Ed’s note: I’ve got Spotify premium and I’ve never heard of Spotify Wrapped.
Not sure if it’s because I never actually play specific songs, but rather just other people’s playlists, or more likely – if more depressingly – that Spotify has figured I’m too old to engage in this sort of thing. Anyway, the task of writing about it has been delegated to someone more appropriate. One of my offspring in this instance. Read on:
If you’ve been on social media lately, you’ve likely encountered something called “Spotify Wrapped”. As of overnight, the music streaming service giant is being featured in posts and stories across Instagram, Snapchat, and even Facebook. I also have fallen for this trend, and although the hype is overinflated, it’s honestly pretty dang fun. So what exactly is it?
Spotify wrapped earns its name from being a “wrap-up” of your history on the streaming service, basically giving you fun (and slightly jarring) insight into what you’ve been listening to in 2021. This isn’t new, with a similar gimmick near the end of every year – often coming alongside playlists with the most popular songs and artists on the app. It’s an odd feeling, nostalgia for a song played on repeat only months prior. Although the public playlists are all well and good, it’s taking a look at your own personally curated screenshot into the past year that are most illuminating . That song you played fifty times after a nasty breakup? It’s there. The artist you obsessed over for a month and forgot about? They’re there too. Spotify doesn’t forget, I’ve gotten more whiplash from looking at my story over the year than on rollercoasters.
The main attraction of Spotify Wrapped is the 3 main lists; Top Songs, Top Artists, and Top genres. Importantly, you also get to see the numbers behind it. This makes it into a sort of game, as people can see the exact number of minutes you spent listening away – which is hilarious to compare with friends. I thought I had hit an impressive 6,917 minutes, only to later find out my friend had managed a staggering 36,000 – promptly knocking me off my high horse. Another intimidating list available to share is your top genre list. You don’t realise how much Gwen Stefani you snuck into 2021 until you look down at your phone, only to see “dance-pop” as your 2nd favourite genre. I had a similar experience this year, as my list went like this; Classic Rock, Alternative Rock, Kiwi Rock, Indie Rock and then Bedroom Pop. I don’t know what is more unnerving, that there’s a genre of pop music specifically for a bedroom – or that I’ve clearly been listening to it. Overall it’s fun, it’s silly, and it’s certainly worth checking out if you have Spotify.
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My top song. I couldn’t have made this up if I tried.