Spotify Design Challenge (2021)

User Interview Notes

Interview I: Austin, a 26-year-old living in Austin, TX

Tell me about how you discover new musical artists.

  • “Kind of an indie-head” so I use the Indie subreddit, as well as Pitchfork, NPR Music, Fader, Stereogum… lots of music publications and communities

  • “I post occasionally, but mostly lurk”

Tell me about how you discover new artists on Spotify.

  • Main ways are: Related artists (similar to the ones Im listening to) or new artists that I find in my daily mixes

What factors influence your decision to listen to or follow a new artist?

  • I’d say genre… I’ll listen to anyone, but I’ll change really quickly if I don’t like the music

  • “I think I’m at the high end of number of artists that I listen to”

What does it mean to you to ‘follow’ an artist on Spotify?

  • I don’t really use the follow option, but I should… I’d say the few artists that I do follow are ones I listen to consistently. If I have songs in multiple playlists, I’m more likely to follow the artist.

How does social proof influence your decision to listen to or follow a new artist?

  • It influences it a little bit… I found artists that I like through Pitchfork or that I see had a high rating

  • Chart doesn’t make a difference

  • I use the Spotify friends tool which is so fun but also kind of stupid… I let others see mine

    • I look at friends’ listening happens often

Tell me more about your experience with the Indie subreddit.

  • I think one of the things I like about the Subreddit is that it’s discussion-based and conversational. I wouldn’t enjoy it if it was just a rating scale. I like reading the conversation, where people are responding to each other and having a discussion.

  • In a music community, I look for…. I think it would be interesting if Spotify incorporated musical publications. Like if an artist is featured in some major publication, like Pitchfork.

What do you like about r/indieheads?

  • I think part of what makes it great is that people all really enjoy the Indie genre

  • Interacting with people that enjoy similar artists

  • It would be cool to see someone’s top artist, or other stats

  • I think it would be cool to see what people like outside of the genre — a lot of Indie fans I know also like rap

    • “Genre-bending” is interesting, could be cool to join/lurk on multiple groups

How important would it be for you to know how similar you are to the the members of the group?

  • I think it’s interesting, I’d want to see data. I love Spotify’s data.

  • To me, genre is more important than behaviors… I’d worry that one that’s too hyper-focused would turn into an echo chamber

What other forums would interest you/influence your listening habits?

  • I look at r/music and r/listen to this frequently… and on top of that, there are a lot

  • I think a lot of people would feel more compelled to listen to something based on a recommendation vs. an algorithm just “tossing” it to them

    • “There’s a type of user that just really doesn’t want to be ‘algorithm-ed’”

  • Reddit is a great tool for artists, especially Indie

Interview II: Caroline, a 31-year-old living in Austin, TX

Tell me about how you discover new musical artists.

  • YouTube or the radio… YouTube especially because I think any platform with an algorithm can give you new relevant artists

Tell me about how you discover new artists on Spotify.

  • I usually just pick a radio based on a song I like, and then based on that I’ll ‘like’ songs that I like and then listen to them in the future

What factors influence your decision to listen to or follow a new artist?

  • Not much… if I like a song, I’ll usually follow the artists

What does it mean to you to ‘follow’ an artist on Spotify?

  • Not much honestly… I usually just go off of songs I like. I don’t really know what the purpose is, I feel like I don’t really get anything out of it (like artists updates, news, etc.)

How does social proof influence your decision to listen to or follow a new artist?

  • Word of mouth gives me a lot of recommendations, especially if I like someone’s music tastes than I’ll listen to what they recommend

  • I think following friends on Spotify is more beneficial than following an artists.

  • “I trust my friend’s advice more than an algorithm”

    • Because they know me better

    • Relevant Spotify radios are pretty hit-or-miss

    • I’d rather have a friend (who is really knowledgeable about a certain genre) give me suggestions

How important would it be for you to know how similar you are to members of a Spotify group?

  • I guess it depends on the scope of the group. I wouldn’t personally gravitate toward a massive subreddit… I just wouldn’t frequent those, it’s too much.

  • If the groups are small enough that they’re capped at a certain number (say 100)

  • Are there people I know in the groups? Because that would be fun, and I’d be way more likely to use that. I’d be more likely to share in a group like that.

  • “I’m the type of person that lurks in subreddits but never posts.”

How important is the genre of the group?

  • “Genre purists” may taint the group, but also could be helpful — “I’m much less interested in the specifics labels of genres”

    • I’d rather be around excited listeners who aren’t obsessed with labeling things

  • I value the traits of specific group members over listening habits

  • I’d be more likely to post in a group that I have friends in, but I’d definitely check out groups that Spotify chose based on an algorithm

    • “I’d love to lurk in a discussion”

  • There are people I know who send songs back and forth… it would be cool to centralize that in a group where others could access those recommendations

Interview III: Jack, a 25-year-old living in New York, NY

Tell me about how you discover new artists on Spotify.

  • I would say the main ways are through when a friend plays a good song, or in public (through Shazam), or if I’m listening to a radio and I hear a good song, I’ll check out the artist

  • Spotify algorithm — I save random songs they recommend all the time

  • But WOM is bigger

What factors are most important in your decision to listen to or follow a new artist on Spotify?

  • I value people’s opinions more, but I do trust Spotify’s algorithm

What does it mean to you to follow an artist on Spotify?

  • I don’t know… it means I listen to them

  • Biggest benefit is that you get notifications when new music comes out

How does social proof influence your decision to listen to or follow a new artist?

  • I follow friends on Spotify that I think have similar tastes in music

  • Sometimes (not often though) I’ll click on what they’re listening to if it looks intriguing

What are your perceptions of musical forums, like a subreddit dedicated to a genre you’re interested in?

  • “I’d be open to it if they had similar tastes in music”

  • Don’t care about knowing them personally — taste is more important

    • “I wouldn’t use it as a tool to socialize/chat with others… I’d use it as a tool to discover new music”

    • “I doubt I’d participate, but I’d certainly look around”

  • “If I thought a song was AMAZING, I’d share it but I might be nervous about suggesting a dumb idea”

How important would it be for you to know how similar you are to the the members of the group?

  • Very. Stats would be key — especially if the stats established commonality.

How important is the genre of the group?

  • Important… because I think allowing specific genres for groups keeps it tight

    • “I don’t want to hear house music in a Khruangbin group”

  • I would leave if someone suggested something irrelevant

How important is the size of the group?

  • Uh…. I mean I wouldn’t want some insane message board going off all day

  • Genre freaks are annoying… looking for some behavioral/listening similarities

  • It’d be great if we could remove someone who submitted “dumb stuff”