Spotify has rolled out new social features designed to make music sharing more interactive, allowing users to share their listening activity in real time and invite friends to listen together directly within the app’s Messages section.
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The music streaming platform has introduced Listening Activity, an opt-in feature that lets users display what they are currently listening to in real time. If a user is not actively streaming music, their most recently played track will be shown instead. The feature is turned off by default and is visible only to friends and family already connected through Spotify Messages.
Users can enable Listening Activity by navigating to the Privacy and Social settings within the Spotify app. Once activated, listening updates appear in the chat row of the side drawer and at the top of Messages conversations. Users retain full control and can turn the feature off at any time. Even those who have not enabled their own activity can still view others’ listening updates, provided those users have opted in.
The update also enhances music discovery within chats. By tapping on a friend’s listening activity, users can instantly play the track, save it to their library, open the track’s menu, or react using one of six preset emojis—without leaving the conversation.
In addition, Spotify has launched Request to Jam, a new feature that makes it easier to listen to music together remotely. While the Jam feature has existed previously, users often found it difficult to know when friends were available. Request to Jam solves this by showing when someone is already listening and allowing friends to join a live session while continuing to chat.
From a Messages conversation, Spotify Premium users can tap the Jam icon to send a request. If accepted, a shared listening session begins, with participants able to add tracks to a collaborative queue. Jam sessions can be exited at any time, and unanswered requests expire automatically after a few minutes.
Both Listening Activity and Request to Jam are rolling out on iOS and Android devices in markets where Spotify Messages is available. Spotify says wider availability is expected by early February. Listening Activity will be available to all users, while Request to Jam will remain exclusive to Premium subscribers.
