Show Notes
In this episode of Live From Mars, I sit down with John Stein, Head of Editorial at Spotify, to break down Spotify Wrapped 2025 and what the year in music actually sounded like.
We go behind the scenes of how Spotify Wrapped is made, how editorial teams balance streaming data with human curation, and how playlists like Discover Weekly and Fresh Finds help artists break and grow over time. John shares his 12-year journey at Spotify, how editorial has evolved, and how decisions made inside Spotify impact millions of listeners every day.
We also unpack the biggest music trends of 2025, including introspective pop, album-first listening habits, country rock crossovers, masked metal artists, and why songs released in previous years continued to dominate the charts. We talk about slow-burn artists, touring as a growth engine, and how older catalog songs keep finding new life on streaming.
Plus, we look ahead to 2026 music predictions, the rise of more organic sounding music in response to AI, and which albums and artists might still be talked about a decade from now.
If you’ve ever wondered how Spotify decides what you hear, why Wrapped became such a massive cultural moment, or how music discovery actually works in 2025, this conversation pulls back the curtain.
📲 Follow Alex Mars TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@vinylbymars Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vinylbymars YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@vinylbymars Substack: https://vinylbymars.substack.com
#SpotifyWrapped #SpotifyWrapped2025 #YearInMusic #MusicTrends2025 #SpotifyPodcast #MusicPodcast #LiveFromMars #MusicDiscovery #DiscoverWeekly #FreshFinds #StreamingMusic #PopMusic #MusicIndustry #AlbumListening #MusicTrends #MusicYouTube #PodcastInterview To provide feedback, please fill out this survey: http://bit.ly/livefrommars-survey Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
More from Live From Mars
Matt Hansen joins Live From Mars for an emotional deep dive into his debut album Orchid, the songwriting experiences that shaped it, and the realities of building a music career completely independently.
Subscribe on Substack for more Mars Music: https://vinylbymars.substack.com/
Subscribe on Substack: https://vinylbymars.substack.com
Subscribe to my Substack for more pop music deep dives and unfiltered reactions: https://vinylbymars.substack.com
We’re continuing my Top 3 Albums of 2025 series with the record that kicked off the year’s biggest pop era: Lady Gaga’s Mayhem. I’m joined by two of my first internet friends, Seth and Amanda, for a full deep dive into the rollout, the tracklist chaos, Best / Worst / Fave picks, and why this album stayed in our rotation all year.