Spotify Listening Parties
A conceptual project designed by Mike Hackett.
December 2022 — January 2023, Remote
Adapting the album release event for the age of streaming services.
My Roles
UX Researcher
UX + UI Designer
Product Tester
Timeline
Research — 2 weeks
Design — 2 weeks
Testing — 1 week
Tools
Figma
FaceTime
Maze
The Problem
Spotify does not provide a space for fans to interact with one another and share their thoughts.
Growing up in the age of social media, I’ve seen first-hand the ways in which fans interact with one another on a variety of platforms. Whether it be through making a TikTok to their favorite song or tweeting their thoughts about their favorite artist’s latest album, fans have found ways to establish community with like-minded individuals. While it’s great that social media platforms have created these spaces for fans to connect, I began to wonder why streaming services like Spotify haven’t incorporated features that allowed users to partake in these types of interactions that help to build that same sense of community.
The Solution
A live-stream album release event that allows fans to communicate in real time with one another.
Easily discoverable.
A dynamic carousel on the Spotify homepage that will promote upcoming listening parties based on the music you stream.
Searchable and filterable.
Conduct a quick search to see if your favorite artist is hosting a listening party or filter between ongoing an upcoming events.
Real-time chatting.
Chat with other Spotify users from around the world in real time during exclusive album release events from your favorite artists.
Background Research
Streaming has revolutionized the music industry and has begun to integrate with social media platforms.
When was the last time you had to wait so you could go to the store to pick up a copy of your favorite artist’s latest album?
How about the last time you purchased an album on iTunes just so you could listen to it?
For many, it’s likely been a while. Streaming services have only continued to grow in popularity over the years and have basically led to the technological extinction of the CD and other physical forms of music. According to the RIAA, physical music like CDs and vinyls accounted for only 11% of all U.S. recorded music revenue in 2021 while streaming on the other hand accounted for 83%.
As these streaming platforms have become more and more utilized, they have also been integrating more with various social media platforms. In 2018, Spotify announced an integration with Instagram and Facebook that allows users to share what they’re listening to directly to their stories. This helps users connect with like-minded individuals who share similar interests. In a study conducted by MusicWatch, 90% of frequent social media users take part in some form of music-related activity on a variety of platforms. They also found that approximately 60% of social media users will head directly to streaming services upon seeing any release information on any of the major platforms.
Competitive Analysis
Other products in this space are placing more of a focus on either the ability to stream music OR allowing users to build community.
In order to gain more insight into the world of music streaming services, I researched a few of Spotify’s key competitors as well as one indirect competitor:
Apple Music
YouTube Music
SoundCloud
TikTok
The first thing I noticed about each of these products is that they all seem to specialize in one specific feature. Apple Music places a strong emphasis on their streaming feature whereas SoundCloud focuses more on the social aspect of their product. Similarly, YouTube Music focuses solely on streaming music and videos, but doesn’t allow for any type of social interaction that YouTube is known for. To round out my research, I also looked into TikTok as an indirect competitor as it is known for playing a huge role in the music industry. While it is not a music streaming platform, it was apparent that several users utilize TikTok as a platform to share thoughts on music and music-related topics.
The Big Question
How might we create a way for Spotify to encourage conversation among users within its product?
Having found that most music streaming platforms don’t offer ways for users to truly interact with one another, I wanted to figure out a way to help Spotify in encouraging these types of interactions within their product.
User Interviews
Spotify users frequently make use of the current social features that Spotify offers.
With my research question decided, I conducted 5 user interviews with current Spotify users. In these interviews I asked each participant questions regarding their experience with Spotify, their listening habits, and their experience with music fandoms.
From this research, I found that each participant actually makes use of all the social and interactive features that Spotify currently offers. This led me to believe that they would be open and willing to try out any new features that the company rolls out.
Those who participate in fandom culture are likely to partake in different types of events their favorite artists hold like album releases.
I also found that 4 out of 5 participants have both participated in a midnight album release event and have been involved in fandom culture. Based off of these findings, it makes me believe that users who have participated in fandom culture are likely to support their favorite artists by listening to albums as soon as they are released as well as be open to discussing their opinions on the music with other fans.
Brainstorming
Based off of my findings, what are some potential solutions that will help to address my research question?
Social Feed
One of my first ideas was to incorporate a social feed within Spotify. My vision was to create a place where users would be able to share songs or albums that they are listening to.
Customizable Profiles
My next idea was to allow more customization on the user profile. Some features I was thinking of including were a status message and/or a current fave song that is pinned to your profile. This would help create a more personalized experience for the user.
Listening Parties
The last idea I came up with was a live album release event feature titled Listening Parties. With this feature, users will be able to join an exclusive album release event where they can chat in real-time with other Spotify users from around the world and discuss their thoughts.
Following my brainstorming session, I ultimately decided to move forward with the Listening Parties feature. This feature felt the most different when compared to what other products are currently doing and would also help Spotify to keep users streaming music while simultaneously interacting with other users.
The Product’s Flow
What will the user’s journey look like when using the listening party feature?
Task Flow #1 — RSVP for a listening party
Task Flow #2 — Join a listening party via the artist’s profile
Task Flow #3 — Send a chat in the listening party
Designer Feedback
Before moving on to my final high-fidelity wireframes, I made some tweaks to my screens based on feedback that I’ve received in group crit sessions and my mentor.
Opting for a dynamic banner.
As suggested by my mentor, I decided to move away from Spotify’s standard scrolling carousel and opt for a dynamic banner that increases visibility of the new listening party feature.
Adding a live listener count.
In one of my group critique sessions, a fellow designer suggested that I incorporate a live listener count on the listening party screen to give users a sense of the events size and scale.
Usability Testing