Spotify Testing ‘SongDNA’ to Reveal Music Credits

Spotify is testing a new feature under development called “SongDNA,” designed to provide users with a deep dive into the creative teams behind their favorite music. The tool aims to map out the network of contributors involved in a track, including songwriters, vocalists, audio engineers, and producers.

The existence of the feature was first uncovered by reverse engineer Jane Manchun Wong, who successfully extracted screenshots from the app’s code. Her findings suggest that SongDNA would offer a visual interface where users can navigate through credit lists, see how different collaborators are linked, and investigate their wider body of work. For instance, the interface could highlight how a specific vocalist, such as Rei Ami, contributed to various projects beyond a single soundtrack.

Mapping the Network of Music Creators

Following Wong’s initial report, technologist and reverse engineer Chris Messina also verified the feature’s presence in the Spotify codebase. Messina noted that the code specifically points to a function that reveals the network of individuals involved in music creation, potentially serving as a valuable resource for industry professionals seeking new collaborators or listeners curious about the creative process.

If Spotify moves forward with a public release, SongDNA would compete directly with TIDAL’s interactive credits, which already provides users with a way to explore music through its contributors. While some observers initially compared the name to Pandora’s Music Genome Project, the two serve different purposes. Pandora’s system analyzes hundreds of musical traits to classify songs, whereas Spotify’s project focuses exclusively on the people behind the production.

Following the attention generated by the discovery, references to the feature were removed from the Spotify app. The company declined to comment on the matter, though it did not deny that the work was taking place.