Spotify is more than just an audio streaming service for listeners, but also a platform that helps artists connect with new audiences and cross borders. At Spotify House at SXSW Sydney®, the program celebrated music cultures of the Asia Pacific (APAC) region.
In the newest episode of Spotify: For The Record, which gives listeners a sneak peek at Spotify House at SXSW Sydney®, Spotify’s General Manager, Asia Pacific Gautam Talwar shared, “I’m proud to say that more artists have been discovered than ever before, and artists have found more fans than ever before. And that’s the beauty of having a platform where artists are able to cross borders and find success with audiences anywhere in the world as they exist.”
Bringing the sounds of Asia Pacific to the world
Asia is home to an array of cultures and a multitude of unique artists and creators, and fast becoming a global cultural hub. Spotify aids these incredibly diverse groups of genres and artists in building a global audience.
Sulinna Ong, Spotify’s Head of Global Editorial Music at the Spotify House @ SXSW Sydney
Sulinna Ong, Spotify’s Global Head of Editorial, Music and Alicia Vrajlal, Editorial & Partnerships Lead, Missing Perspectives, at the Spotify House during SXSW Sydney, emphasized how Spotify combines machine learning capabilities with a thoughtful blend of global and local curation, delivering personalized music experiences to over 551 million listeners.
P-Pop sensation, SB19, attested to the role power of Spotify in their journey in the podcast. They stated, “Streaming and playlisting have really helped us big time to be discovered because every time we have releases, we see our music on Spotify’s New Music Friday playlist alongside other artists across the globe, and this really helps us. Spotify supports artists from the Asia Pacific region, allowing us to introduce our music to unexpected territories.”
Putting Asian artists on the map — creatively
Sam Kim, JUNNY and So!YoON! at the Spotify House @ SXSW Sydney
Sydney was also treated to a display of some of the best music and creativity that South Korea has to offer, with three incredible acts at Spotify House at SXSW Sydney. Sam Kim, JUNNY and So!YoON! showed a packed room from across the Asia Pacific region just why their craft is listened to globally.
“The country’s music scene is so diverse, filled with hardworking and talented artists,” Jungjoo Park, Spotify’s Head of Music, South Korea, remarked. “As witnessed by our Spotify House K-Night at SXSW Sydney, we’re always looking for ways to showcase the wide range of Korea’s music scene, and will continue to do our best to connect more Korean artists to more fans and listeners worldwide.”
South Korea’s influence extends to neighboring countries, including the Philippines, Thailand, and Indonesia which serve as some of the top export markets for artists like JUNNY and So!YoON!.So!YoON! emphasized, “I believe culture exchanges happening offline are crucial, especially for Asian Pacific music artists to stand together and spread their music.”
It’s clear that the power of Spotify’s platform not only helps Asian artists to top the charts in their home country, but to also cross borders and top the charts elsewhere. These showcases at the Spotify House in Sydney provide a glimpse into the creative contributions of Asian artists.
For more illuminating insights from the music industry tune in to the latest episode ofSpotify: For The Record.