You go to Starbucks obviously for the coffee, but chances are you stay for the tunes. That's what makes this latest bit of news so exciting — Starbucks and Spotify are partnering up to bring you interactive playlists, so you can access all your favorite coffee house songs no matter where you are. It's music to my ears... literally. The new digital music experience launches on Jan. 19 in more than 7,500 Starbucks stores nationwide, and ultimately follows in Starbucks' long-standing tradition of introducing customers to both new and established talented artists.
So how does it work? Customers can use the Starbucks mobile app to discover exactly what's playing overhead the second they step into their favorite Starbucks store. Then, they can save songs they like to a customizable Spotify playlist, and browse through other Spotify playlists curated by Starbucks for similar tracks they might enjoy. Basically, if you've ever wanted to recreate the coffeehouse ambiance of your favorite coffee chain at home, here is your chance.
Of course, users will need to have both the Starbucks mobile app and a Spotify account to make the musical magic happen, but linking the two is ridiculously easy. Once you've updated your Starbucks app (it works on both Android and iOS), it will link you to your Spotify app the first time you try to save a song that you like. Not sure what I'm talking about? Allow me to break the process down for you, step-by-step.
1. Update your Starbucks app
If you haven't already, you first need to update your Starbucks mobile app. Then, sign into your My Starbucks Rewards account.
2. Step inside Starbucks, and see what's playing
Once you're in the app, a bar that scrolls along the bottom of the screen will tell you exactly what song is playing at the Starbucks where you're located. Tap it to find out more info about the track, album, and artist.
3. If you like a song, save it to Spotify
Like what you hear? Go ahead and add it to your personal Spotify playlist. To do this, simply tap the name of the song for more info. Then, hit save. The first time you do this, the Starbucks app will ask you to connect to your Spotify account.
Once you've saved your song, you can also browse through other Starbucks-curated playlists to find music from similar artists and genres:
4. Share your favorite tunes
Then? You're free to listen to your fave Starbucks-curated songs whenever the desire strikes. Once you have the Starbucks app open in front of you, you can also choose to "love" your favorite songs. Doing this tells the Starbucks team what tracks you want to hear more of. The app will also include a weekly artist's feature that will spotlight emerging talent, so you have even more opportunity to discover music that speaks to you. Plus, if you super love a song, you can share it on your various social platforms.
In other words, now you can order your coffee to go, and your music, too. Sounds like a sweet deal, to me.
Images: Starbucks
