Chennai: Tamilnadu takes music seriously, which is why Spotify, a digital music streaming service is setting foot here by bringing global music closer home with 60 million songs and 1.5 million podcasts.
Today, artistes are heavily reliant on technology to gain audience to promote their work. Having hosted masterclasses for 13,000 artistes between March and August this year, Spotify is gaining prominence as a platform for entertainment and business.
Over an e-mail interaction, managing director of Spotify India, Amarjit Singh Batra tells News Today about what they have in store for Tamilnadu listeners.
What has Spotify India planned for app users in Tamilnadu?
We have introduced unique product features for users, especially local listeners. For instance, understanding the admiration for film music, we have made local innovations on Spotify so that users can simply search songs based on their favourite actor, artiste, or even by the word ‘Tamil’ on Spotify to find songs, albums, and even playlists. Also, we recently announced the âsearch by lyricsâ feature, where listeners can write any part of a songâs lyrics in the Spotify search bar, they will be able to find the song. We also have nearly 140 Tamil playlists made by our local editorial team to ensure listeners have the best music experience.
What kind of music and podcasts do Indians consume most on the platform?
In terms of music, over the past year, we have seen that Bollywood, international pop, hip-hop and Punjabi non-film music has been streamed in high volumes on the platform.
How have users used the app since the lockdown?
The way listeners spend time now is very different from how they did a few months ago. And we have seen this shift in the way users listen to music and podcasts. When it comes to music consumption on Spotify in India, currently there is a good balance between international and local music. In terms of local music, the demand for film music continues to be steady, but there has been a steady increase in non-film and independent (Indie) music.
The podcast format is popular in the North. Tamilnadu is yet to warm up to it. Is Spotify planning to explore it?
We have invested much in localising our product including offering local Tamil podcasts for listeners. In fact, some of the most popular Tamil podcasts on Spotify include Yours Positively, Om Creem, The Unspoken Ft. RJ Vaithee, Tamil Storyteller, Pagutharivu and Naanga Pesuvom.