by Liz Pelly
First published 2025
Spotify transformed how we discover and consume music, but at what cost? Music journalist Liz Pelly conducted over a hundred interviews with industry insiders, former Spotify employees, and musicians to reveal the streaming giant's true impact. She exposes how the platform's business model affects both sides of its marketplace: listeners who pay with money and personal data, and artists who supply the content that fuels the system. Pelly uncovers major industry practices like streaming services populating playlists with cheap stock music and new forms of payola. She examines how music has become increasingly automated through playlists, personalization algorithms, and autoplay features. The book reveals the inner workings of today's consolidated record business and shows how streaming has changed the economics of music creation and consumption. Despite documenting the problems with current streaming models, Pelly also highlights musicians fighting for better alternatives and points toward solutions for creating more sustainable systems that properly value music.
Genres: business, non-fiction, music, investigative-journalism, current-affairs
Vibes: balanced, critical, eye-opening, investigative, thought-provoking
Tropes: expos, insider-perspective, solutions-oriented, systemic-critique
Period: 21st century
275 pages · Paperback · Hodder & Stoughton