Spotify Echo, Which Spotlights Indian Classical Instrumental Music, Is Here

More than 45 per cent of Indian classical music listeners are under the age of 25 on Spotify.

Spotify has also announced that its desktop app is getting a visual facelift.

In a bid to highlight the rich cultural heritage of Indian classical music, music streaming giant Spotify has announced "Echo". Indian classical instrumental music is widely consumed in India and globally, by all age groups, data shows. In the last 24 months, for instance, India’s classical music consumption grew by close to 500 per cent on the platform, according to Spotify.

Also, data suggests that the trend is largely driven by younger listeners, with over 45 per cent of Indian classical music listeners being under the age of 25 on Spotify.

To mark World Music Day, Spotify Echo entails three new playlists, and each celebrates an iconic Indian musical instrument as well as features flutist Naveen Kumar, tabla player and multi-percussionist Anuradha Pal, and sitar player Rishab Sharma. Under Echo, Spotify will highlight one musical instrument and delve into its rich cultural heritage through conversations with artists, a look at the legacy of the instrument, and more. The programme also intends to take Indian classical music to a new generation of listeners on the streaming platform.

Spotify has also announced that its desktop app is getting a visual facelift. According to a company blog post, the new "Your library" and "Now playing" sections bring the desktop app in line with the mobile app.

Meanwhile, the Swedish music streaming giant's first quarter (Q1) results said half a billion people, or 515 million people were using Spotify on a monthly basis, in April. This was Spotify's strongest quarter since it was launched in 2018.

To recall, earlier in February, Spotify had announced that its premium subscribers base has hit 205 million, representing a 14 per cent increase YoY. With that addition, Spotify had outpaced the likes of rivals Amazon Music and Apple Music to become the world's first music streaming company to achieve the premium user base.