The Mixtape Methodology
If you grew up in the era of cassette tapes or CDs, you probably made or received a mixtape, I've always enjoyed designing the experience. I remember spending hours crafting the perfect collection of songs. Then labeling and decorating the cover with drawings and photos.
Every mix has its theme and served its purpose. It's about telling a story and guiding the user through a journey. Sometimes the playlist is for friends whom you want to share new music with that you think they might like. Other times they're for a special occasion, party, or road trip. Maybe they're meant to express words and feeling for someone you like. More often, the playlist is just for yourself. Whatever the situation, music is an escape. It can help you feel better, relaxed, get aggression out, or to be there in the background while you're driving or at work.
“Now, the making of a good compilation tape is a very subtle art. Many do's and don'ts. First of all, you're using someone else's poetry to express how you feel. This is a delicate thing.” – High Fidelity
The curating of a playlist is an exercise in design methodology.
Empathize
When applying design thinking to the creation of a playlist you need to understand your audience & define the purpose of the mix.
Define
Determine what you want the user to feel when listening to the compilation. Experiences are often understood by how people think and feel moment-by-moment when interacting positively with a mixtape.
Ideate
Ideation is a crucial step in the design process. It is about brainstorming and gathering songs. It's time to focus on the main goal, which is being creative and coming up with as many ideas as possible.
Prototype
At this point, you're eliminating and reordering songs. Prototyping the solution and increasing fidelity through iterations. I like to limit my playlist to around 20 songs or around an hour of music.
Test
Here is where the playlist is finally coming together. Testing is used to validate design requirements. You've probably listened to the mix 100 times and you're feeling pretty good about it.
Deploy
Now, you're ready to share out your creation.
Experience design is like a good mixtape. From cassette tapes to Spotify playlists, the format and the technologies are continuously evolving. While it's ridiculous to impose any unbreakable rules, there are many ways to impose some order on the chaos. If you follow these tips, you might not make the perfect experience, but you should be able to make a damn good one.
Check out my playlists to get you through the craziness.
My Spotify Wrapped Review
The worst time of year is being misperceived by my own Spotify.
I've spent the past week analyzing what Spotify thinks are my most-played songs and artists.
I've spent the past week analyzing what Spotify thinks are my most-played songs and artists.
Spotify Wrapped. Stop judging me!
The music streaming service uses machine learning and human curation to provide personalized descriptors based on listening history, but many users felt their year-end playlists were random and irrelevant.
I started the year obsessed with Coastal GrandDaddy Yacht Rock. This might be my biggest Wrapped flex. I need a t-shirt with that slogan.
Spotify referred to February as my VanlLife Folkie Stomp and Holler phase because I was "really" into The Lumineer. What does that mean??
Spotify referred to February as my VanlLife Folkie Stomp and Holler phase because I was "really" into The Lumineer. What does that mean??
Just because I listen to a song 432 times one random Tuesday doesn't make it my favorite.
You don't even know me.
By April, I was looping Vampire Weekend and Last Dinner Party in my Surf Crush Beach Indie season.
My Summer vibe was addicted to Pink Pilates Princess Roller Skate Pop. Ok, I did get HOTTOGO with Chappell Roan.
My Summer vibe was addicted to Pink Pilates Princess Roller Skate Pop. Ok, I did get HOTTOGO with Chappell Roan.
Then, they called me an overachiever for being in the .00005% of listeners globally for this artist, which is low-key cringe and stalker-like.
Like most Gen X, I listened to The Cure in November, which Spotify has defined as my MallGoth Synth New Wave moment. I resent the term mallgoth.
Seriously, Spotify asked me how I found time to listen to them so much!
Just imagine the musical blackmail Spotify has on each of us.
I agree that using AI can be a beneficial tool. It’s important to adapt to the growing roles of new technologies, but it's an issue when the line between human creativity and automatic response becomes blurred and disconnected.
I agree that using AI can be a beneficial tool. It’s important to adapt to the growing roles of new technologies, but it's an issue when the line between human creativity and automatic response becomes blurred and disconnected.
Let's approach AI with the mindset that it can be a powerful tool for efficiency, but there is a time when its use is overreaching.
What embarrassing songs and artists appeared on your Spotify Wrapped?
