Spotify Just Rolled Out a New Playlist Feature—and as a Tidal User, I’m a Little Bit Jealous
Photo by Haithem Ferdi on Unsplash
Music streaming preferences might seem like a minor lifestyle choice, but they can reveal a lot about how we interact with our favorite songs and artists. In my household, there’s a quiet divide—not one of conflict or rivalry, but a gentle difference in taste and priorities. My partner swears by Spotify, while I’m firmly in the Tidal camp. For the longest time, this difference in platforms felt negligible. We each had our own reasons, our own rituals, and our own way of enjoying music.
His loyalty to Spotify is understandable. It’s familiar, well-designed, and efficient. He enjoys features like Release Radar and Discover Weekly—playlists that effortlessly serve up new artists based on what he already enjoys. And he listens casually, often through his AirPods, unbothered by the debate over bitrates or whether the hi-hats in a song are lossless or compressed.
I, however, have always been drawn to the details—those tiny audio nuances that only emerge through high-quality headphones and a finely tuned system. That’s why I chose Tidal. It delivers richer audio, supports FLAC files, and treats the listening experience with the seriousness I crave as someone who views music not just as entertainment but as art.
So for quite some time, I felt no regret about my decision. Tidal had improved over the years. Its discovery tools got smarter, the interface became more polished, and the catalog kept expanding. In short, it gave me everything I needed, without the excess noise of a platform designed for the mainstream.
But recently, Spotify introduced something unexpected. And for the first time in years, I felt a pang of genuine FOMO.
A New Spin on Local Music Discovery
To be fair, Spotify has always offered some level of concert integration. It would show you upcoming shows from artists you follow or highlight events happening in your area. It was a handy extra, but not exactly groundbreaking. If you were curious about live music nearby, it made sense to go directly to apps like Songkick or Bandsintown, where that information was already front and center.
But now, Spotify has added a curated playlist called “Concerts Near You”—and it’s honestly brilliant.
This playlist doesn’t just show you who’s performing nearby. It tailors the list based on your individual music preferences and generates a dynamic playlist of about 30 tracks. These are songs from artists scheduled to perform in your area, selected using Spotify’s infamous recommendation engine. It’s not just a list. It’s a personalized listening experience that connects your streaming behavior with real-world concert opportunities.
It’s updated every Wednesday, so there’s a fresh lineup every week. For my partner, it’s become a go-to playlist, offering him a convenient and immersive way to discover not just songs, but potential live shows worth attending.
Turning Streaming Into a Real-Life Experience
The magic of this feature lies in its simplicity. It quietly bridges the gap between online and offline music consumption. Instead of needing to check a calendar or look up concert venues, you just listen. If something catches your ear, you’re already halfway to buying a ticket.
It’s a clever shift in how we experience music—one that moves away from just passive listening and toward active participation.
Take my partner, for example. One day, as he was listening to his Concerts Near You playlist, he stumbled upon a band called Boom Crash Opera—an ’80s Aussie pop-rock group neither of us had really paid attention to before. Lo and behold, they’re playing a gig just a few kilometers from our place later this month. Had it not been for this playlist, that opportunity would’ve passed us by entirely.
Even better (or worse, depending on how you look at it), the same playlist reminded us—rather belatedly—that Sigur Rós will be performing live next month with the Royal Melbourne Philharmonic Orchestra. An absolute dream pairing. Unfortunately, the tickets cost over AU$230, which is a bit steep for a casual outing. Still, just discovering that concert through a song made it feel more personal, more exciting—even if only briefly.
Why This Matters More Than You’d Think
This kind of playlist isn’t just another product feature. It’s part of a larger shift in how music platforms are trying to embed themselves more deeply into our lives. It’s not just about playing songs anymore—it’s about enhancing your relationship with the music, and that includes live experiences.
And that’s something Tidal hasn’t quite nailed yet.
To its credit, Tidal has been upping its game in recent years. There are better recommendations, more curated content, and improvements in user experience. But it still operates largely as a high-fidelity music vault. It delivers superior sound, yes—but it stops there. There’s little attempt to engage users beyond the listening session itself.
Meanwhile, Spotify is working to create a music ecosystem that extends into your day-to-day life. They want your music player to be your ticket agent, your concert buddy, your social connector. And features like Concerts Near You are a smart step in that direction.
The HiFi Elephant in the Room
Of course, no conversation about Spotify vs. Tidal is complete without touching on Spotify’s long-delayed HiFi tier. For years, rumors have swirled about a premium plan—possibly called Spotify HiFi or Spotify Music Pro—that would finally deliver higher-quality audio streams.
The promise? Better sound, plus possibly some exclusive perks. There’s talk of early ticket access, premium seats at live shows, or unique subscriber events. If those rumors pan out, it could push Spotify into a league of its own—a platform where both convenience and quality coexist.
For someone like me, that’s an intriguing proposition. I’ve resisted Spotify so far because, frankly, its audio quality just doesn’t match Tidal’s. But if Spotify were to offer a comparable HiFi experience, plus concert perks, plus more innovative playlists like Concerts Near You… I’d have to seriously reconsider my allegiance.
Tidal Still Has My Loyalty—For Now
Despite my newfound envy, I’m not abandoning Tidal just yet. Its sound quality still outperforms anything else on the market, and for an audiophile like me, that matters. When I want to close my eyes and truly lose myself in a song, Tidal delivers.
But I also can’t deny that Spotify is innovating in ways that go beyond just what’s coming through your speakers. They’re thinking about the user journey—before the play button is pressed and long after the track ends.
It’s a strategy that recognizes how music isn’t just something we consume. It’s something we do. We go to shows, we share songs with friends, we plan evenings around an album release or a new single. Spotify is finding ways to integrate all of that into the streaming experience.
The Bottom Line
As someone who has been deeply satisfied with Tidal for years, I didn’t expect a single playlist to make me reconsider things. But that’s exactly what Spotify’s new Concerts Near You feature has done. It’s not flashy or over-the-top, but it’s smart, useful, and aligned with how many people enjoy music—not just in private, but in public spaces, surrounded by energy, lights, and sound.
Streaming isn’t just about fidelity anymore. It’s about connection—to artists, to communities, to experiences. And Spotify, it seems, is listening closely.
If Tidal wants to keep up, it might need to start listening, too.
