Spotifys SongDNA is like a musical Wikipedia on steroids I just can't stop using it

Date:
Sat, 04 Apr 2026 10:00:00 +0000

Description:
I haven't stopped using SongDNA since Spotify released it this is how my first hands-on with the feature went.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Tech Radar Get daily insight, inspiration and deals in your inbox Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. Become a Member in Seconds Unlock instant access to exclusive member
features. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting
your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. You are now subscribed Your newsletter sign-up was successful Join the club Get full access to premium articles, exclusive features and a growing list of member rewards. Explore An account already exists for this email address, please log in. Subscribe to our newsletter Sometimes listening to music just isnt enough, and part of the streaming experience for a lot of music enthusiasts is digging beneath the surface of the songs and albums they love the most, which is why Spotify s SongDNA is
one of my favorite new features to come from the service.

Its not the first music streamer to do this, however. Tidal Credits has been around since 2019, but SongDNA adds a layer of depth to Spotifys playback tools, and after spending ample time testing the waters, Ive decided that I simply cant get enough. Heres how my first hands-on went down. An endless sonic encyclopaedia Thats what SongDNA is in a nutshell. Ever since it was leaked back in October , Ive been waiting patiently for SongDNA to drop, and when more users started seeing it in beta last month, I knew it was near. It basically runs like a mindmap, spotlighting every collaborator behind a song from composers to lyricists, producers to sound engineers, and its designed for ultimate music fans who want to get to know their favorite songs on a deeper level. Article continues below You may like Spotify's SongDNA is already a hit with early-access beta listeners Spotify's new About the Song feature is its most useful addition yet, and I love it Spotify may soon let you add written notes to your recommendations

First off, SongDNA is very easy to find and use. You just tap any song you want to listen to, and scroll down in the playback page to find SongDNA under Lyrics. You dont need to be listening to the song to explore SongDNA either, and you can just tap the three-dot icon on any song and explore it that way, though I found the experience to be smoother when you use it while listening to the song youre researching.

But where SongDNA shines is how it connects artists and producers through an intertwining web of information, and just when I thought I knew everything about my favorite songs, SongDNA put me in my place. (Image credit: Future) While listening to Jessie Wares song Ride, one of my favorite new releases, not only did I discover more about its producer, James Ford, but SongDNA connected Jessie Ware to artists including Arctic Monkeys, Florence and the Machine, and Depeche Mode just through this one producer. Not only that, it showed me Bjrk served as a songwriter on one of Madonnas biggest hits back in the 90s.

I often find myself falling into Wikipedia black holes, accumulating
knowledge on some of the most niche and unhinged topics, so SongDNA is
perfect for this. But aside from its list of collaborators, it tells you what samples and interpolations are being used. This is where it really caught my attention. Get daily insight, inspiration and deals in your inbox Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. Peeling back the layers Sampling and interpolating other songs is a very common way
of adding depth to a song, but for me, it offers a clear view of an artists creative mindset. Its a great feeling to recognize a sample right off the
bat, but I didnt know how many songs I listen to have samples woven in.

When you press the play icon on a song from the samples and interpolations list, it takes you to the exact timestamp of the song to show you exactly
what instrument, hook, riff, or melody is being used. The only setback with this, however, is that it doesnt give you the option of listening to the sample as a snippet. Instead, it overrides what youre currently listening to in the playback bar but this is easy to get past. (Image credit: Future) Going back to the Jessie Ware example, the opening of her song Ride interpolates the theme from the movie The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966), which I was totally oblivious to, and the same goes for SZA sampling Bjrk's vocals from Hidden Place on the song Forgiveless. What to read next Spotify's new Taste Profile feature lets you steer the algorithm on your own terms Spotify's Prompted Playlist feature is fun, but it's still early days for the new music-curating tool Spotify just got a neat upgrade, but YouTube Music is paywalling a feature

I wanted to explore this even further, and there was one album in particular
I knew would be rich with samples and interpolations: Beyonc's Lemonade. Although I've listened to it religiously over the past 10 years, it turns out I didn't know as much about its production as I thought. (Image credit: Future) The song Sorry , an upbeat pop-RnB anthem with trap elements, interpolates the riff of one of the most famous pieces of classical music, Swan Lake, but because of how it's re-shaped and crafted to fit the song, you'd never recognize it. I was truly shocked, but it didn't end there.

Her song Hold Up , another favorite of mine, is also packed with samples. While most of them are easy to spot (mainly the vocal sample of Soulja Boy's Turn My Swag On ), there's one that's been lurking in the background I didn't pick up on until now she samples her own song Countdown . We love a self-referential queen.

It's safe to say that my experience using SongDNA for the first time was a hit, and I'm ready to welcome it into my music streaming regimen with open arms. Apparently, you can teach an old dog new tricks after all. Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button!

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