As the biggest music streaming service, any move that Spotify makes echoes across the whole industry. Sometimes it’s positive, sometimes it’s not, but what’s clear is that Spotify has made a huge business turnaround that isn’t stopping soon. Their latest change introduces SongDNA – a tool that will help credit artists for their music.
Spotify’s TurnaroundFor a long time, Spotify was one of those services buoyed by investor cash with no actual profit return. That changed in 2024, after the music streaming giant started introducing new features and expanded to cover podcasts, audiobooks, and other listenable media.
The goal was simple: to sweeten the deal by adding more to the platform. It’s a textbook strategy for online services, alongside offering free trials to get people on board. Spotify is no stranger to the free trial, while other platforms consistently give newcomers welcome bonuses. For example, an online
bingo welcome bonus will give new players a deposit boost and/or free spins at games, so they can get hands-on experience with what the platform offers and stick around if they like it. This kind of marketing only works if you have the content to back it up.
That became a problem for Spotify once they were the
biggest music streamer. Every big music service has a near-identical database of songs, especially when it comes to the popular music that brings in the big numbers. In response, Spotify did two things: diversify its audio content and double down on personalisation through AI playlist features. What followed was a successful 2024, bringing in over a billion euros in profit.
WhoSampled & Song CreditsSince its turnaround, Spotify has continued adding features, forming partnerships, and now fully acquiring third-party music services like
WhoSampled. If the name didn’t tip you off, WhoSampled archives samples, covers, remixes, and interpolations that appear in the music world. If part of a song seems familiar, or you want to see your favourite song reflected or reimagined elsewhere, WhoSampled would point you in the right direction.
On November 19th, WhoSampled announced it had been acquired by Spotify. They clarified that they’ll continue to do business as usual, as a third party, but now their archive will be used to power several new features on the Spotify app.
Those features are SongDNA, Song Credits and About the Song. SongDNA is a hub that gathers song samples and covers all in one place. Once available, it’ll appear in the Now Playing section for Spotify Premium members. Song Credits are self-explanatory, providing better, more accurate information about everyone involved in creating a song, not just the big names. That includes producers, engineers, and songwriters when the songwriter wasn’t the performer. Lastly, About the Song will include third-party info about the creative process, subject matter, and cultural impact of a song. This will vary between songs, naturally, with newer, obscure titles having less to say.
Spotify hasn’t provided an exact timeline for when these features will hit, only that they’re coming soon and will help listeners better understand the process of making music. Song Credits, in particular, is a welcome step forward that will help give background creatives a spotlight.
