Tag: Office Tour

Spotify’s LA Recording Studio is a Creative Hub for Artists and Podcasters

December 22, 2022

Studio photos by Brad Devins and Sean Michon

When we talk about making Spotify the preferred destination for artists, we sometimes mean it figuratively—alluding to the reach of our platform, the programs we have for up-and-coming creators, and beyond. But when it comes to our LA office, At Mateo, we also mean it literally. Our hub in Los Angeles is a state-of-the-art music- and podcast-recording facility with doors opened wide to creators for audio innovation and celebration—and there’s something for every creator at every stage of their career. 

Chris D’Angelo, Spotify’s Head of Production & Studio Facilities, and William Garrett, Senior Music Producer/Studio Development Lead—two of the space’s biggest champions—have been thinking about how to best use the space since its inception. And now that it’s open, they’re realizing even more ways to make it attractive and accessible to creators well into the future. 

“When we first sat down to design the offices, we wanted to enable music, video, and audio production to happen right here at the Spotify offices in a really great environment,” Chris told For the Record. “And so we really talked a lot about who would be coming in and what type of artists, what type of creators, what the employees would need to do, and what the community that we were building in would want, need, or expect from us. We spent a lot of time thinking about how each constituent would need to use it.”

Read on to see how Chris, William, and the team’s thoughtfulness has come to create a space where creators feel at home. 

Let’s make music

Spotify’s New London HQ Opens Doors with Performances from Dermot Kennedy and Joy Crookes

February 17, 2020

In the spectacular Adelphi Building, just off the Strand in the very heart of London, is Spotify’s newest expansion: a state-of-the-art HQ for the U.K. and Ireland. The office, with its new work spaces, production studios, and listening rooms specifically dedicated to artists, podcasters and creators, also houses our R&D team in the U.K., marking our first major tech center outside of the U.S. and Sweden. This expansion is a great example of our ongoing growth and investment in content and talent—so last night, we invited U.K. and Irish media to a housewarming in the new space to celebrate. 

Our open house gave U.K. and Irish media the chance to get to know us a little better, see where we work, and check out the spaces we have created to energize and inspire all the creative minds who come through our doors. At the event, we introduced our current U.K. and Ireland leads, our new Head of Comms in the U.K. and Ireland, and our Global Head of Comms, in addition to offering office tours of the new production studios, listening rooms, green rooms, Artists Lounge, and more. Our leads shared how the new office space puts us in the best place to continue growing Spotify’s leadership position as the most popular audio-streaming platform.

 

Step Inside Spotify’s Colorful and Creative Stockholm HQ

November 28, 2018

Welcome to Spotify’s Stockholm HQ, where music greets you right at the front door. We designed our new office to be an inviting retreat in the heart of central Stockholm’s Urban Escape, a city block dedicated to innovation and emblematic of an ever-changing Stockholm.

Like Spotify’s New York office, nothing in Stockholm is too trendy; Instead, we’ve embraced simple elements of Scandinavian tradition—including nature—which place focus on people and productivity. Its spaces are sleek, modern, and welcoming for visitors and Spotifiers alike. From meetings and presentations to ping-pong tournaments and artist studio sessions, there’s plenty of room for all who enter to create, collaborate, and inspire.

Ready for a tour? Just follow the sounds of your favorite Spotify playlists (the music streams all day long).

Welcome to Spotify Reception

There’s no shortage of new ideas to develop, so clean lines, comfortable spaces, and an abundance of color help motivate—and offer down time when needed. This philosophy first takes shape in our cozy reception area, which makes a gracious first impression with natural hues, suede couches, and green plants.

Just down the hall, it’s down to business in our conference rooms, named for popular playlists like RapCaviar, Deep Focus, and Rock This. The Guilty Pleasures room was created by Swedish designer Bea Szenfeld, known for her incredible experiments with paper and other atypical mediums.

Reception Area

Bigger presentations and workshops are held in the spacious yet intimate theater room. Incorporating organic elements like textured wood walls, it’s a great place to gather a lot of Spotifiers together in a more relaxed setting. The room also plays host to entertainment events like listening parties for artists and late night movie sessions.

Spotify Theatre

In the bold and bright cafeteria, Spotifiers eat lunch together, attend informal meetings, and take the occasional fika against a rich palette of teal and purple. When the weather is warm, they can head outside—our office rooftop offers sweeping views of Stockholm landmarks like the Royal Castle, Rosenbad (House of Parliament), Rådhuset (City Hall), Slussen, Gröna Lund (amusement park), the green trees of Djurgården, and the Lilla Värtan strait that floats through the city.

