Spotify wants more regionally popular artists, from all corners of the world, to break globally.
The streaming service has launched a new initiative to specifically curate and promote playlists that combine globally recognised artists with artists that are popular within specific cultural communities.
Announced in a blog post published Friday (September 28), it’s launched the Global Cultures Initiative, which includes ‘expertly curated playlists’ featuring popular tracks from ‘diasporic communities around the world’.
Among the playlists announced so far are Arab, African, Indian (Desi), and Latino, with the latter two having launched already and the first two launching in the coming weeks. (Spotify looks set to launch in North Africa and the Middle East in November).
In addition to these culturally-specific playlists, a key part of the initiative is the Global X playlist, which combines worldwide hits with multicultural crossover tracks.
Spotify defines a crossover as, “a mix of different genres, a mix of languages”.
“We’re creating a global brand that’s going to represent hits from all countries around the world.”
Rocio Guerrero, Spotify
“It could be a song like Despacito Remix that crosses over to the rest of the world,” said Rocio Guerrero, Head of Global Cultures.
“Now people listen to Despacito whether they are Latino or not. We are going to do the same with other cultures. Initially, you will see a lot of pop mainstream crossovers in the playlist, and while the point is to bring to the surface new sounds, cultures, and languages, we need to do so slowly but surely.”
The first song on the Global X playlist is Taki Taki, featuring Selena Gomez, Cardi B, Ozuna, and DJ Snake, which is also accompanied by a “unique vertical video”.
Guerrero added: “Once you’re in the playlist, you’ll see Arab songs, African songs, Latin songs, songs from a lot of cultures, which is awesome.
“We have launched numerous high-profile playlists and programs in the recent past, but Global Cultures is poised to become one of the most important things we are doing as a leader in the field of streaming audio.
“Why is food from other countries so embedded in our culture and yet music isn’t? Because streaming didn’t exist. But now it’s happening. Global X is the sound of a new era: rhythmic crossover hits from all cultures around the world, all in one place. We’re creating a global brand that’s going to represent hits from all countries around the world.”
This week MBW reported that Spotify is testing semi-personalized playlists.Music Business Worldwide
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