YouTube Music is celebrating its 10th anniversary this week with a wave of new features designed to close the gap with Spotify, and lean into YouTube’s own social DNA.
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The biggest update is the introduction of “Taste Match” playlists: collaborative mixes built from multiple users’ overlapping interests. Think of it as YouTube’s take on Spotify Blend, playlists that update daily with tracks everyone in the group is likely to enjoy.
Beyond playlists, YouTube Music is also moving deeper into live and social experiences:
- Concert discovery: Through a partnership with Bandsintown, fans will now see upcoming concerts, merch drops, and release notifications tied to the artists they watch on YouTube and Shorts.
- Community features: Users will be able to comment on albums and playlists, making listening feel more social.
- Loyalty badges: New badges like First to Watch or Top Listener gamify the experience and reward engagement.
- Artist milestones: Bands can celebrate watch milestones for their videos, from 100,000 views to 1 billion.
At the same time, YouTube is flexing its scale. The platform now boasts over 300 million tracks in its catalog including not just studio recordings, but also live performances, remixes, and covers. For comparison, Spotify touts around 100 million tracks. On top of that, YouTube hosts a staggering 4 billion music-focused user playlists, with 1.8 billion set to public.
The updates come as YouTube Music continues to grow steadily, jumping from 100 million users in February 2024 to 125 million across YouTube Music and YouTube Premium (including trials) by March 2025.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source wersm.com ’
