Tag: Making Space

São Paulo Restaurant and Culinary School Gastronomia Periférica Is Our Newest Space for Underrepresented Podcasters

October 5, 2023

While it’s easier than ever to create a podcast, it’s still a process. Gaining access to gear, recording studios, and editing resources is difficult for anyone, especially if you’re part of a marginalized community. But removing barriers can increase accessibility, and that’s why we started our Spotify for Podcasters initiative Making Space. Aiming to elevate underrepresented creators, we partner with local businesses in marginalized communities to make studio-quality podcasting gear available for free.

Over the past year, we’ve joined forces with local inclusive businesses—Greenville, South Carolina–based plant store Savereign, Gainesville, Florida–based café Curia on the Drag, and Atlanta-based plant shop/cafe Nourish Botanica—to provide safe places for storytellers to create and help build a more diverse ecosystem of podcast creators.

But this month, we’re heading to Brazil and bringing our Making Space initiative to creators outside the U.S. for the first time. We’re inaugurating Seu Espaço, located in São Paulo, as the country’s first fully equipped podcast studio for creators. Even better, recording time can be reserved for free by established and aspiring podcasters alike. To make this a reality, we partnered with and housed the studio in restaurant and culinary school Da Quebrada – Gastronomia Periférica, a community-oriented business that seeks to transform the lives of people on the outskirts of the city through plant-based gastronomy.

“Spotify is constantly seeking ways to support new and emerging voices, and this free studio is an example of how we are making podcasting accessible to anyone, anywhere,” said Barbara Zamberlan, Spotify’s Creator Partnerships Lead in Brazil. “We want to encourage more creators to try podcasting and provide them with a safe place for their voices to be heard, contributing to the diversification of the podcasting ecosystem.”

To learn more about the restaurant’s mission and what excited its team most about offering a creator studio within its walls, For the Record spoke with Gastronomia Periférica chef and cofounder Edson Leite.

Can you tell us a little bit about the philosophy behind Da Quebrada – Gastronomia Periférica?

Gastronomia Periférica is a socially-oriented business. We make money by directly impacting people’s lives in positive ways. In addition to being a restaurant, Da Quebrada – Gastronomia Periférica is a culinary school, and our students are paid interns while they’re enrolled here.

Gastronomia Periférica also runs several other spaces throughout Brazil, providing gastronomy training for people from the outskirts—mostly Black men and women, as well as mothers.

What are some of the ways you serve the community?

What I’m most proud of with Gastronomia Periférica is how it’s affected the real transformation of life in the outskirts. I think that when we feel good, we do good. Nowadays, we can point to the east and south zones of São Paulo and say, “We’ve changed the reality of these neighborhoods by promoting and providing professional training.”

Why is it important for there to be an accessible podcasting hub in São Paulo?

Da Quebrada is a quilombo, a denomination for communities of Black enslaved peoples who resisted the slavery regime that prevailed in Brazil for over 300 years. We live in opposing territory, but we bring an aquilombamento—a spirit of bringing Black people together—with Spotify and this studio so people have access. We want people from the outskirts to understand that they can be anywhere, even in a podcast that was created with first-class equipment. And with Seu Espaço, we want them to feel like they’re in a space that embraces them. We want to give the opportunity for those voices to be amplified. Hopefully we’ll get a real sense of that impact when we see a lot of Black creators from the favelas using the place and saying, “Check out my podcast on Spotify, I’ve recorded it in a place where I felt truly at home.”

This Making Space location was made possible by the Creator Equity Fund, a multi-year investment that showcases and elevates underrepresented artists and creators through new and existing initiatives. To check available recording times for Seu Espaço, click here.

