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Are We Listening to the Music, or Is It Listening to Us?
Most humans love music. Not a day goes by when you don’t subconsciously tap a foot to some song playing in the background or even sing softly under your breath to a tune you didn’t even know you knew.
Thanks to the successful application of data analytics in how the music industry is evolving, there is a good chance that you “didn’t even know you knew” that song because hit songs are being so concisely created and promoted as to appeal to the popular parts of the songs that came before them, therefore, creating a sense of “I must have heard this somewhere” in many listeners.
The shift from physical to online music consumption has given birth to a wealth of daily data generated by millions of listeners. Streaming platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal, YouTube, and SoundCloud play a significant role in data collection, allowing them to gather information on user preferences, listening habits, and trends (How Data Is Transforming the Music Industry).
As much as we need music, musicians must make music. Artists need to deliver their inspired content to us, and for as long as humans have been banging on rocks or blowing into hollowed-out sheep’s stomachs to entertain…