Wellesley Opinions on 2025 Spotify Wrapped & AI
By Nana Ama Asare-Kwaah ‘28
Spotify Wrapped this year came as a surprise, without much fanfare, and, to some, a lovely departure from the horror of the wave of “Pink Pilates Princesses” that came last year. However, that bubble popped at the sight of the AI-Powered label on one particular part of the Wrapped.
For the section that opened with several files in a box labelled “2025,” the reports had little tag, missed by some, that said “Report powered by AI.” It seems after last year's criticisms of AI usage, Spotify decided not to stop entirely, but to continue on the down-low. It’s not clear if the entire Wrapped utilized AI, but this section most definitely did.
Spotify Wrapped 2024 was deemed as the worst by many, due to the lack of creativity and deluge of AI usage which produced nonsensical “genres” such as the infamous Pink Pilates Princess Music Evolution and personalized AI podcasts. The use of AI left a bitter taste after the layoff of 1,500 workers in December 2023, and the lack of effort, as well as a human touch, was evident.
“It was literally good before they did AI and I don’t actually care if it’s good with AI. It was good without AI and if they’re using it that means they’re not paying people to do it and they want to kill the planet,” commented Nyah Massey ‘28.
This year felt like a breath of fresh air— until that bubble was inevitably popped by the “AI-Powered” label on the last section of the Wrapped, and Wellesley students were not pleased. When asked if she was aware of the AI-usage, Imara Wangia ‘28 responded, “No, but I assumed the AI was everywhere. I didn’t know explicitly, though.”
The small size of the label meant that some people missed it, and only found out about the AI-usage after the fact, like Josie Kim‘29, who responded. “If I’m being totally honest, I did not see that. Upon hearing this news, I’m a bit concerned that I didn’t notice because I think that must mean that I'm becoming more complicit in the consumption of AI and the regularization of AI.”
It’s no secret that Spotify has been coming under fire lately, both for AI usage, low artist pay, and controversial investments. These controversies have pushed some users off the platform entirely and towards alternatives such as Tidal. WZLY is also considering making the switch, “Either to GoBuzz, which is more ethical or to a new program where people have to program their playlists,” said Elizabeth Greer ‘28. “You get to have a record of your shows so people get to see what you’ve played in the past. Which is what every other radio station does.”
Spotify’s AI usage is just another drop in the bucket in the AI-wave corporations have been encouraging, but the ripples are felt by all. Overall, the entrance of AI in something as creative and anticipated as Spotify Wrapped is a poor sign. As put by Sahana Bhaskaran ‘28, “I think it’s disturbing that it's present in something that I think is so creative. The presence of AI in the arts is a disturbance of their purpose.”