Restaurante e Escola de Culinária de São Paulo Gastronomia Periférica é nosso mais novo espaço para podcasters sub-representados

October 5, 2023

Embora seja mais fácil do que nunca criar um podcast, ainda é um processo. Ter acesso a equipamentos, estúdios de gravação e recursos de edição é difícil para qualquer pessoa, especialmente se você faz parte de uma comunidade marginalizada. Mas a quebra de barreiras pode aumentar a acessibilidade, e é por isso que iniciamos nossa iniciativa Spotify for Podcasters, Making Space. Com o objetivo de promover criadores sub-representados, fazemos parcerias com empresas locais em comunidades marginalizadas para disponibilizar gratuitamente equipamentos de podcasting com qualidade de estúdio.

No ano passado, unimos forças com empresas locais inclusivas – a loja de plantas Savereign, com sede em Greenville, Carolina do Sul, e o café Curia on the Drag, com sede em Gainesville, Flórida, e a loja de plantas/café com sede em Atlanta, Nourish Botanica — para oferecer locais seguros para os contadores de histórias criarem e ajudarem a construir um ecossistema mais diversificado de criadores de podcast.

Mas este mês estamos indo para o Brasil e tornando o Making Space global. Localizado em São Paulo, inauguramos o Seu Espaço como o primeiro estúdio de podcast totalmente equipado para criadores do país. Melhor ainda, o período de gravação pode ser reservado gratuitamente por podcasters estabelecidos e aspirantes. Para tornar isso realidade, firmamos parceria e abrigamos o estúdio no restaurante escola Da Quebrada – Gastronomia Periférica, um negócio social que busca transformar a vida das pessoas da periferia da cidade por meio da gastronomia vegetal.

“O Spotify está sempre procurando maneiras de ajudar a nutrir vozes novas e emergentes, e este estúdio gratuito é um exemplo de como estamos tornando o podcasting possível para qualquer pessoa, em qualquer lugar”, diz Barbara Zamberlan, líder de parcerias com criadores no Brasil. “Queremos encorajar mais criadores a experimentar o podcasting e oferecer a eles um lugar seguro para que suas vozes sejam ouvidas, tornando o ecossistema de podcaster mais diversificado.”

Para saber mais sobre a missão do restaurante e o que mais empolgou sua equipe em oferecer um estúdio de criação dentro de seu espaço, For the Record conversou com o chef e cofundador do Gastronomia Periférica, Edson Leite.

Você pode nos contar um pouco sobre a filosofia do Da Quebrada – Gastronomia Periférica?

A Gastronomia Periférica é um negócio social. A gente ganha dinheiro impactando diretamente a vida das pessoas. Esse lugar é um restaurante escola Gastronomia Periférica, onde temos as nossas alunas estagiando – e recebendo para estar aqui. A Gastronomia Periférica tem vários outros espaços em São Paulo e pelo Brasil inteiro, de formação em gastronomia para pessoas periféricas – em sua maioria, mulheres pretas, mães, e homens pretos periféricos.

Quais são algumas das maneiras pelas quais você serve a comunidade?

O que mais me orgulha dentro Gastronomia Periférica é a transformação real e local da vida na quebrada. Eu acho que quando a gente consegue estar bem, a gente consegue fazer bem. A gente consegue hoje, por exemplo, olhar para a Zona Leste e Sul de São Paulo e falar: “nós mudamos essa realidade”, porque a gente conseguiu promover formação profissional.

Por que é importante que haja um hub de podcasting acessível em São Paulo?

O Da Quebrada é um quilombo, uma denominação para comunidades de povos negros escravizados que resistiram ao regime escravista que prevaleceu no Brasil por mais de 300 anos. A gente vive em território inimigo, mas a gente traz um aquilombamento – um espírito de unir os negros – junto com o Spotify, com o estúdio, dentro desse espaço, para que se tenha acesso. Para que as pessoas da periferia entendam que a gente pode estar em qualquer lugar, inclusive dentro de um podcast, usando equipamentos de primeira linha, em um lugar que nos acolhe. É um bagulho diferentão, real. É foda. Queremos dar a oportunidade para que a voz da pessoa periférica seja ecoada. A gente vai ter a real noção disso quando a gente ver vários pretos favelados e pretas faveladas ocupando o lugar e falando: o meu podcast tá no Spotify, e eu gravei dentro de um lugar onde eu me senti em casa.

