With more time spent scrolling on visual apps like TikTok or Instagram and less time spent scanning the radio, the way to discover new music has undoubtedly changed. Now, Instagram and Spotify have an integration that helps close the gap between you and your new favorite song.
Instagram expands its integration with Spotify to let you save songs directly
If you’re on Instagram, you know that music isn’t new to the app. For some time now, we’ve been able to add songs to our Instagram Reels, Stories, and posts. The social media app has also offered a previous integration with Spotify, with the option to share a song directly from the Spotify app to your Instagram Story.
Somewhat paradoxically, when you encounter a Spotify song shared in a Story, you can’t actually listen to the audio on Instagram. You have to tap play on Spotify, after which you’ll be directed to the music app and listen from there.
Now, things are about to change. With a new update from Instagram and Spotify, which starts rolling out worldwide today, you can add a song to your Spotify Liked Songs list without leaving Instagram. All you have to do is tap on the audio featured in a story or post, and you’ll find a new button to add that song to Spotify.
An Olive Branch for Indie Artists
Both Instagram and Spotify have faced criticism over the past few years for their lack of exposure and general support for emerging music artists. This new integration will certainly help bridge the connection between more musicians and listeners, but will it make up for the behaviors these apps have been accused of, such as Instagram “shadowbanning” independent artists?
The head of Instagram released a video last year promising to introduce transparency-enhancing measures, yet some musicians still feel that their posts are suppressed if they don’t engage in a certain way.
Hopefully, the new feature will not only make it easier for you and me to find new music, but also help artists who are trying to reach new audiences. Switching between apps to listen and save a song might not seem like a big deal, but in today’s world, every second counts. Those little moments of inconvenience might be enough to prevent us from saving the music we’re interested in.
Perhaps, this feature will take Spotify one step closer to becoming the next great social media platform. Whether or not Spotify will actually become its own music-based social network remains to be seen, but in the meantime, it’s integrating strongly with Instagram.