This book was so, so informative and is so, so important. It absolutely blew the lid off all the shady stuff Spotify does to keep you listening and pay artists close to nothing. Ever wonder why “Espresso” auto-played after every playlist you ever had in summer 2024? Pelly addresses it. Ever wonder why Spotify makes up weird names for genres they put in your Wrapped or Daylist? It’s actually strategy to manipulate musicians into making Spotify more money.

While this didn’t put me off using Spotify entirely, I don’t think it was meant to. Instead, it’s made me a more careful consumer of this ubiquitous service. For instance, using music discovery tools outside of Spotify or the other streaming platforms. And also not using the AI DJ or other enhanced recommendation tools in Spotify.

I believe this book is incredibly important to read for the average Spotify listener, or those who care about what we can do to support artists in the music industry. This is the ultimate book to answer your questions.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

as a psychology researcher (who isn't in tech), i just wanted more about how fields such as neuroscience and the study of emotions are influencing big tech as well as how social factors like generational wealth or race play into the success (or lack there of) of musicians. mood machine is very well researched i will say, but as someone who has kept up with the practices of spotify for years due to my own curiosity (mainly because ai scares me a little) as well as when i was a teenager and found out about spotify's shady practices towards artists through that taylor swift wsj op ed, it took me a long time to get through because i just wasn't that interested as the commentary took a backseat to the facts (which is good though). i just wish the policy piece that was tacked onto the end was fleshed out a bit more but talking about ubi in depth in what it means to artists might be a bit too radical for a spotify non-fiction.

First of all, Mood Machine was incredibly well researched. While not an artist myself, I have been following the way Spotify mistreats their artists for years through smaller artists I support. This book provides excellent insights into how that happens, and how the company was built on the foundations of doing so. Additionally, as someone who got my Spotify Wrapped back with "pink metropolitan pilates princess strut" (or something to that effect) and thought "WTF does that even mean?", it was nice to have some of the elements the consumers are confused about as well. Great nonfiction read for those with an interest in arts/pop culture!

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for granting me an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. It is available now.

3.5 stars, rounded up. Mood Machine by Liz Pelly is a deep dive into Spotify, its history, how it has impacted the music industry, and how it impacts artists. Liz Pelly interviewed over one hundred people for this very thoroughly researched book, including former Spotify employees and musicians directly impacted by our current culture of streaming.

I think the best part of this book is how obvious it is that Pelly deeply cares about the subject that she is writing about. This book felt so thoroughly researched and I definitely learned a lot about the music industry, how Spotify came to be the powerhouse it is today, and why it does artists such a disservice. This is a very fact heavy book and as such, can be very dense at times. While I love non-fiction, I think I struggle with books like this one, that feel a lot like a textbook. I had a hard time connecting with the book, which is not necessarily the books fault. The author achieved what I believed she set out to do but that didn't make for an entirely enjoyable read. Finally, I found the conclusion to be kind of lacking. Throughout the whole book, I was eagerly anticipating what her alternatives would be. But really, all I came away with was changing all of society and how capitalism works. Which obviously is not feasible as an immediate replacement to streaming services like Spotify, Apple, and Amazon.

While this was not a new favorite, I think if you are really interested in the music industry (and specifically how streaming has changed the industry) you might be interested in picking this up!

3 stars! This was a very interesting read as someone who doesn't know much about the music industry, especially the streaming side of things. This is not my typical genre of book, but I am glad that I expanded my horizons a bit! I do find investigations into companies or scandals quite interesting, and this definitely had a lot of information that I piqued my curiosity. Really the only thing that was difficult for me with this book is at times it felt that the same chunk of information about a certain subtopic was repeated multiple times. It had me confused a bit, but I honestly think it was just that there was so much information under each larger umbrella, that there was just enormous amounts of detail to be unpacked! I think that the author has a fantastic investigative voice, and did make a lot of the information easy to understand and digest. I had truly no idea how shady some of Spotify's practices were, and I enjoyed gaining such a different perspective on the streaming business. The only reason I didn't rate this higher is because it's just not my favorite type of book, but I still found it very intriguing and well written. I would highly recommend this to lovers of nonfiction and investigative journalism!

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria for the ARC of this title.

This is a fantastic deep dive into the rise of Spotify and how it's commodified (and warped) ambient listening to put things into its favor. I wish I expected this to lead to actual change, but this should at least serve as a wake-up call for how we use these services and consume music.

I requested this book because I wanted to understand the "hype" of Spotify. I am not a playlist kind of person cause I listen to the same music I listen to from childhood to 2015. I didn't even have a free Spotify account.