Making Space faz parte do Creator Equity Fund, um investimento plurianual que mostra e eleva artistas e criadores sub-representados por meio de iniciativas novas e existentes. Para conferir os horários de gravação disponíveis do Seu Espaço, clique aqui.

Creating a New Podcast Space for Underrepresented Voices in Atlanta

June 30, 2023

Quianah Upton and Jennifer Lind sitting in the new podcast studio in front of two mics at Nourish Botanica

Removing barriers increases accessibility. Making Space, a Spotify for Podcasters initiative aiming to elevate underrepresented creators by making studio-quality podcasting gear available to communities for free, is our way of doing just that. By partnering with local businesses—Greenville, South Carolina–based Savereign, a plant store, and Curia on the Drag café in Gainesville, Florida, are two recent examples—Spotify provides a safe place for storytellers to share and helps build a more diverse ecosystem of podcast creators.

Our third Making Space studio, which received support from Spotify’s Creator Equity Fund, is in Nourish Botanica, an Atlanta, Georgia, plant shop and community space that offers weekly markets, queer karaoke nights, plant festivals, free plant swaps, and more.

“I really appreciate Spotify partnering with us to model high-level creative entrepreneurship. I love the idea that we can be a Black-owned business in a historically Black neighborhood and provide a level of cool, quirk, and professionalism that you can’t find anywhere else,” shared Quianah Upton, the owner of Nourish Botanica. “It’s also a really good reminder to large companies worldwide how much artists and creative spaces need funding and collaboration support.”

Motivated by her own experiences of childhood food insecurity, Quianah conceived the idea for Nourish Botanica in 2013. Her hope was to create food-based events that featured talks surrounding art, storytelling, gentrification, food sovereignty, and justice issues. Now Nourish Botanica will be joined by a podcast studio. “Making Space will allow us to begin to build a safe space where dialogue, education, and conversation can take place,” Quianah explained. “Storytelling affects social justice, conveys history, builds empathy, and educates audiences by instilling a sense of belonging and community among those listening. Through our storytelling programming, Nourish Botanica works towards building an inclusive and equitable world.”

Jennifer Lind is one creator who hopes to educate audiences by sharing her family’s history through her podcast, Telling HERstory. The Atlanta native had no podcast experience but was able to bring her idea from concept to fruition in just one month by using Spotify for Podcasters. Jennifer’s show explores the life and legacy of her maternal grandmother, longtime Augusta, Georgia, educator Rosa T. Beard, through interviews with those who were closest to her.

After launching the podcast in 2020, Jennifer is now part of a thriving Atlanta podcast scene. She explained to For the Record that she’s excited that Spotify’s Making Space studio will provide another low-barrier way for those looking to get involved.

Did you have any idea how to make a podcast?

I really knew nothing about podcasting! But most people who know me know that once I decide that I want to do something, it’s not a matter of if I’m going to do it, but how. When I decided to create the Telling HERstory podcast, I started researching everything I could, and that’s how I discovered the Anchor app, which is now Spotify for Podcasters. I saw that it was not only an all-in-one tool, but also free to use. And within four weeks of deciding that I was going to start a podcast, I actually launched it. To me, that is a testament to what a great tool Spotify for Podcasters is—it makes it possible for just about anyone to become a creator.

Why do you think a podcast was the perfect medium for sharing your grandmother’s story?

I wanted to not only tell her story, but also the stories of those whose lives she touched, and document them for future generations. Especially as someone who comes from the community of color—and when you think back to our roots, of African American and African history, it involves a lot of oral storytelling. There’s something about podcasting that, in a way, goes back to those roots of documenting stories. And to have people say it in their own voice, it’s really impactful.

