In Spotify’s latest report, titled “Culture Next,” the music streaming giant gives insights into the latest consumer behavior trends among Generation Z.
Based on its first-party data and in partnership with Quilt.ai, Spotify did an in-depth analysis of 4.2 million songs and more than 680,000 podcast episodes for the report.
The company noted that 35 percent of its audience is Gen Z, making them the “largest culturally influential cohort” on the platform. The cohort is also the most dedicated fans of the platform, averaging two hours of streaming a day. For the report, Spotify broke down the generation by high school (ages 14 to 18), college-aged (19 to 23) and early adulthood (24 to 29), as fandom operates differently at different stages of life.
For commentary, Spotify also tapped Casey Lewis, Gen Z expert and writer of the popular Substack “After School,” formerly of MTV and New York Magazine, where she’s spent two decades analyzing teen behavior and digital culture.
“Gen Z defies easy generalizations, which makes sense when you consider the generation spans 15 years,” said Lewis in the report. “A ninth grader and a young professional have almost nothing in common developmentally and that’s always been the case. But what’s interesting about this particular cohort is that they’re the first generation to live through every life stage on the same platforms. The social media algorithm has swiftly flattened culture — and now everyone’s exposed to the same trends, memes and feeds at the same time, in a way no prior generation experienced.”
Gen Z music is defined by devotion and discovery. Younger fans are more loyal to their top 20 artists and more likely to explore. From high school age, one in eight streams is their top 20 artists — but they also have the highest discoverability. College-aged devotion relates to the introduction of new environments and new friends. Meanwhile, early adults are the least devoted, but their music reflects a more curated mix — making them the most discerning of cohorts.
“Counter to their fickle reputation, Gen Z has become increasingly loyal, especially in terms of the creators and brands they grew up with,” said Lewis. She points to this spring’s festival comeback, post-pandemic. “Launch fatigue has set in and ritualistically returning to the same things — creators, podcasts, brands, even water bottles and lip gloss.”
Notably, Gen Z’s obsession with horror and true crime is the demographic’s way of learning about major world events and global issues. Rather than watching broadcast TV or the nightly news, they witness it on their feed in real time, alongside skin care ads and GRWMs.
Brazilian funk has become one of the biggest musical movements and the fastest-growing amongst Gen Z. “The genre has been boosted by a few converging Gen Z obsessions; gymcore and fitness culture are peaking with this generation […] buying tech wearables so fast that one product among women in their early 20s is up 250 percent,” Lewis continued.
Moreover, she pointed to young people drinking less because of both health reasons and budgetary ones. Looksmaxxing and body optimization have become a cultural phenomenon among Gen Z. Going to the gym is also seen as a wellness ritual rather than something the generation feels like they “should” do.
“The [report’s] research revealed something unexpected about Gen Z. Their tastes shift wildly by life stage, but their engagement doesn’t. The playlists and podcasts change as they age, but they’re consistently streaming through every part of their day. For brands, Spotify is one of the few places you can reach this generation in both their screenless and active moments, which is exactly where attention is hardest to find right now. Treat Gen Z as one demographic and you’re missing the most exciting creative opportunity in media right now,” said Jenny Haggard, global head of thought leadership at Spotify.
Spotify is hosting a “You’re Among Fans” webinar on Wednesday where Haggard and Lewis will share a full first look at the report alongside speakers including Rachel Lindsay, cohost of Higher Learning and Morally Corrupt podcasts; Kaitlin Zurawsky, media director of GNC; and Taylor Hines, director of marketing at LinkedIn.
