Tag: kids

Introducing Spotify Kids, A New Standalone App for the Next Generation of Listeners

October 30, 2019

Spotify is committed to bringing audio content such as music and stories to more people in more ways–including the next generation of listeners. That’s why we decided to launch a fun standalone app designed with safety in mind specifically for kids and families.*

 

We sat down with Alex Norström, Spotify’s Chief Premium Business Officer, to learn a little more about the app. 

1. Why create a Spotify Kids app now? What can users look forward to?

We know that families love listening together—whether it’s while driving in the car or cooking dinner together in the kitchen. But we also know that family members love to listen on their own too. That’s why we’re so excited to welcome the next generation of listeners—kids—into the Family Plan experience. 

Kids consuming audio content, such as music and stories, isn’t a new phenomenon—in fact, they love it. But most audio experiences were built with adults in mind—meaning they’re not simple, easy, or fun for young kids to use. 

Spotify Kids was born out of the desire to create a playground of sound just for kids—to build a place where younger kids can explore their favorite music and stories in a fun environment. The content is ad-free and hand-picked by a team of editors, and the experience is bursting with color. Our visuals help guide young minds through the app with simple navigation and scaled-back text. Before setting out to explore, each kid can also select a custom avatar and color theme to personalize their experience. 

Spotify Kids is a composite of playlists, which makes it easy for kids to find music and stories from their favorite movies and TV shows or hit plays on a playlist to sing along to during their favorite activity—or their least favorite chore.  

We’re thrilled to beta launch in Ireland and look forward to introducing Spotify Kids in all markets that have Premium Family in the coming months. As we evolve the app experience, we’ll roll out enhanced parental settings and controls for even more customization in an effort to give parents peace of mind. 

2. How is the Spotify Kids app different from the original app? Any unique content?

Spotify Kids is a standalone app available exclusively for Premium Family subscribers and intended for kids ages 3+. The content within Kids is hand-picked by a team of editors, who have nearly 100 years of combined experience curating content for kids. They come from some of the most well-respected brands in this space, including Nickelodeon, Disney, Discovery Kids, and Universal Pictures, as well as Public Service in Sweden and BookBeat, which is a family- and kids-oriented audio streaming service.  

Beyond the content, the entire Spotify Kids user experience looks and feels different from the Spotify app. And that’s intentional. It’s built for kids, with their specific cognitive skills in mind, and exudes a fun, familiar, playful, and bright atmosphere. This look and feel also varies by age group—for example, the artwork for younger kids is softer and character-based, while content for older kids is more realistic and detailed. 

3. Why launch in beta? What are you hoping to learn? 

Having a standalone app specifically for younger kids is a new space for Spotify, and we understand the sensitivities around content for children. We are being very deliberate in our launch approach. We’ve started with a beta launch in Ireland, knowing that this initial roll-out phase will yield many learnings from parents, caregivers and other experts as they begin to interact with the app.

As we evolve the Spotify Kids experience over time, we plan to enhance parental control features to allow for even more customization. We’ll also bring our audio expertise to the table with listening experiences that go beyond music—like more stories and audiobooks and eventually podcasts.

4. As you were building the app, did you tap any external resources? Say, consult with any parent organizations or conduct focus groups?

While launching this kids app is an exciting moment for Spotify, creating it was not a task we took lightly. We knew the importance of understanding parents’ needs and making sure they would have peace of mind about the content their kids are consuming. 

Spotify has spent more than two years learning about this space, and we’ll continue to learn as people begin to interact with the app. We have gathered expert insight from a number of organizations, including the National Children’s Museum in Washington, D.C.,  and conducted our own studies with parents around the world and tapped into our Employee Resource Groups here at Spotify.

Spotify Kids is available starting today in Ireland. Ready to get started? Spotify Premium Family master account holders can simply download Kids from the App Store or Google Play, then sign in to their regular Spotify account. (If you’re new to Spotify, you’ll need to sign up for Premium Family before signing in to Spotify Kids.)

For those outside of Ireland, Kids will be rolling out to all markets that currently have Premium Family. Be sure to check back here for more or check out spotify.com/ie/kids.

*Update March 17, 2020: Spotify Kids has also rolled out in Argentina, Brazil, and Mexico.

Update February 11, 2020: Spotify Kids has also rolled out in the UK and Australia. 

Update November 27, 2019: Spotify Kids has also rolled out in Denmark, Sweden, and New Zealand.

Update May 12, 2020: Spotify Kids has also rolled out in Germany and Japan.

Sing Along to Your Favorite Tunes on Spotify’s New Disney Hub

July 17, 2019

Ever wondered if you’d one day be able to find the music of your favorite talking animals, courageous princesses, and adventurous superheroes all in one place? With Spotify’s new Disney Hub you can find all that—and more—right from the search bar.

Dreams really do come true.

Starting July 17, users in the U.S., U.K., Ireland, South Africa, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand can search “Disney” on Spotify to find a designated hub for the music behind some of their favorite Disney movies and TV shows. Stream playlists full of everything from The Little Mermaid to modern favorites like Frozen, to Star Wars instrumentals, and even Marvel movie soundtracks. Plus, Disney compilations made for every part of your day—road trip, shower, or sleep time—will help ensure your life is nothing short of magical.