For example, I was able to interview Ambassador Larry L. Palmer in episode five. He was one of my grandmother’s former students who went on to become a Senior Foreign Service member and U.S. ambassador, serving under six different U.S. presidents. This is someone who had grown up in the segregated South, so there were a lot of barriers—and yet he was still able to go and do these great things. I interviewed him in January of 2021, and sadly he passed away in April 2021. And so to have his voice documented telling his story . . . that kind of solidified why this is so important.

How did your grandmother influence your life?

One of the things that impressed me the most about her was her pursuit of education. She received her undergrad degree from Paine College in 1942, which was unusual for women then, especially Black women in the South. And then she followed that up by getting a master’s degree from Columbia University in 1951. So here she was, at a top school for her master’s at a time when most people weren’t even able to go to school. She started a legacy that not only changed the trajectory of her life, but the lives of generations to come. Education has also played a big part in my life. I have a doctor of pharmacy degree and two master’s degrees, as well.

What are you looking forward to most with the new Making Space studio?

I’m excited that other people who want to tell a story now have a free podcasting studio in the community that’s accessible with the tools and the resources they need. I hope that it will give a lot of people the boost in confidence they need to actually start that podcast they’ve been dreaming about.

What’s your advice to others who want to create a podcast but aren’t sure how to get started?

Don’t overthink it. I think we get in our heads and paralyzed by the thought of where to begin. If you have the tools, which we now have, whether you’re using the Spotify for Podcasters app at home or if you’re going into the new Making Space studio in Atlanta, that barrier is removed.

Also, don’t question your story or your voice. People, me included, are nervous about putting themselves out there. When you start your podcast, know your “why” and know what your motivation is.

I started The Avana Company LLC, a brand rooted in diversity and creative expression, to focus on amplifying voices and telling our stories because I believe podcasting can open doors. So many doors have been opened to me through this podcasting journey, and I would love to reach back and pull as many people as I can through those doors. A lot of people have asked how I started the podcast, so I decided to make a free launch checklist to help others get started. I want to help as many people as possible realize that it’s not impossible. It’s really about having the confidence to get started. If you have the tools and resources available, it can be a little less intimidating.

Everybody brings a unique perspective from their lived experience to a conversation. And so, the more people we can have out there sharing their stories, the better.

Hear more from Jennifer, and learn about the incredible legacy of Mrs. Rosa T. Beard, in her podcast, Telling HERstory, below.

GLOW Artist Arlo Parks Is Inspired by Vulnerability, Personal Connection, and Queer Representation

February 16, 2023

Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Arlo Parks’s 2021 debut, Collapsed In Sunbeams, is a tender and raw plea from the artist to listeners. But what fans of honest ballads like “Hurt” and “Eugene” may not realize is that Arlo is a self-proclaimed extrovert with a “frantic approach to creativity” who is constantly in motion.

Arlo’s energy for her passions has been at the fore recently, as she revealed news of her upcoming sophomore album, My Soft Machine, the same week that she was named one of Spotify’s GLOW Spotlight artists. GLOW is our new global music program celebrating and amplifying LGBTQIA+ artists and creators. At launch, we supported Arlo on-platform with a dedicated hub and flagship GLOW playlist, and off-platform via billboards and other takeovers. And our commitment to the artist, and to equity in audio, will continue year-round.

With her latest single, “Weightless,” the London native leans a little more heavily toward her deep love of techno, electronic music, and nightlife culture. “I taught myself to DJ, and I’m inspired by a lot of dance music, actually,” the artist told For the Record. “I feel like it’s a perfect intersection of queerness and music that makes you move—that marriage is super organic.”

Tell us about your journey into music. How did you find your voice?

I started playing piano when I was very young. That developed into learning to play the guitar a little bit and falling in love with bands like Deftones, My Chemical Romance, and Smashing Pumpkins. I fell in love with the energy of these people who were smashing into each other onstage. Around the same time, I also discovered the more gentle use of guitars with people like Phoebe Bridgers, Elliott Smith, Nick Drake, and Jeff Buckley and seeing how deeply emotionally profound music could be as a medium.

