Date:
March 10, 2023
Spotify is introducing a redesigned core homescreen in its app, aiming to provide users with a more visually rich and vertically scrolling feed
Spotify is changing its app design to offer users more than just music.
The company has invested heavily in recent years to be more than just a music app, expanding into podcasts, audiobooks, live audio, and more.
Now, the app's new design goes heavy on imagery and vertical scrolling, turning your homescreen from a set of album covers into a feed that much more closely resembles TikTok and Instagram. The new design is part of Spotify's efforts to make it easier for users to discover new content across its platform. When you open the app, you'll still see a bunch of album and playlist covers at the top. But underneath, you might see an autoplaying video podcast, which you can jump into with a tap. Or you might see a big, Instagram-style photo meant to tell you a little more about a playlist you might like.
The redesign is crucial for Spotify, especially in podcast discovery, as the company needs to find new ways to recoup its huge investments in the space. Spotify CEO, Daniel Ek, has admitted to betting big on new kinds of audio and hopes to have more than 50 million "audio creators" on the platform.
The new design also features more personalized AI, with the Smart Shuffle feature improving on the "just for you playlist" idea Spotify has been working on for years. DJ, the AI spinning records and hosting your own personal radio show, is another new feature.
Spotify is no longer just a music app and shouldn't look like one. With billions of users swiping through a dozen things they don’t like before landing on one they do, the app's new design seems to create more dedicated space for all those new kinds of content.
It's a bold move that shows that Spotify wants to be much more than a music player.
