The Playlist Economy

Playlists are the new radio. A spot on a major Spotify playlist like "Today's Top Hits" (over 30 million followers) can generate millions of streams overnight. That hands playlist curators enormous power — arguably more than traditional radio programmers ever had.

The result is music built for playlists: songs with instant hooks, calm verses for background listening, and short durations. "Playlist-core" — music designed to be pleasant but unobtrusive — is a growing phenomenon.