So, those two things’ colliding led me to teach myself how to produce on GarageBand and just make terrible little demos in my bedroom and in my closet. Making music in the closet turned into making music in the studio. And now I’ve been doing music full-time since I was about 17, so about five years.

How has your music changed as you’ve gotten older?

Over time, I’ve become more brave, more vulnerable. I think honestly, it’s just from having lived more life, becoming more assertive in the studio, and picking up more skills and balancing it with the advice from the people around me. I feel like my approach to writing itself has been quite consistent. I’m often struck by melodies in the middle of the night or at the most inconvenient times and voice-noting those, reading excessively, and mining my lyrics from poetry.

How does your queer identity influence your music or your songwriting?

My queer identity has always made its way into my music because it’s who I am. And I’ve always written about love and finding myself in the world and coming of age. I feel like music was also treated as a journal for me, and it was a way that I processed the world around me and became more comfortable and confident with who I was. I’m also super inspired by queer artists, as well as books and films.

Who are some of those artists?

SOPHIE. Beverly Glenn-Copeland. Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus, Julien Baker—that boygenius release has sent me into a frenzy. Another major one was Syd from The Internet because she had her own sense of style, her own sense of confidence and presence in herself. The fact that she was a producer who was active and leading the group—I was really inspired by her when I was a kid.

How does music empower queer communities?

Music builds connection, and a lot of queer people find real comfort in their chosen family. I feel like music really serves to build that, especially in spaces like queer clubs, and especially in London. Many queer kids really find themselves on nights out when they’re finally surrounded by people who they can relate to who they feel close to. And I feel like music is so vital in that dance culture, but music also serves as representation.

I remember the first time that I heard somebody singing a song about being queer and using pronouns that I felt I could apply to love stories that I had been through, and then also wanting to give that back to people. A big part of encouraging people is just making them feel less alone, and it’s a really powerful tool for empowerment too.

What do you hope people take away from your music?

I would hope that people feel confident in being vulnerable, because of how vulnerable I am. That’s what I learned from my favorite artists, from listening to “Speed Trials” by Elliott Smith. And I want it to be something that acts as a companion through life, when they’re in the car or bus on their way to work, or hanging out with friends. More softness, that’s what I want.

Why do you think it’s important to have a program like GLOW that amplifies LGBTQIA+ voices?

What makes a difference is when young people feel like they’re seeing people like them amplified and lifted up into the mainstream—seeing people on billboards and TV and being queer and being happy and making art that a lot of people like. Seeing that was so important to me growing up. I imagine having Heartstopper as a 13- or 14-year-old and what that would have meant to me as a teenager.

I feel like also the fact that GLOW is amplifying such a range of different queer artists. And there is a sense of variety and acceptance of the fact that there is nuance even within the larger umbrella of queer artistry, that there are so many different people making so many different things. Having that for young people is super important, and long may it continue.

What’s one piece of advice that you got as a young person that has stuck with you?

It sounds harsh, but stay with me: At the beginning, nobody cares yet, right? In that anonymity and in that lack of people seeing you; that is when you truly have time to grow. Because you can nurture your craft without people having eyes on you. So in the beginning, nobody cares—and that’s okay.

Catch Arlo on our flagship GLOW playlist as well as Alternative Pride.

‘Girlish’ Cohosts Name Gainesville, Florida-Based Curia on the Drag as Spotify and Anchor’s Next Making Space Podcasting Location

January 30, 2023

Olivia Noel and Gage Adkins, hosts of Girlish, outside curia on the drag - Rhyme&Reason-LexiRead-10

Photo credit: Lexi Read

As trans content creators, Gage Adkins and Olivia Noel know firsthand the power of storytelling in digital spaces. Around 2015, both women started separately producing video content on YouTube about their transitions. They each slowly built up online support networks, and then found each other. But when they started searching for podcasts on trans identity, they couldn’t find any. So they created Girlish in 2019 as an attempt to tell their stories, create space for trans listeners and creators, and bring awareness to their experiences.

