Spotify's New Feature Prevents Peppa Pig From Appearing In Your Heavy Metal Playlist

Spotify is rolling out a new curation feature that will lessen the impact other playlists have on your recommendations.

It’s called “Exclude from Your Taste Profile,” and according to the announcement, the aim is to make sure your playlists aren’t flooded with “songs and artists that don’t fit with [your] listening habits” or feel misplaced. For example, users can prevent their kids’ music from appearing on their heavy metal/trap Blend playlists if they have a family plan “or white noise dominating [their] Discover Weekly.” Doing so will tell Spotify which playlist should have its influence diminished, ultimately resulting in a more personalized experience for you.

Ground rules

Other reports of the feature reveal additional details not present in the initial announcement, all of which we were able to confirm thanks to a Spotify representative. Changes from Exclude are applied “retroactively,” as it will prevent “past and future listening” of a playlist from affecting your music. This means that even if you willingly listen to music from a playlist you don’t like, your recommendations won’t be influenced. The songs you like, however, will have an impact on your taste profile.

Spotify will take liked songs from excluded playlists “into consideration for future recommendations” for a person’s Discover Weekly or Blend collection. So be mindful of what you or other people in your family plan to listen to on the platform; otherwise, those tracks will bleed over. Additionally, Exclude from your Taste Profile only applies to playlists; you cannot block individual albums or songs.

Availability

Exclude from your taste profile will be coming to Spotify on Android, iOS, the desktop app, and the web browser version starting today. Be sure to keep an eye out for the update when it arrives on your device. To enable the feature, select the three dots at the top of a playlist, and in that menu, “Exclude from your Taste Profile” will appear. And if you ever change your mind, perform the same steps again to disable the feature.

2023’s shaping up to be an interesting year for Spotify as the update comes amid a particularly quiet time for the platform. Several weeks ago, the company announced it had laid off about 600 employees, similar to other big tech firms. And around that time, rumors began circulating that monthly membership costs would go from $9.99 to $10.99. Of course, nothing’s confirmed, but given similar price hikes elsewhere, this worst-case scenario is sadly likely.