Spotify Cafe

Spotify rooftop, decorated for Pride Month (August)

Craft lovers can spark creative inspiration in the craft room, which is well stocked with supplies for needlework and other projects. Unsurprisingly, it’s also popular with kids who visit the office. Or, for those craving some good natured competition between friends, there’s ping-pong, shuffleboard, and board games.

Office Tour: Behind the Scenes at Spotify’s Creative, Collaborative NYC HQ

April 2, 2018

Walk into Spotify’s offices on West 18th Street in New York City, and it’s clear that the two-floor space isn’t only about music. Of course, there’s music everywhere, including the lobby and the restrooms. Listening rooms provide intimate spaces for visiting artists to play new material. Interviews and recording sessions are conducted in studios.

But Spotify is evolving—from a tech company to a music company and now, a media and creator company that connects people and culture worldwide. And the look and feel of the company’s offices are evolving with it.

“We tend to do things that are a bit outside the box,” says Cecilia Vigil, a Swedish, New York-based design manager at Spotify. “We believe that we’re paving our own way.”

The New York City office is a prime example of a modern, agile, collaborative workspace. The libraries, research labs, squad rooms and collaborative spaces that pepper the interior are choice spots for its employees, plus visitors and artists, to collaborate and create. Vigil calls it a “chaotic, controlled environment”—in the best possible way.

Honest and clean design

Photo credit: Spotify

Spotify’s Swedish roots mean that Scandinavian design influences the core of the company’s offices. Clean, honest woods, palettes of white, gray and pastels, an abundance of plants and soft velvety furniture stay true to that philosophy.

“It’s a very clean palette that doesn’t say much until you add a layer to it. A layer can be different materials or different colors. It can be people, artwork, or music,” Vigil says.

Separate but connected

Photo credit: Spotify

The concept of the string wall—a Spotify signature—was born, after much trial and error, to give the company’s developers a space that had enough physical separation to allow them to work efficiently, but not so much that they felt disconnected from one another.

“We started playing with this whole web of how we could connect the different floors,” Vigil says of the concept, which is now featured in locations from New York and Stockholm to San Francisco and Mexico City. “It has a physical presence of fun colors and shapes.”

The curated effect

Photo credit: Spotify

Spotify’s walls are a rotating gallery for up-and-coming or under-the-radar artists—and even for employees themselves. For instance, it commissioned a mural from New York street artist FAUST.

“We’ve always nurtured local connections in each city we’re in,” Vigil explains. “The most important thing is to really understand the background of the artist. We always try our best to be as diverse as possible, as the world is not viewed from one point of view.

“It’s about how we can stay connected with the art community and how that’s connected to the culture at Spotify.”

An always-evolving experience

Photo credit: Spotify

None of Spotify’s global offices feel overdesigned—and that’s a purposeful approach. “Just as you’d develop your own home, nothing here really stays the same forever,” Vigil explains. The simple act of moving a table, chair or whiteboard can make the space feel new. Or an employee might add a success story to a mural, evolving the look. “That’s a good thing because it means that someone could use what you created as a springboard to be more creative,” Vigil says.

Looking to the future of workspaces

Photo credit: Spotify

Since office spaces are ultimately about functionality, flexibility and creativity, currently in the works is a “Workspace lab” of the furniture and systems Spotify uses or may want to use in the future. Every detail—raised floors, height-adjustable furniture, writeable surfaces and sustainability programs—will be evaluated and evolved.

“We’re constantly changing and trying to see what can be better,” Vigil notes. “How does the power and data connection come from the floor or wall to the computer? How can you change the furniture, connect it back and change it again hundreds of times if you want to?”

A space that gives a sh*t

Photo credit: Spotify

“When I started at Spotify, [CEO] Daniel [Ek] was always talking about how he wanted a space that makes you feel you are welcome whenever you want to come here,” Vigil says. “You’re not always the most creative when you’re working, so you can come in on a Saturday or Sunday and play ping-pong or grab a coffee… People just feel very much at home, and I think that if you see that, you’ve been successful.

“We have a great relationship with our artists. They can see we care about them and about what they do. I think that’s why our offices are so special… It’s not because of a piece of furniture, or because we have an amazing DJ booth. It’s about how we actually connect with creators.”