Over three years later, Girlish is still holding strong, and the number of LGBTQIA+ podcasters has grown. But it’s still not enough. “When we first started our podcast, it was really overwhelming because we lived on opposite coasts of the U.S. and had no equipment to make a professionally recorded podcast,” Gage told For the Record. “I think our first episode was recorded using our phone audio, so it was pretty bad. But there are so many people out there with really good ideas who want to share their voice, but just don’t know how to go about it.”

Spotify believes that the audio industry has a responsibility to increase access to podcasting knowledge, equipment, and materials for marginalized creators. We are continually looking for ways to nurture and develop emerging voices through tools and programs that make podcasting possible for anyone, anywhere. Making Space, our latest creator program, aims to elevate underrepresented voices by providing free, studio-quality podcasting gear to communities. We started by setting up South Carolina-based plant shop Savereign with an in-house podcasting studio. Next, we’re outfitting Curia on the Drag, a café close to Olivia’s heart, in Gainesville, Florida.

“Curia defines itself as an urban oasis,” Olivia explained. “The experience you have there feels very much like a community-centric business. They have a plot of two-and-a-half acres of land where they have a plant-based coffee shop along with a plant-based food truck. They have a little retail store with local artists’ jewelry, clothing, art, and stickers. Overall, it has an ambiance that gives you the feeling of being safe. You can tell the community means a lot to them when you walk in and see flyers stapled to a cork board at the register with local resources for the LGBT community and marginalized groups. If you told me when I was 15 that a drag brunch was going to be a thing that was popular at a coffee shop near where I lived, I would have laughed. But I’m so thankful that this place exists, because it’s crucial.”

Rhyme&Reason-LexiRead-8 with Olivia Noel and Gage Adkins of Girlish

Oliva Noel and Gage Adkins at Curia on the Drag

Curia stands to prove itself as a comfortable and reliable podcasting studio for new and existing creators, but its promise of safety and security for members of the Gainesville and surrounding area community makes it the perfect hub for stories of all kinds to be shared.

“When you’re queer or trans in the South, you find safety in the smallest things—whether that’s Pride flags on storefronts or a friend of a friend of a friend with a trans aunt,” said Olivia. “Curia stands out because they provide security through their messaging and actions. Making Space further highlights an area to those around in the neighboring towns so that people like newly out college freshmen can find a community that supports them. It’s silly, but Florida really is like that—you have to find these little pockets and areas where you can go and be yourself.”

The Making Space launch also marks a moment of transition for Olivia, who has been living in Seattle for the last few years and is now returning to uncertainty in her home state of Florida. “Within the South, it’s important to try to locate your community near you, whether that’s support groups or local organizations trying to fight for your cause. It’s super important and we have to bring attention to it. You are not alone in this. There are so many of us, and we’re going to fight for our rights.”

Gage grew up in Seattle and now lives in LA. “I had a really different experience,” she explained. “It was really easy for me to access health care, and people around me were not outwardly trying to harm me. Making Space enables us to support those who want to find community in a state or area where there doesn’t seem to be one. Even if people aren’t necessarily interested in podcasting, I think it’s always important to try to find a safe space.”

As important as Gage and Olivia both know that Curia will be for LGBTQIA+ podcasters in Florida, they also want to encourage queer podcasters everywhere to take to the mic without hesitation. “You’ll get there if you put in the work and you’re consistent,” explained Gage. “That takes precedence over what type of microphone you have, or what type of camera you have. It’s more about the passion and the direction and the way you’re using your voice.”

“I’m hoping this initiative highlights an area where people can go to be themselves,” added Olivia. “I hope one day the entire state can be our oasis, and not just Curia.”

Check out Gage and Olivia’s Anchor podcast, Girlish, and look out for future podcasts coming from Curia on the Drag soon.