I thought overall this was very informative and it kind of validated why I stopped listening to the radio because a lot of music sounds the same or is very repetitive. I'll stick to the playlist made by me with over 2,ooo songs.

I got an e-arc of this book on NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This one was interesting and complicated much like the subject itself. I really appreciated the look at how much data Spotify is collecting on us and how it is really impacting artists. I also liked that she acknowledges how complicated “fixing” this would be. However, for an author with such a strong POV, the book kind of peters out as it moves away from its original thesis. Instead of feeling energized and emboldened with this new information, the final chapters of the book left me feeling like, “Whelp there is nothing I can do about this.” I still think it is worth the read if you use Spotify or are interested in how algorithms are shaping our music culture, but definitely don’t go into it looking for solutions or next steps. It comes out tomorrow. Thank you to Netgalley and Atria for the advance copy!

Mood Machine: The Rise of Spotify and the Costs of the Perfect Playlist by Liz Pelly

This is an in depth analysis of the streaming app Spotify. Pelly takes the reader on a deep dive into the history of how Spotify became one of the more popular music streaming apps and exactly how they are using artists, record labels and consumers to profit.

In a world where we talk about how our data is used this book gives a new insight into how that is used in terms of selling the users music. This is a very interesting read if you are looking for an informational non-fiction story to dig deep into the world of streaming. I learned a lot about what and how data is collected from everything I do on Spotify and how that data just from what songs I like can dictate so many ways things are sold to me. It isn’t a new idea of how our data is sold and used but the different lens was eye opening.

The different ways that this like royalties are manipulated for smaller artists, bigger name artists and even the record labels was really interesting as well. If you are someone who likes to gain additional knowledge into technology and how it is now being shaped this is a great one for you to pick up. Also if you are one who never wants to read non-fiction this might be one that would draw you attention enough to want to read more in this genre.

I love a pop culture nonfiction book. I love how data and social media completely shaped our lives. This was a fantastic breakdown of the financial complexities behind the music industry and our need to have everything at our fingertips. The way the technology is controlling everything in our lives, including the music we listen to is fascinating. my two sisters are Spotify maniacs. I’m going to be sure to make them read this book. Very well researched!

Thank you #netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

If anyone knows me, it's that I have a playlist created for everything. Dentist office? Check. Shower songs I'm not embarrassed to sing in my college communal bathroom. Check. 3 different playlists for Christmas? Check.

That being said, Liz Pelly's Mood Machine: The Rise of Spotify and the Costs of the Perfect Playlist considerably influenced how I view Spotify and its self-serving, capitalistic practices. Pelly does a phenomenal deep dive into how Spotify got its start and how its focus has shifted since its beginning.

One of my favorite chapters focuses on the rise of lofi music on Spotify and how ghostwriters occupy a large portion of the space on Spotify's created playlists. Ironically, I was reading this chapter while listening to lofi music (however, I was on a plane and was unable to check the legitimacy of the songs' artists).

At times, the narrative and flow of the book was bogged down by just the sheer amount of facts; however, this just serves as a testament to how well-researched this book is. I highly, highly recommend this book to anyone who listens to music (as you all should!).

Thank you to Atria Books for an E-Arc of this book! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This book is a goldmine for anyone in the music industry, especially aspiring music journalists like me. Pelly masterfully breaks down the financial and statistical complexities of the industry, making them accessible even for readers without a background in money or law.

The standout feature is her dedication to interviewing a diverse range of professionals in music, offering rich, firsthand insights. The book is densely packed with valuable information, making it an essential resource for industry newcomers and veterans alike.

However, the ending felt a bit choppy and repetitive. Trimming down some of the overlapping topics could have improved the overall flow. Despite this minor flaw, the book remains an exceptional guide for understanding the inner workings of the music world.

3.5

A very well researched book, Mood Machine is a look at the inception and rise of Spotify, the methods behind its madness and the continuing conversation around royalty payments. I found the chapters around the insidious practice of “ghost artists” and AI generated content incredibly eye opening and interesting- it’s something I didn’t know about and found myself opening the app to look up some of these playlists.

I found some new playlists, but it also caused me to think a bit more critically about what I’m consuming and using everyday.

I found it a little long, and I think it would appeal to any musicians or those who are in the music industry or music industry “adjacent”. I would have enjoyed more on audio I think, but I can’t see Spotify adding it to their catalogue ;)

An incredibly detailed and critical evaluation of Spotify's founding, history, and present. With the circulation of the article of Spotify's AI musicians, this should be required follow up reading for anyone wanting to understand Spotify's inner workings and the why of how we got to where we did today with music streaming.

