Today is Spotify Wrapped day so, rather than just posting the images in a social media thread, I’d write a blog and not deal with the character limit.
(Addendum: I’m also aware that I’ve called this Spotify Unwrapped across the whole post, forgetting that it’s Wrapped. There is an actual thing called Spotify Unwrapped that highlights how little artists get paid for Spotify streams and while I’m a hypocrite for saying this, I fully support the idea and Spotify should cough up.)
Minutes listened
I can't remember how many minutes I listened on Spotify last year but it was probably more. After listening to 730 albums in 2023, I needed a break from constant music listening so I focused on what I loved and the new stuff I was excited about. You'll see that in the next images. I have no idea what I was listening to on 17th January either but it must have been good.
My 2024 Music Evolution
January set the tone for the rest of the year but “chill beats lo-fi” doesn’t quite do it justice. Wun Two, Ahwlee, and Walterwarm don’t make those kind of mediocre, heavily compressed, piano-driven slow beats you hear seemingly everywhere. There’s real artistry in their production and that’s why I listen to them so much.
February kept the vibe going, adding Dilla and Knxwledge to the mix; legends of their craft.
Then May went in a completely different direction thanks to Justice’s new album, Hyperdrama. Boy, was I obsessed! And of course, Daft Punk, Modjo, and Alan Braxe followed.
Top song and artist
Yep, this checks out. I LOVED Hyperdrama and had it regularly on repeat from when the singles dropped earlier in the year all the way through to June. I missed them a lot and with the Olympics being held in Paris as well, it felt like a very French 2024 from a cultural perspective.
As for my top artist, those 1,516 minutes aren’t even close to how much I really listened to Ahwlee on all platforms. I’m a huge fan of his work and the album that featured the most amongst those minutes was his Final Fantasy 7 album, VII. It’s a comfort album and a sampling masterpiece. The arrangements are off the chart and heavily influenced my NOQUEST series.
Top 5 songs and artists
The rest is history. Justice carried me through the first half of the year, with Gabriel Garzón-Montano peppered throughout 2024 with his infectious single, MARMALADE (it’s a good song to brush your teeth to, btw!)
For the top artists, I’ve spoken about Ahwlee and Justice already but it’s nice to the other 3 still in my top 5 from last year. I’m always going to listen to Zero 7 over and over. Wun Two is so easy to just put on and let him run with really smooth loops. And Seal, my man! I listened to a lot of his music while shiny hunting in Pokémon Violet (particularly for shiny Forretress).
And that’s it! Nothing out of the ordinary and a perfect representation of what I listen to.