So don your Mickey Mouse ears and get ready to listen to some of the Disney playlists on the new hub. Here’s a look at a few of our favorites:

Disney Hits

Stream Disney Hits to hear the top songs from the biggest Disney and Pixar films. 

Disney Favorites

Like Disney Hits, Disney Favorites will have everyone’s favorite current tunes, plus the ones you loved when you were a child. (You’ve still got a friend in me.)

Disney Classics

Kick back with Disney Classics, a nostalgic playlist that includes songs from the Disney Parks, live action and animated classic soundtracks, and songs from Disney Channel originals movies.

Disney Sing-Alongs

From the shower to the car, Disney songs that you can’t help but sing-along to. 

Disney Princess                        

From Belle to Cinderella to Ariel to Moana, Disney Princess has the love ballads as well as the coming-of-age breakaways.

Marvel Music

All the best songs and scores from all your favorite Marvel films and shows.

The Best of Star Wars 

Enter, Darth Vader.

Stay tuned for more of your favorites — the Disney Hub will be updated with additional content as it roars across the screen this summer and throughout the year.

Update December 12, 2019: The Disney Hub has also launched in Japan.

Update January 22, 2020: The Disney Hub has also launched in Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, and Malaysia.

Update March 22, 2021: The Disney Hub has also launched in India.

Five Ways Music Can Help You Keep the Kids Entertained this Winter

January 15, 2019

If you’re a parent in the grips of cold winter weather, you may be feeling the strain of keeping kids happy, especially when they’re forced to be inside. But there’s no need to pull your hair out just yet—here are five ideas for using music to keep kids entertained when they’re feeling cooped up:

Make a Playlist (or ten)!

From as young as age one, kids tend to be exposed to popular music in some form or another, whether through lively Kidz Bop covers, TV shows, viral videos, or what their parents are listening to. And it doesn’t take long for your little ones to figure out—and express—what they like and don’t like. Building a playlist with your kids is not only a great way to keep up with what they’re into, but it also lets them know that their preferences count. Make an afternoon of creating multiple playlists to suit different occasions—commuting to school, baking, tidying up, dancing, homework—and let your kids drive the song choices.

You may need to dip into various playlists to throw out recommendations and help guide them, and be sure to include your own song picks, especially if the playlist will be streamed for everyone in the household. This is a great way to subtly teach your kids about songs or artists that are iconic or matter to you. Don’t underestimate even the youngest of kids; The Beatles’ “Blackbird” can be interesting to a four-year-old.

Make a Musical

Bring out the budding Andrew Lloyd Webbers and Lin-Manuel Mirandas in your household by having the kids come up with their own musical. Select a group of songs the kids can link together by acting out a scene or two in between tracks.

If your kids have seen Moana twenty-eight times and love it, maybe they’d love to recreate the movie by following the film’s soundtrack (incidentally, the most-streamed songs in Spotify’s popular Disney Hits playlist are Moana songs “You’re Welcome” and “How Far I’ll Go.”) (Tip: Dining chairs pushed together make a great boat.) But it doesn’t have to be a familiar plot; you can also choose four to five random, unrelated songs and challenge them to stitch the tracks together.

Raid the Kitchen; Make Some Noise

We admit this is a noisy one, but it’s fun. Dig out kitchen objects that could work as percussive instruments: pots and pans and wooden spoons, a sealed container filled with rice … you get the idea. Have the kids play around with the different sounds they can make— beating an overturned wooden salad bowl like a bongo is a good one—and when they have the idea, encourage them to play their kitchen instruments along to music. Lean on instrumental pieces for this one: There’s some great African drum music for inspiration, and a track like “Sing, Sing, Sing” from legendary bandleader Benny Goodman is on point. Not only does this (sometimes deafening!) activity help kids identify rhythm and beat, it gives them a sense of what it’s like to actually make music rather than just listen to it.

Paint by Music

Music gets the creative juices flowing, as does painting. So why not pair the two art forms together? Set up a dedicated area and have the kids expressively paint to music. Whether finger painting, splattering Jackson Pollock-style or using a good, old-fashioned paintbrush, let the tunes act as a guide to inform and inspire your kids’ artwork. And if your place winds up looking like a musical festival rolled into town, turn to the “Cleanup Song” to encourage the kids to help tidy up. (Good luck!)   

Throw a Dance Party

Little kids love to dance, so get them to work off some energy or get “the sillies” out with a dance party at home. Start by setting up: move the coffee table out of the way for more space, and set up a snack area. Maybe the kids could even make posters revealing the name or theme of the party, as well as invitations for friends and neighbors. Dress up! Work together on what music everyone will boogie to by making a dance-themed playlist, then crank it. For inspo: The most popular Kidz Bop songs on Spotify are “Shake It Off,” “Uptown Funk,” and “Havana”—all good songs to move to. Playing freeze dance is always a great way to keep kids on their toes. You could also deejay and take song requests from everyone to keep them engaged.

Ready to get started? Check out Spotify’s Sing Along playlist for some kid-friendly tunes that’ll have your little ones belting out in no time.