The News, Explained
On November 5, Spotify shared a guide ahead of this year’s Wrapped, the annual recap of a listener’s activity. The guide explains how listening controls affect the recap and recommends updating the app. It gives no date for when this year’s recap will appear. Source
To exclude one track or an entire playlist, open its three-dot menu and choose “Exclude from your taste profile.” Spotify uses the taste profile to infer what you like from your listening. You can add the item back from the same menu. Spotify Support says the exclusion takes effect within 48 hours. Source Source
Track and playlist exclusions cover past and future plays that qualify. Those plays drop out of Wrapped results such as top songs and artists, but still contribute to total listening time. For example, if you exclude a bedtime playlist but play one of its songs separately from Liked Songs, that separate play still counts toward your taste profile. Source Source
Spotify also has a switch for kids and family music. On mobile, tap your profile picture, open Settings and privacy, select Content and display, and turn off “Include kids and family music in taste profile.” Spotify began rolling out the switch globally to Free and Premium mobile listeners in September; it is on by default. You can still find and play family music with the switch off. Spotify says even earlier plays of kids and family music then drop out of your top songs and artists. Source Source
OYOPICK’s Take
Imagine a household sharing one speaker. If you only want a bedtime playlist out of the rankings, excluding that playlist is the narrower choice. If nursery songs are spread across several playlists, the kids and family music switch may be a better fit. When a playlist exclusion changes the rankings, the total minutes can still stay the same. Those figures answer different questions: how long the account listened, and which songs ranked highest under the recap’s rules. Source Source