How Did You Find the Music That Became Yours?

Shane Hewitt and The Nightshift · Sep 29, 2026 · 9m

Music discovery used to happen almost by accident. A radio station, a relative's record collection, summer camp or some unexpected song could introduce you to something you'd never gone looking for. Has streaming made that experience better, or simply more predictable?

Ryan O'Donnell argues Spotify has introduced him to more new artists than anything else in his life. Shane isn't convinced, especially when an algorithm can keep serving variations of what it already knows you like.

So what's missing when discovery becomes personalized by data? From music directors who could hear a hit to…