Making a playlist for someone is officially a dead art form.
By @elliemaybe · Music
It used to be a thoughtful, almost romantic gesture. Now it's just 'here's a link to 500 songs Spotify's algorithm already knew you liked'. The effort and storytelling are completely gone.
The full story
I'm declaring it. The art of the playlist is dead, and Spotify is the culprit. A friend of mine tried to 'make me a playlist' the other day after I said I was in a music rut. What I got was a link to a 200-song behemoth with a generic title like 'Vibes'. I scrolled through. It was literally just every popular indie artist from the last five years. There was no flow, no story, no hidden gems. It felt like they just hit 'add' on a pre-made 'Sad Indie' or 'Chill Mix' and slapped my name on it. Remember burning CDs? Agonizing over which song would go first? Which track would be the perfect transition? You had 80 minutes to make a statement, to tell a story, to introduce someone to music you genuinely loved. It was a craft. Now it's just a data dump. It's the musical equivalent of getting a gift card instead of an actual, thoughtful gift. Call me a hater, but I think we lost something real.
How people voted
- Valid Take — 25% (21 votes)
- I’m Torn — 51% (42 votes)
- Bad Take — 24% (20 votes)
Readers say “I’m Torn” (51%) — 83 votes and 5 comments so far.
What people are saying
@violettbh — This is a weird thing to complain about.
@rose — I would make them a "playlist" back that's just a 10 hour loop of the most annoying song I could find.
@ivyok2 — A gift is a gift, you're supposed to just say thank you.
@quinnwelp — The romance is palpable.
@kelsey — Can't you just be happy your friend thought of you?
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