Starting with Spotify's founding as both a Pirate Bay alternative and with the intent of an advertising company, rather than a music company, we learn how Spotify has morphed music consumption from grassroots discovery to editor-curated playlists to mood-based playlists to algorithmic playlists so personalized users end up in their own musical silos. Liz Pelly also goes in depth on how this has impacted musicians in terms of what they need to do to be noticed on the platform and how even playing the streaming game is antithetical to being an artist.

One of the most striking quotes in the book is an employee recollecting Daniel Ek, the CEO of Spotify, said "Apple Music, Amazon, these aren't our competitors. Our only competitor is silence." Even more frightening are the details around the rampant surveillance capitalism where every single click on the app is tracked in some way to then be monetized back to artists and labels.

This book has really changed the way I think about Spotify and I recommend it to anyone wanting to understand the complexities behind streaming culture and also some of the rays of light around how folks are working to make music consumption better for the musicians. I will note that the book can feel quite slow, and is, understandably, pretty gloomy - but the research within is incredible and worth reading.

Thank you very much to Atria Books and to NetGalley for the advanced copy.

Incredibly interesting deep dive into Spotify and how it's changed the way we listen to music. I am such a huge fan of Liz Pelly so getting her take and research on this topic was a treat!

DNF--too in the weeds for me. It is unfortunate because the premise of the book sounded interesting.

Do you use Spotify? Do you get excited when Wrapped comes out each December? Do you spend time wondering how the algorithm works and how songs are recommended to you? That’s how I came in to reading Mood Machine.

I learned a lot while reading this - so many sections highlighted and I had lots of conversations about it as I read. However there were also parts that felt a little bogged down for me with too much information. It covered a lot of topics related to Spotify and some definitely resonated more with me than others. I look forward to discussing this more with friends as they read it. Also curious to see if Spotify will carry the audiobook haha.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the free ebook to review.

This is not just a basic history lesson on the founding of a multi-million dollar tech company: this is a larger conversation on the music industry at large. Liz Pelly has interview & anecdotal material that goes deep into the industry at large. It was highly informative to learn about the significant changes streaming has made to the industry at large, and how Spotify is not the champion of the “level playing field” it claims to be.

This is not normally my type of book - I rarely read business & finance - but this was well researched and presented in an accessible way. Pelly is clearly very knowledgeable on the subject.

Overall an educating - and slightly anger-inducing - read!

Thank you to NetGalley, Liz Pelly, and Atria Books for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I had really high hopes for the history of Spotify and learning about the underbelly of the music industry. Brought me back to my college days downloading songs on limewire and Kazaa. This was a bit too dense for me and I had a hard time getting into it.

Thank you Netgalley and Atria Books | Atria/One Signal Publishers for the advanced reader copy.

How often do you take a moment to consider how something you use frequently actually was created and functions? For many fans of music, Spotify has for many years seemed like a great way to listen to your favorite artists, discover new ones or create your own playlists. But, as with many of the widely used wonders of the internet age, there are hidden costs to using Spotify, both to the consumers, musicians and our cultural creativity. Liz Pelly's Mood Machine: The Rise of Spotify and the Costs of the Perfect Playlist based on extensive research and interviews traces Spotify from its 2006 origins as a commercial content sharing platform to its present incarnation that seeks to be the definitive place for recorded audio content, be it music, podcasts or audiobooks.

Chapters are arranged thematically, but the narrative unfolds mostly chronologically. From the origins, the eventual decision to focus on music in the wake of peer-to-peer sharing controversies through the agreements with major labels and the setting of royalties. And while widely assumed to be at least a penny, the figure received by the majority of artists could be 0.0035 per stream or less. Pelly continually shows that despite how Spotify attempts to portray themselves as a heroic or ethical alternative to piracy , or that they support artists, in general the major label artists are still the ones benefiting the most from the music industry.

A continual focus is on the way Spotify functions and despite making its owners lots of money, generally does not turn much of a profit. Ways the owners have streamlined operations is to have sound alike recordings, first by session musicians and now by AI produced content. Both of which Spotify is likely to have a stake in the recording company responsible and can therefore pay lower or no royalties. These tracks are then in turn used to populate widely used playlists. As yes another company competing in the attention economy, musicians looking to make a name for themselves have followed the trends changing their sound or song writing process to better match what is currently popular on Spotify. And much like with Amazon, or other companies trying to capture our attention, everything is tracked. That data in turn can then be sold to other parties.

As someone who worked and took part in an independent music scene, Pelly convincingly argues that our present streaming did not have to happen this way, and that there are still other ways of disseminating and sharing music. The latter of these points is explored in the conclusion.

Mood Machine is a hard look at the state of the music industry in our streaming age that shows the major labels are still in control and that their are other options, but change will require legal changes and more direct support of artists.

Recommend to readers of modern music, technology, or business.