
3. Let Spotify do the rest! The DJ will serve a lineup of music alongside short commentary on the songs and artists, picked just for you.
4. Not feeling the vibe? Just hit the DJ button at the bottom right of the screen to be taken to a different genre, artist, or mood.

Spotify says that more voices and features will round out in the future. As long as they stay far away from the sort of racial caricature symbolized by AI rapper FN Meka, this one seems like a win, a potentially useful form of music discovery that can add the context that can take a song from “this is cool” to “this is my new favorite song, album, and artist.”

Check out Spotify’s DJ trailer above.

Rihanna’s Spotify Streams Spike By Nearly 2600% After Super Bowl

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The NFL didn’t cut a check for Rihanna’s incredible performance at the Super Bowl. However, it seems like she’ll see a boost in revenue regardless. The Fenty creator undoubtedly reminded fans of how strong her brand is during the halftime show. Everyone’s talking about her baby bump, of course, but she also flaunted the Fenty line at one point and showcased her incredible catalog since emerging onto the scene. Unfortunately, she didn’t breeze through all of the hits, but she packed in a 13-minute set with fan favorites and chart-topping smashes.

Of course, fans had their own grievances with her set. Most were not only happy but surprised that “Bitch Better Have My Money” served as the opening song. In addition to classics like “Pour It Up” and “Only Girl in the World,” she ensured that she properly represented the Navy to the best of her abilities. Still, many felt a type of way that songs like “Pon De Replay” were noticeably missing from the set. Regardless, fans returned to their preferred DSPs after the halftime show to dive into her catalog.

Rihanna Sees A Massive Spike on Apple Music & Spotify

Rihanna saw a career-best on Apple Music immediately after her performance. Apple reports that her catalog shot up in streams by 331% across the globe. Additionally, the hour after her performance marked her biggest streaming period in Apple Music. On top of that, Sunday also marked her biggest day on Shazam.  Though many are familiar with her catalog, it’s quite clear that she gained a new legion of fans, as well. It’s an impressive feat for an artist who hasn’t touched a stage or released much music in the past few years. 

Spotify revealed Rihanna saw a 2600% increase in streams shortly after she took the stage. The streaming service revealed that “Bitch Better Have My Money” streams spiked by 2600% between 11 pm and midnight ET. During that same window of time, “Diamonds” spiked by 1400%, “Rude Boy” by 1170%, and “We Found Love” by 1160%. These numbers compare to the number of streams she received in the week prior. Check out the statistics above and sound off with your favorite Rihanna song in the comments.