One hundred billion streams and countless Monday morning surprises later, Spotify is finally admitting what we’ve all been thinking: sometimes the algorithm needs a little direction. After a decade of Discover Weekly serving up everything from death metal to lullabies in the same 30-track rotation, Premium subscribers can now actually tell the playlist what they’re in the mood for.
The June 30th update introduces genre selection buttons—pop, R&B, funk, hip-hop, and more—sitting right at the top of your Discover Weekly interface. Think of it as training wheels for your taste profile, except these wheels actually make the ride better instead of slowing you down.
Your Premium subscription now unlocks a carousel of genre buttons that focus the algorithm’s attention without completely hijacking the surprise factor. Tap “funk” and suddenly your Monday playlist leans heavily into groove-heavy basslines and syncopated rhythms. The interface also previews upcoming recommendations, letting you snooze tracks for 30 days or remove them entirely from future rotations. These controls arrive as Spotify prepares its rumored ‘Music Pro’ tier, which promises concert ticket access and enhanced AI features for power users willing to pay premium prices.
This isn’t just cosmetic surgery on an aging playlist—it’s Spotify acknowledging that pure algorithmic discovery sometimes feels like being trapped in your own listening history. The new controls live in the “Made For You” hub requiring the latest app update to access.
For years, Discover Weekly users complained about genre whiplash and repetitive recommendations that felt more like algorithmic stuttering than thoughtful curation. These updates directly address those pain points while preserving the playlist’s core mission: connecting listeners with emerging artists.
The numbers tell the story of that mission’s success. Of Discover Weekly’s 100 billion streams over the past decade, 77% went to up-and-coming artists—a discovery pipeline that reportedly converts 2 million listeners into genuine fans every week. This update could amplify that conversion rate by giving users more agency over their exploration journey.
The timing aligns with Spotify’s broader push toward user-influenced discovery, following their AI DJ feature and conversational playlist generation tools. While competitors scramble to match Spotify’s personalization prowess, this update reinforces why Discover Weekly remains the gold standard for algorithmic music discovery.
The real genius isn’t the genre buttons—it’s preserving the element of surprise while letting you choose your own adventure. Sometimes you need the algorithm to read the room, and now it finally can.
