Let’s talk about Spotify Playlists…

Playlists are ubiquitous and evermore evasive. Their popularity and potential profitability has remained unwavering over the past few years. However, many questions still remain for the artists and record labels who pursue these playlists. Who is in charge of curating them? Which one generates the most plays? What moods and genres are most relevant to your record label?

Playlists provide a unique connection to passive music listeners. Active fans buy physical records, attend shows, and follow our artists on social media. Whereas passive fans may not even know who they’re listening to, but they still contribute to your label's success. A record label wants — needs — passive fans just as much as active fans. 

Sometimes it’s helpful to think of your label’s streaming strategy as a funnel. At the top of your funnel (the widest part) is the passive listeners you garner from playlists.

As the funnel narrows, the audience gets smaller, but connection strengthens. The narrowest point of your funnel will contain the smallest audience, but they’ll be the most highly engaged and supportive fans. 

Using this visual, we can see how playlisting plays a pivotal role in bringing new listeners into your fan funnel in a frictionless, automated way.

Here are the type of playlists where you should be putting most of your label’s attention…