The Homogenization of Music: How Streaming Platforms Are Shaping Our Soundscape
The study by Johannes Petry and Niklas Kullick examines how streaming platforms have transformed music into a financially-driven, homogeneous product. The shift towards 'platformisation' and 'financialisation' has standardized tracks, leading to a reduction in musical diversity. Playlists, rather than traditional sales, now dominate the music industry's value creation.
As streaming platforms like Spotify revolutionize music production and consumption, the result is a homogenized soundscape, according to new research by Johannes Petry and Niklas Kullick. The pair explore how the platform's financial priorities shape our listening experience, often at the expense of creativity.
Their analysis of hip-hop tracks from Apple's 2002 playlist and Spotify's 2022 RapCaviar highlights a marked similarity in today's music—shorter durations, consistent tempos, and uniform lyrics dominated by auto-tuned vocals. Financial assets and future subscriptions have taken precedence over artistic expression, positioning music more as an investment product than an art form.
The findings underscore a broader shift in the cultural sector toward scalability and algorithmic compatibility. As streaming services wield greater influence, it calls into question the promised democratization of music and emphasizes the need to reassess the industry's financial-driven model. Artists are increasingly vocal about these constraints as generative AI further threatens originality.
(With inputs from agencies.)
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