Stories and Data: Australian Musicians Navigating the Spotify for Artists Platform

ABSTRACT

Spotify offers users powerful algorithmic recommendations and hybrid “algo-torial” curation at scale. In this paper we argue that juxtaposed within this data-driven platform, is the power of human stories and networking. We investigate the experiences of 10 Australian musicians through semi-structured interviews, asking how they navigate the Spotify for Artists interface. By attending to the experiences of the artists themselves, and their use of the Spotify for Artists platform, we explore the human stories that flow within this socio-technical music streaming network, arguing that stories, like data, have an important role and value in this context.

KEYWORDS:

• Datafication
• music industries
• music streaming
• platforms
• Spotify

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1. We have included the song streams as an illustrative point, as many of our discussions with participants concerned gaining more streams or the value of a stream. However, we did not include the number of streams as signifier of the success of these artists. Indeed, many of them had achieved considerable success, in their own terms, outside of music streaming platforms.

2. Triple J is Australia’s national youth radio broadcaster. It’s a subsidiary of the Australian Broadcasting Company (ABC) and it is publicly funded.

3. User-centric models involve more direct payments between listeners and artists. In these models, artists receive revenue from the listeners that have actually streamed their music. rather than revenue being split from the total streamshare.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Sophie Freeman

Sophie Freeman is a PhD candidate at the University of Melbourne, researching music streaming services and the user experience of algorithmic recommendation and curation. She is a member of the Human-Computer Interaction group, and works across the School of Computing & Information Systems, and the School of Culture & Communication.

Martin Gibbs

Martin Gibbs is a Professor of Human-Computer Interaction in the School of Computing and Information Systems at the University of Melbourne. His research interests lie at the intersection of Science Technology Studies (STS) and Human Computer Interaction (HCI). Recent projects have examined domestic media ecologies, digital commemoration, and vernacular creativity.

Bjørn Nansen

Bjørn Nansen works in the media studies program at the University of Melbourne. His research explores digital media and communication technologies in family life, and covers areas including children’s digital technology use, digital parenting, household technology innovation and adoption, death and digital memorialization, and family data tracking technologies.