Spotify is testing Instagram-like stories feature on its playlists

Stories is a popular feature on almost all social-media platforms such as Instagram, Snapchat, YouTube, and even on the messaging app WhatsApp. Now Spotify is testing a similar feature on its music streaming platform.

The feature was initially spotted on Spotify’s Christmas Hits playlist. The company updated the playlist on Friday, and now the playlist page is showing Instagram-like stories which can be accessed from the top of the page. A circular image is placed on top of the playlist title, with a text dialog on top which says “Tap to see this story.”

Each story on the Christmas Hits playlist includes an artist sharing a message or personal anecdotes of their Christmas memories using short videos. Some of the artists on the stories include Jennifer Lopez, Kelly Clarkson, and Pentatonix. Similar Stories have reportedly started to appear on other Spotify-created playlists, such as the emo rap playlist Tear Drop, as well as on the enhanced version of Megan Thee Stallion’s album Good News.

There is no innovation or change in this feature though, as the interface is similar, if not, exactly the same as it is on other social-media platforms. Tapping left and right takes you to previous and next story, while single tap and hold allows you to pause the current story.

The 24-hour self-destructing Stories feature was originally introduced in Snapchat, which later made its way into Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, YouTube, and now even Twitter (Fleets). Though it is still not clear how Spotify is going to implement this feature, as there is a stark difference between the aforementioned social-media and messaging platforms, and the music streaming platform. So far, it appears to be limited to official playlists and artists.

It is important to note that this is only a test. In a statement made to Engadget, a Spotify spokesperson said, “At Spotify, we routinely conduct a number of tests in an effort to improve our user experience. Some of those tests end up paving the path for our broader user experience and others serve only as an important learning. We have no further news to share on future plans at this time.”

This is, however, not the first time Spotify has tested a feature like this. In January, TechCrunch reported that Spotify was testing a similar feature for influencers, which allowed them to introduce their playlists to their followers using stories. Another feature called ‘Storyline’ was being tested back in 2019, which had Instagram-like story interface and showed up below the now-playing screen. The cards or stories displayed posts made by Artists, which contained information related to the song currently being played.