Google Play has added its first original podcast series to its music service. Called City Soundtracks, the series will consist of interviews with musicians. And not just any interviews either. The focus of these particular interviews will be upon just how the works created and propagated by these musicians were influenced by their hometowns.
Announcing the latest addition, Google said:
Love discovering new places? Love music? Google Play Music has you covered with our first original podcast series—City Soundtracks. Hear your favorite musicians talk about important people, places, and moments in their lives, and how their hometown roots have influenced them.
Episodes will see host Hrishikesh Hirway ( famous for Song Exploder, West Wing Weekly) invite and participate in conversations with musicians about what makes them, what they are. Each episode will feature an interesting cocktail of music and conversation.
What’s more, the playlists running in the background will be curated by the guest himself/herself. So do expect some interesting music to come your way. The episodes themselves are byte sized and the longest is merely 15 minutes long.
Meanwhile, Google appears to be testing consumer response to original content. After all, the service is free and anyone who is signed in with their Google account can listen in on the podcast. So Google doesn’t really appear to have its eyes upon revenue at this point. Instead, the company is focusing upon gauging customer response.
The company may also be testing a new format of content. A mixture of music and reminiscence by musicians is certain to be something in the way of novelty. From discovering interesting new places to interesting new music, listeners will have a unique opportunity to listen to things straight from the horses mouth.
You can tune in and listen the the first few episodes from the podcast right here. Click here to listen to Kehlani talk about how growing up in and around Oakland, CA impacted her music. You can also hear the Queen of Bounce, Big Freedia talk about New Orleans, LA. Finally, there is Spoon, whose members Britt Daniel and Jim Eno take you on a musical tour of Austin, Texas
