It feels fitting that Spotify was originally imagined as an advertising platform, because in many cases, when you press “play” on a calm-down, wellness-vibes, or whatever mood playlist, what you’re hearing is something that was cranked out by someone making music for an advertising library. It makes sense that as the digital world has grown to feel more like a shopping mall, it is also sometimes the very companies making music for shopping malls that are flooding its soundtrack.
