I tried Spotifys new Follow Along feature that combines audiobooks with
music, but its missing one key ingredient

Date:
Thu, 15 May 2025 13:00:00 +0000

Description:
Spotify is merging audiobooks with popular music with its new 'Follow-Along' experience - these are my first impressions.

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Not only is Spotify one of the go-to music streaming services, but its
evolved into a reliable platform for audiobooks, and its just launched a new immersive experience that aims to help fans connect more with the artists and albums they love the most.

This new immersive feature called Follow-Along is now available to use in the Spotify app and can be found in selected audiobooks in Bloomsburys 33
series, a collection of short books about popular albums that was first released in 2003, including books about Oasis Definitely Maybe (1994), to
Kate Bushs Hounds of Love (1985).

So, how is Spotify merging popular music with audiobooks? Well, when you listen to one of the audiobooks in Bloomsburys 33 series, youll see additional media such as photos, graphics, and songs appear in the Now
Playing section. Imagine youre listening to the audiobook that discusses The Nationals Boxer (2007), when the narrator goes into detail about a specific song, Follow-Along will show you the track right for you to add it to your library. (Image credit: Spotify)

In Spotifys blog post , the music streamer stated that Follow-Along marks the beginning of cross-functional collaboration between Spotifys music and audiobooks teams, with Manager of Audiobooks Licensing Henna Silvennoinen describing it as a dream project for the audiobook side.

Out of the 192 books in the 33 series, Spotify has released 51 audiobooks about some of the most influential albums and the artists behind them. But only a select number will come with Spotifys new Follow-Along function, including Kendrick Lamars To Pimp A Butterfly (2015) and Pink Floyds The
Piper at the Gates of Dawn (1967) - though if it were up to me, it would be The Wall (1979). I see the vision, but it needs to involve more audiobooks

Music and books go hand-in-hand, and Im always coming across videos with book recommendations based on specific artists, as well as literature-inspired playlists in the Spotify app. I tested out the new Follow-Along feature, and while I see the vision, theres one setback thats preventing it from unlocking its full potential.

One of my favorite things about popular music is learning about its
contextual framework, and Follow-Along hits the nail on the head with this, especially with Bloomsburys series of books. But wouldnt it be great if Follow-Along were applied to fiction audiobooks as well?

Think about it; youre listening to the audiobook of Daisy Jones and The Six
by Taylor Jenkins Reid, a story set during a prime time for the evolution of music. Whenever the name of a band or artist is dropped, their Spotify profiles and albums appear, or even better, Follow-Along gives you an insight into the inspiration behind the characters and story, sending you into a discography deep dive of Fleetwood Mac or The Doors. You might also like Spotify has brought more handy upgrades to its interface - here are 4 you might have missed DJ with Apple Music lands, allowing subscribers to build
and mix DJ sets directly from its +100 million-song catalog Spotify has secretly added a new way to disable one of its most disliked features, and Im fully on board



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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/audio/spotify/i-tried-spotifys-new-follow-along-feat ure-that-combines-audiobooks-with-music-but-its-missing-one-key-ingredient


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