Spotify introduced SpotifyDJ powered by artificial intelligence from OpenAI, the creators of ChatGPT. The new DJ offers a personalized selection of songs made just for you. It utilizes its machine learning algorithms to figure out which music you’ll like the most. There’s a running commentary with sometimes insightful facts tailored around the songs and artists you’re listening to.
Initially, the AI DJ was only limited to the US and Canada back when it launched in February. Spotify has now expanded this feature to 50 other regions, and you can find it right on your Spotify home screen labeled as “DJ.” They’ve used the voice of their head of cultural partnerships, Xavier Jernigan.
So, I’ve been using the AI DJ for the last month, and here’s what I think about it.
No offline mode with DJ
I’ll start with what I don’t like about the DJ first. Normally, you get an offline mode where you can download and play songs even if you don’t have a working internet connection. It’s only limited to premium subscribers, but so is DJ, so you have to have a premium subscription to try it out.
The DJ doesn’t work offline at all. That’s probably because you cannot possibly save up all the data that trained the AI model on your mobile device. The same is true for all other AI models like Bard or even ChatGPT, which doesn’t pick up results from the internet. This brings me to another important point I want to emphasize – the internet.
Since you have to be connected to the internet to use the DJ, make sure your internet is fast and reliable so you can enjoy seamless playback and enjoy canvases in lossless detail. Consider switching to Xfinity because of its multiple speed options, unlimited data, and affordable prices. Once that’s sorted, and you have a premium subscription, you can try it yourself.
1. Radio without ads
When I first heard the DJ, it was amazing how lifelike it sounded and I was teleported back in time to when radio used to be a thing. Radio’s popularity has been steadily declining for quite some time now, and this feels like an appropriate revival of something minus the bad parts. The bad parts in question are the ads, which are nonexistent on premium plans, and the freedom of choice, also absent on the radio.
The DJ’s voice is very radio-friendly and it provides gapless playback while occasionally chiming in between songs or when you press the DJ button. What it does is switch up the mode or genre and you can skip as many times as you like until you reach a song you like. No waiting around for the DJ to play a banger or changing radio stations until you hear a good song.
2. Playlist with infinite variations
The biggest attraction of using DJ is the AI tech, which does your work for you. You don’t have to spend hours searching for the right song or craft a whole playlist. After every few songs, the DJ switches things up and changes genres or artists, and tells you the mood. For example, joy, hip-hop, hot favorites, etc. It’ll keep picking songs as long as you want it to and you can simply export the songs you like to a new playlist for later.
And if you don’t like the song that’s playing, you can skip it to reach the next one. And if you don’t like the genre, you can hit the little DJ button located on the right bottom side of your screen and it’ll switch the mood. You can even hit the DJ button mid-song and as many times as you like.
3. Personalization
Don’t get me wrong. Rolling with the DJ has been a positive experience overall but there are some things that need to be said. When I first started using it, I felt like it was recycling my liked songs and that is exciting but up to a point. Although it gets better with time, it can get repetitive sometimes. To my surprise, the DJ started recommending new and cool songs that I hadn’t heard before.
I even found two songs that I overheard somewhere but I couldn’t explain it to Google or YouTube or Shazam because I didn’t remember the words and I didn’t know the song title either. Massive thumbs up for that. The more you use it, the better it gets. If you’re looking for new and personalized music recommendations, it’s definitely worth taking a look.
Conclusion
Spotify claims that its users spend a third of their time listening to the DJ, which, to me, seems understandable. You get used to the comfort of having an intelligent music assistant that gets better with time. Playing back-to-back songs, finding new songs, and switching up genres has never been this easier. There’s much to like about this new feature, and you should give it a try if it’s available in your region.