How Spotify, Anchor, and Queer-Owned Plant Store Savereign Are Bringing LGBTQIA+ Stories to the Podcasting Mic

October 19, 2022

Photo credit: Will Crooks

Greenville-based Savereign is more than a plant store in South Carolina. There’s plenty of potted and hanging greenery for sale, but the space also doubles as a community gathering place, with tables and chairs for coworking and a comfy couch to lounge on. The storefront was developed with a lot of intention by its owner, AJ, a queer Filipino-American who wants everybody to feel welcomed and loved.

AJ moved to Greenville from Chicago with an ex-partner, but remained there following the breakup. “As I was starting my business and getting to know the community, I started to make individual connections with all these beautiful people who didn’t feel seen or heard at all,” AJ told For the Record. “The universe gifted me with a loud freaking voice. I felt there was a gap in queer representation, in people who were up and out and could speak up and stand up, in my area. So I decided to stay.”

He also set out to bring the community together through virtual spaces as well as his physical store. He started interviewing the people who made up his community, and in 2020, he created a podcast to highlight those individuals using Spotify’s podcasting tool, Anchor.

“It’s very DIY. I’m not the most digitally inclined human. It was great to run into Anchor because it allows you to do everything all at once and it’s very intuitive and easy. It allowed me to just be able to go and not think about having to get equipment and materials.”

Although podcasting is increasingly accessible, finding time and space to record, acquiring gear, and developing editing skills is still an involved process that can be even more unattainable for individuals with marginalized identities. So Spotify and Anchor’s latest podcasting initiative, Making Space, helps elevate underrepresented voices by creating accessible podcasting spaces within the LGBTQIA+ community. Through the program, we’re setting queer businesses up with the tools and resources they need to make podcasts. Savereign is the first stop.

As the inaugural Making Space participant, AJ will receive a comprehensive podcast tool kit that includes a microphone, recording equipment, and educational resources—effectively giving him everything needed to create his own in-house recording studio at Savereign. Other creators in his community will also be able to access this space for free to begin recording their own shows.

“I’m so excited because it’s all the things I didn’t know I could ever have or use,” said AJ. “Now we’ve got mics, a mixer board thing—there’s one or two other podcasters that I know here and they’re like, this is crazy and this is perfect. I’m excited to learn how to use that gear and record with them.”

For AJ, bringing this studio to the community is a natural transition as he’s already been using Savereign’s Instagram to amplify local businesses and creators.

“I see my work in retail as an art form,” explained AJ. “It’s something that is going to be seen and something that has the capacity to change perspectives. So for my ‘marketing,’ I wanted it to be personal to me. So you’ll see shots of me in there, but it’s mostly people within the community: people with businesses, queer individuals who are also making their mark here, and leaders. I wanted to get those people to also be seen through whatever form of voice or visuals I have on me. I’m one of those people who when I’m on the up, want to raise up everyone else around me because I wouldn’t be where I am without a lot of the people you see on my Instagram.”

Spotify is always looking for ways to help nurture new and emerging voices, and Making Space is an example of how we’re making podcasting possible for anyone, anywhere. By making professional-quality podcast equipment more accessible across community spaces, we can give creators a safe, inclusive place to have their voices heard, and can help drive a more diverse podcaster ecosystem.

“The concept of ‘making space’ is to barrel down a lot of walls that are put up for a lot of us who are ‘different’” says AJ. “It allows us to make room for everyone who is making a difference and everyone who wants to cheer on those who are making a difference. The store’s intention from the beginning has always been a space for people to come in, to breathe in some fresh freaking air, and to feel at peace. And to feel loved. That’s what I feel whenever I’m around plants and it’s what got me into them. Taking care of plants allowed me to love myself. It gave me calmness; it gave me natural positive energy. That’s what I wanted for people. And that’s why I stayed. And that’s why we’re here.”

Spotify’s 2021 Hack Week Focuses on “Making Space”

March 19, 2021

Every year, Spotify newcomers and veterans from across R&D and more come together for Hack Week. For five days, employees dedicate their time to projects that explore new ways of making Spotify better for creators, consumers, and employees. The opportunity gives colleagues a chance to collaborate in a very intentional way across a variety of teams and timezones. This year, more than 2,000 Spotify employees signed up to participate in Hack Week (March 8 – March 12) and hundreds of hacks were considered for inspiration or adoption—all within the lens of a new, virtual platform, and an original theme.

