Story by
Josh Ong
Josh Ong is the US Editor at The Next Web. He previously worked as TNW's China Editor and LA Reporter. Follow him on Twitter or email him a Josh Ong is the US Editor at The Next Web. He previously worked as TNW's China Editor and LA Reporter. Follow him on Twitter or email him at [email protected].
Twitter’s #Music app made some noise when it first arrived in April, but it has largely gone quiet. The company is taking another stab at the effort, this time with a Spotify app that surfaces music popular on Twitter.
Much like the Web interface on Twitter’s #Music site, the Spotify app features sections for Superstars, Popular, Emerging, Unearthed and Hunted. Those first three categories are self-explanatory, but Unearthed finds “hidden talent found in the tweets” and Hunted shows music that’s popular on blogs. Each of the categories can be added to Spotify as a playlist.
The #NowPlaying feature is missing from the app, presumably because it would require authorizing your own Twitter account from within Spotify.
The app also includes featured genres: Alternative, Country, Dance, Electronic, Folk, Hip Hop, Metal, Pop, RnB and Rock, but it’s not clear whether all of these lists have been generated from Twitter data.
As you’d expect, Twitter prominently displays artists’ @usernames throughout the app and includes links to view on Twitter.com.
This doesn’t mean that Twitter has given up on its dedicated #Music app for iOS. Last week, the app got an update that added the ability to interact with tweets located within the #NowPlaying section, following a significant update that appeared in August.
Twitter’s new Spotify app plays to its strengths. I’m much more likely to make use of #Music from within Spotify than as a standalone app or website. Twitter has plenty of data that can be helpful, but that information will work best in cooperation with dedicated music services. In this sense, #Music could thrive as a powerful music data platform, similar to The Echo Nest, that provides recommendations and discovery for consumer streaming services.
➤ Twitter #Music [Spotify]
Image credit: AFP / Getty Images
Get the TNW newsletter
Get the most important tech news in your inbox each week.
