Snapchat Now Lets Users Share What They're Listening to in Real Time

Snapchat Is Letting You Share Your Music LiveSnapchat has rolled out another feature that adds a social element to how users engage with content on the messaging platform: sharing what music they are listening to. Users can now share live as their current song plays, making it another way for friends on the app to discover new artists and discuss their listening habits. Music plays an increasingly significant role on social media –platforms are implementing it intomessaging, short-form videos, and even creator content as ways to engage users and help them express themselves.

Snapchat’s real-time listening share is designed as another way friends can interact over music.

The feature should integrate with music-streaming services so that users’ songs will automatically show up for their friends whenever they go on the app –as opposed to someone updating their status to show off what they’re listening to –and allow friends to potentially view the songs in the platform or on compatible music providers, industry insiders suggest. Chatting Beyond the basicsSnapchat has pushed beyond direct messaging in recent years, incorporating features like an augmented-reality-fueled lens, AI tools, interactive maps, creator content, games, and shopping –and its real-time-listening feature goes further down that road. “It all goes into how do we deepen and personalize the experiences for friends and how do they express themselves, and music is increasingly a very big part of how people express themselves,"Snapchat COO Evan Spiegelsaid at a 2021 WSJ Tech Live conference, explainingthe additionofmusic-sharingfeature. It could open up another path for music-discovery-Sharing a song with your network, rather than going to explore music yourself on playlists and recommendations, can provide yet another avenue to discover music that becomes “ socially relevant to a particular person at a particular point in time.”

However, amid growing competition from other social platforms such asMeta, Tiktokand even streaming apps like spotify,Snapchathas a lot atstake.

Companies use those types of music and content-sharing features to keep users engaged on their app;otherwise “ users risk having them spend time elsewhere,"said David Henninger, co-founder of data-crunching company Signal, as previously reported bySnapchat:artists get a boost, tooprivacy is on a person’s controlWhile the feature will undoubtedly boost artist outreach, industry observers said that enabling real-time music shares is part of a wider trend around authenticity. “Instead of just putting up a story that reflects how we want other people to see us, we’re now sharing what we’re genuinely doing right now,” said Paul Chodroff, associate professor of digital media at George Washington University. The Snapchat real-time sharing fit perfectly with “ Snapchat’s more conversational, personal platform.”

According to the outlet, people who will likely use the feature also engage in messaging on platforms other than Snapchat throughout the day and are primarily younger.