Making Space

The theme for 2021’s event was “Making Space,” with a focus on hacks that effect positive change in Spotify products and beyond. These projects could be related to making space for under-celebrated voices or for reimagined services or revenue growth. Hackers were encouraged to reflect on the experiences of 2020 and see if there are opportunities to make space related to COVID-19, diversity, belonging, and inclusion, accessibility, and the climate emergency.

“I thought the theme of this year was a really great one. It’s very easy to think about accessibility as this set of edge cases, but depending on how broad of a definition you have, accessibility can relate to about a billion people on the planet,” shared Rorey Jones, a product manager based in Stockholm who has been with Spotify for 10 years. “Once I shifted my thinking, I really understood. I actually have a form of color blindness, and designers are often asking me questions about how things look. So it was really cool that this year’s theme put accessibility at center stage, where it should be, and allowed the entire company to consider opportunities along those lines.”

Dawn James joined Spotify last year as a Senior Staff Engineer in London, and this was her first Hack Week with the company. “I’m a huge advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion, and for me, the theme of Making Space really pushed those buttons,” she said. “I feel like Spotify, as a company, is making an effort to make space for less well-represented cultures and demographics. Trying to become more inclusive means explicitly making space for quieter voices, regardless of the reason why those voices may be quiet.”

Hacking Away

The hacks that are explored during the week can be smaller ideas that require one or two person teams or big concepts that a large group gets together to work through.

Rorey worked with engineers to examine ways Spotify could integrate with a hardware feature on Apple’s iOS 14. The product manager and his colleagues had been contemplating ways to use this feature since it came out in September, and Hack Week was the perfect time to dig deeper. “It was nice to create a week outside of our typical priorities to have breathing room to focus on this. Less meetings and a few days where we were able to dedicate our time to this one thing and give it a really thoughtful look,” explained Rorey.

Dawn was looking forward to kicking off her first Hack Week with the company, and signed up to contribute to two hacks. “As a new joiner to Spotify I was really impressed with the priority that the company appears to give Hack Week; the whole company is encouraged to take part,” said Dawn. “There was definitely a buzz around the event.”

Dawn’s smaller hack focused on an internal tool for developer productivity, and she was the primary engineer on the project. The other hack was an idea involving a different way for creators to utilize Spotify, and it involved a much bigger team—more than a dozen people—that worked across a variety of disciplines. “To be randomly thrown together with a whole bunch of people from across Spotify was really great,” shared Dawn. “Everyone had their own unique skill set and contributed a huge amount. It felt like a very well-rounded experience.”

Tackling two hacks required a lot of focus, but it allowed Dawn to put different aspects of her expertise to good use: one required hands-on developer work while the other used her knowledge and network within Spotify to build a concept.

Going Virtual

This year’s Hack Week was virtual, so in addition to meetings and communication through video calls and online messaging threads, the week culminated in a Hack Fair that took place via an online portal. Participants were able to set up virtual booths and employees interested in seeing the final output could “hop in and out” of the booths to listen to a presentation or ask questions.

“I think the coolest thing about this year was that there was a digital manifestation of the event that was really akin to what it would look like normally. We had friends popping by our booth who had heard about what we were working on and colleagues stopping by that were interested in the idea,” said Rorey. The virtual event allowed employees from different offices to get a close look at what others around the world were doing—something that’s a little more challenging when the Hack Fair takes place in person. “I think it’d be really cool to see how, in the future, a digital version could even outperform a physical Hack Week due to this virtual technology.”

From Stockholm to Seattle, this year’s Hack Week encouraged thousands of employees to bring ideas that allow for a more inclusive and accessible Spotify experience to life. The projects presented during these sprints can be the impetus for bigger concepts that listeners experience down the line (like Discover Weekly)—and there’s no telling what teams come up with next.