Spotify Wrapped sucked this year

Say bye-bye to human creativity as Spotify uses artificial intelligence to create treasured wrapped playlists

For those who use Spotify, the end of November or early December marks an important date for all music lovers. During this time, millions of users wait to see their top songs, favourite artists, most played genre and the total minutes spent listening to music. For many — including myself — it’s a digital capsule. A way to reflect on the music that defined my year, but this time, something felt off. To put it bluntly, Spotify Wrapped 2024 missed the mark and it felt like a slap to the face. It didn’t live up to many people’s expectations compared to Spotify’s previous years. 

Being a user since 2017, I was always excited to see my Wrapped as Spotify makes cold data feel personal. By that I mean, it turns numbers into a story about who we are, what we love, our music taste, our auras and so much more. Somehow, it can show us how we have grown throughout the year and which artists have resonated with us more. But this year, Spotify seemed to lose sight of what makes the experience so special. Instead of delivering something insightful or memorable, the platform served up AI-generated content, inaccuracies, a product that felt rushed and a lack of human creativity. 

One report stated that Spotify laid off 1,500 employees earlier this year. Many on social media have speculated that the company made the move to cut costs, avoid paying workers and lean more heavily on AI to produce the 2024 Wrapped. Hence why people argued that 2024 Wrapped felt like crap and was incorrect.  

I have always loved Spotify’s marketing and app features, especially during the wrapped season. They have always tried to balance creativity with functionality. Sure, past additions leaned more into silliness, but they felt engaging and relatively meaningful. There was no “top genre” and nothing to make this 2024 version special. There was a lack of goofiness, artist specials, no categorization of one’s personality and so on. It felt like Spotify didn’t care about their users and gave them content that felt like a year’s summary instead of something more personal and reflective. 

On top of that, the algorithm seemed off. Within hours of Wrapped’s release, people flooded social media to call out listening stats that didn’t add up. Many argued that a song played once in February ended up as their most-streamed track of the year. How does that make sense? Not only that but, how did a random artist you barely remember outranked your top favourites? Similarly, I have had the same problem. Some of my top artists and songs made no sense. I spent more time listening to Travis Scott, but I ended up with an artist that I barely played. Some of these results were so out of touch that they hovered on buffoonery. 

The experience also felt hollow. Spotify spent weeks hyping wrapped with teaser campaigns, countdowns and graphics. By the time it dropped, expectations were sky-high and when users opened the app, the excitement was soon met with disappointment. Beyond the “visuals” and shareable slides, there wasn’t anything more. 

At its core, Spotify wrapped has always been about connection. Music is personal — it tells us things about ourselves that we don’t know, and it’s tied to moments, emotions and memories. The songs we listened to on repeat after a breakup, the playlist that got us through hard times or the album that defined our year. Wrapped is supposed to reflect those experiences, but now it feels more like a generic ad rather than the deeper meaning that music plays in our lives. 

It also doesn’t help that the competition is catching up. Apple Music, once dismissed as a weak imitation of Spotify, now offers regular listening updates throughout the year. Platforms like Amazon or YouTube Music are also stepping up with recaps that are clean, accurate and engaging. 

The issue with Spotify Wrapped 2024 shows that AI isn’t always the answer. AI can be helpful, but when it comes to something creative like a yearly recap, it can do more harm than good. Spotify is a creative company, and instead of relying on an AI model to produce low-quality content, they need real creative people who understand people’s needs and their emotions.  

Nonetheless, Spotify Wrapped is still a fun tradition. Most of us will keep sharing our results, even if they don’t make sense, because it’s part of the end-of-year routine. However, I strongly feel that if Spotify wants to keep wrapped relevant, it needs to go back to the basics; accuracy, depth and features that feel personal. Until then, Spotify will take for granted its top place and will risk losing what made wrapped so special.  


This article was originally printed in Volume 24, issue 5 on January 9, 2025.

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