Spotify Wrapped is the streaming giant’s secret growth hack

You may look forward to Spotify Wrapped because it’s an annual reminder that you’re in the top 1% of Drake listeners.

It turns out Spotify looks forward to its annual recap for another reason: app downloads.

Per Protocol, the popularity of Spotify Wrapped led to a 21% bump in app downloads in the 1st week of December 2020, and has helped establish Q4 as the company’s biggest quarter, according to CEO Daniel Ek.

What makes it so effective?

For the unfamiliar, Spotify Wrapped is a year-in-review slideshow that shows users their most-streamed songs, artists, and podcasts of the year.

It includes stats like number of listens for top tracks and hours listened for top artists.

The beauty of Spotify Wrapped is its shareability:

• The slideshow is delivered in a format that looks like an Instagram story with popping visualizations to accompany the music
• Each slide contains a share button at the bottom, making it simple for users to share their data on social platforms

The result? Over 90m+ people engaged with Spotify Wrapped in 2020.

Wrapped is only getting better

As Spotify collects more data on users, it can offer more interesting insights.

For instance, this year’s Wrapped included a “Soundtrack to your life” feature and an “Audio Aura, ” which generates a customized color palette based on listeners’ favorite musical moods.

So who won 2021?

• Top song: “drivers license” by Olivia Rodrigo
• Top artist: Bad Bunny (2nd year in a row)
• Top podcast: The Joe Rogan Experience

But don’t panic, Drake fans — he’s still in the top.