Spotify’s «Get Ready With Music» playlist: How does my outfit sound?

Spotify is one of the handful of apps that jostle for the top three most used toys on my iPhone each month. No wonder: life’s only half as good without the right soundtrack. Then there’s my close relationship with podcasts – we’ve been serious for about three years. There’s actually hardly a moment when I’m not blasting the Swedish streaming service in some form.

When I was scrolling through the endless expanse of the handy audio library recently, an intrusive pop-up interrupted me while I was looking for the next song. «Get Ready With Music», Spotify suggested, promising to generate the ideal playlist based on my … outfit. Okaaaay. How does … my outfit sound?

Attempt 1: getting stuff done – or not

I’m already interested. With a tap of my finger on «Let’s go», I’m there and right in the middle of it all. First, the app wants to know what I’m getting ready for. I can choose between scenarios such as partying, chilling out, working out, and the first thing I pick is the resolution «getting stuff done».

Next, I’m supposed to use an interactive colour wheel to determine the palette that matches my outfit. Because they are currently my favourite tones, I pick blue, green and purple. So far, so easy. The next step is a bit more abstract. Spotify wants to know the vibe of my outfit. Fuzzy? Flowing? Voluminous? Glittery? Well, good question. I opt for crisp, which is probably the closest to my style.

It’s almost done. All that’s missing is my name – easy – and a photo of my look. Erm, no. The app already has more information about me than I would like, so I don’t have to upload a picture of myself as well. I gratefully accept the offer to skip this step. «Do not add a photo», thanks, done.

A pair of sunglasses and other accessories fly across my smartphone screen in a purple bubble. My personal playlist, which matches my style exactly, is now complete. «Getting stuff done». Here we go. My «colour code»: black, blue, blue. What happened to the green and purple? It doesn’t matter. It’s really exciting. I start the playlist. And I’m a bit clueless. I know exactly three of the 30 curated artists. None of the songs even come close to my taste or algorithm. Does any of this sound crisp, black, or blue? I haven’t got the faintest idea.

Disappointed, I browse through the titles on offer and decide to give the feature a second chance.

Attempt 2: party, party, party

OK, so it’s the whole procedure again. My outfit screams party – this time I want orange, pink and green to prevail in the colour wheel – and the vibe: voluminous. Yes, my name’s still Laura. No, I don’t want to upload a photo of myself this time either. Done.

«Hold Me Closer» by Elton John and Britney Spears? If I must. Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello’s «Señorita»? Really?! «Swalla» by Jason Derulo, Nicki Minaj and Ty Dolla $ign? I guess. I’m not in much of a party mood. The only voluminous thing is my puzzled expression. I don’t feel lifted by the second playlist either. Not at all.

My verdict

Tell me, Spotify: What’s this supposed to mean? You make me mixtapes. You know what I listen to «On Repeat» and you pull a «Release Radar» out of a hat every Friday. At the end of each year, you let me know who my favourite artist is, how many hours I’ve listened to podcasts, and what genre I’m more and less keen on with frighteningly accurate stats. I thought you knew me. And I thought you knew what your strengths are. Namely, listening histories and algorithms. Where have they gone with your new feature «Get Ready With Music»?

I’m not convinced. Actually, I’m a bit disappointed. I still love the app, but I can do without this crazy idea. Anyone who still wants to try it needs a Spotify account and this link: getreadywithmusic.byspotify.com.

Let me know in the comments if your style sounds better than mine.