Every year, avid music fans all across the world look forward to one special day. The widely used music platforms, Spotify and Apple Music, release a “Year in Review” or “Spotify Wrapped” which shares certain statistics. The platforms show your most listened to songs and artists. Spotify even tells you how many minutes of music you’ve listened to this year.

For music connoisseur Maia Tecklenburg ‘25, there were mixed feelings about her Spotify wrapped. 

“I think Spotify wrapped is awesome, but I do wish that it would give us our top 10 artists instead of five, and I wish we could know what percentage we are in those artists listening.” Tecklenburg said.

For Tecklenburg, it’s about the artists and how much time she spent listening to them.

“Chappell Roan was my 2nd artist, but I have no clue if I was top 2% of listeners for her or top 10%. So that is annoying for me.” Tecklenburg shares.

All year listeners hope for a good music review, that they can relate to and be content with. Tecklenburg reflects on her feelings towards her own this year.

“I am not happy with my Spotify wrapped this year! I honestly don’t know how Taylor Swift was my top artist because it never felt like I reached out to listen to her as much as I did the other four artists on my list. However her discography is huge so she is on a lot of my playlists,” Tecklenburg said. 

Sensational artists like Taylor Swift, who has billions of Spotify streams this year, it makes users like Tecklenburg question the accuracy of spotify wrapped.

“I think Spotify wrapped has to be accurate because it’s based on the minutes you listen to something,” Tecklenburg explained. 

Despite the small things Tecklenburg didn’t love about her wrapped, she didn’t completely hate Spotify for it. 

“Spotify wrapped is a way to bring people together through a common denominator of music. I just really really do love music and I love that on a day like Spotify wrapped release, I get to see just how much everyone else loves it too,” Tecklenburg said.

It would be wrong to solely focus on Spotify, you have to give credit to the second most used music platform, Apple Music. 

“I understand that more people use Spotify and it’s a huge joke to bash Apple Music, but that doesn’t stop me from using the app,” Eli Drewry ‘25 said. 

If anything, Apple Music might have a leg up on Spotify wrapped this year as it shares the users yearly listening insights, and is able to break it down by each month of 2024. Additionally, it lets you know your top ten artists and songs in comparison to Spotify’s top 5.

“My top 10 artists didn’t surprise me at all this year, and I actually think it’s funny how some people act so shocked when they see what they’ve listened to during the year. I know they’re fully aware of their favorite artists and they might just not want to admit to that,” Drewry shares. 

Although some people might not want to claim their musical habits, Drewry takes some pride in his. 

“So my top artist was SZA, and I was actually able to see her in concert this year, so that probably played a role. I think she’s a great artist with a good mix of music, not all of her music sounds the same which I like and she collabs with other great artists,” Drewry shared.

As Drewry gives great appreciation to his top artist, he also reflects on the impact that music makes in the world, not just apps like Spotify and Apple Music who allow people to listen to their favorites, but what the actual tunes bring to listeners.

“I absolutely love the idea of Apple Music year in review, it just highlights the fact that music can really bring people together. Whether you’re listening to the same music and artists as your best friends or you are complete opposites, it’s a great way to connect and get closer to people,” Drewry said. 

Listeners may not realize how much of a thanks we owe to Spotify and Apple Music. From top artists, to tops songs, and the amount of minutes listened, there’s always something to learn about the way we listen to music.