While I don’t use Spotify as my primary music streaming platform, pretty much everyone I know has been stressed about cramming in streams for the Spotify Wrapped deadline at the end of the month.

I think that your Wrapped results should reflect your annual streaming habits and not just January through October.

A lot of users complained about the excessive streaming of holiday music messing up their Wrapped, but I feel like that’s a consequence you have to deal with.

I’m not one to judge, but if you’re blasting Mariah Carey at all hours of the night in anticipation of December, then you should have to live with that decision!

Not to mention that those who obsessively loop Halloween music don’t get this privilege either. If Calling All The Monsters by China Anne McClain is your hype song, Wrapped doesn’t make that same accomodation. Why should a holiday’s influence affect stream-tracking?

I use Tidal, which records my most listened songs and artists per month in its own mini-wrapped selection, and then compiles the month’s top songs into a playlist. It also keeps track of your most listened songs ‘of all time,’ or at least since you’ve used the platform.

I find that this is way more efficient—you can tell when I accidentally got too invested in a singular song by an artist (California by Phantom Planet has infested my brain, and I’ve only seen a singular episode of the show it’s a theme song for), or when I’ve rediscovered my love for a song from 2020.

If anything, what I miss most about Wrapped is the presentation with the fun little prompts and colors. But in terms of accurate annual streaming results, I prefer Tidal.

I also think that needing to exclude holiday music defeats the purpose of the fun. Why are you listening to things that you’re ashamed to show others? Or rather, why not do that on a different platform, like YouTube, that won’t affect your stream time?

What if I found my favorite artist in the world in November? Sucks, because it won’t be in my 2023 Wrapped, despite having 60 days left in the year.

If you’re a holiday music fiend, be proud, and let your Wrapped results reflect that. Besides, you would have to listen to a lot of Christmas songs to dethrone ten months worth of streamed songs. 

Take one for the team and show off your holiday spirit. You’re ruining the stats!