Spotify podcasters can now record full songs in episodes

Spotify has announced a new offer for the developers who publish their shows on its platform: the ability to include full songs in their shows. The new feature is based on Spotify’s existing music library and record label license agreements. This allows podcast creators to include songs in their shows that listeners can easily access using the Spotify app.

Podcasting is more popular than ever. A number of amateur and hobby artists are starting their own shows using the technology they already have available. The only problem? Many small developers cannot afford the listening fees associated with professionally produced audio content, leading them to usually lackluster royalty-free and CC0 audio options.

Spotify says it changed that for its creators by opening up its song library to combined music and spoken content. With this relaunched format, shows can include songs in their content and users can interact with that music content directly without leaving the episode page of the podcast in the app.

There is one major caveat, however: the shows must be Spotify exclusive for the obvious reason that this feature uses the company’s existing catalog and music licenses. According to Spotify, creators and songwriters are compensated when their songs are used by podcasters as with any regularly streamed track.

For users: Spotify says to click the “Explore Episode” option on the podcast episode page to explore the music included, assuming it has one. For creators, Spotify notes that creators can mix their own shows and take advantage of the platform, including the music, using the recently updated Anchor creation tool that includes the licensed music from Spotify.