How Spotify's Algorithm Works (From Its Creator)

Enrollment closes soon for Ari's Take Academy! Save 10% with code NMB and enroll: https://aristakeacademy.com/Glenn McDonald was Spotify’s data alchemist and the creator of the music exploration site Every Noise at Once. He writes things for people about how humanity and technology co-exist, and things for computers about how to cope with not being human. He wrote a weekly music review column called The War Against Silence for ten years, tabulated the Village Voice’s Pazz & Jop music critics’ poll for several years, and was part of the music-intelligence start-up The Echo Nest, which was eventually acquired by Spotify.He believes that music is the thing humans do best, and that bringing all the world’s music together online is one of the greatest cultural achievements of his lifetime. His book explaining why is being published by Canbury Press in 2024.This week, Ari and Glenn McDonald discuss his role as a data alchemist and his work on the Every Noise at Once genre map. McDonald shares insights into the creation and maintenance of the Every Noise genre map, which categorizes over 6,000 genres and subgenres. He also discusses the evolution of Spotify playlists, from editorial to personalized, and the impact of algorithmic programming. They explore the impact of algorithmic recommendations on artists and fans, as well as the challenges of detecting fraud and bot attacks.Chapters00:00 Introduction and Background08:30 Creating the Every Noise Genre Map19:54 Personalized Playlists and Algorithmic Programming32:25 Fans Also Like and its Evolution37:06 The Challenges of Algorithmic Recommendations41:30 The Limitations of Detecting Fraud47:56 The Mystery of Sudden Streaming Spikes01:00:19 Glenn McDonald's Book and Future PlansSubscribe to The New Music Business: https://aristake.com/new-music-business-podcast/Ari's Take Academy: https://aristakeacademy.comWatch more discussions like this: https://bit.ly/3LavMpaConnect with Ari’s Take:Website: https://aristake.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/aristake_TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@aris.takeX: https://twitter.com/ArisTakeThreads: https://www.threads.net/@aristake_YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/aristake1Connect with Ari Herstand:Website: https://ariherstand.comInstagram: https://instagram.com/ariherstandX: https://twitter.com/ariherstandYouTube: https://youtube.com/ariherstandConnect with Glenn McDonald :Every Noise: everynoise.comFuria: furia.comX: https://twitter.com/glenn_mcdonaldLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/glenn-mcdonald-ab3b36/Edited and mixed by Ari DavidsMusic by Brassroots DistrictProduced by the team at Ari’s Take Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.