To expect Spotify to have a 'child friendly' button/stream

[Jjcrackers]

I have just signed up to Spotify Premium through Vodafone.

I had a bit of a shock this morning when DS (7) put on the charts only to hear two songs back to back with swearing. (One being the new Zayn Malik...don't get me started).

AIBU to expect them to either censor something as mainstream as the charts OR provide a 'kids friendly' option?

Or am I missing a trick and there is a setting that I can't find?

Sorry if this sounds all a bit Mary Whitehouse - I'm just annoyed that we won't be able to play this when the DC are around...

[ProcrastinatorGeneral]

I like Spotify because I can listen to songs as they're intended to be heard. If you don't want your child hearing someone sing fuck buy a sodding nursery rhyme cd. It's a service for adults.

[SuperCee7]

It's not an app geared towards kids though. Just find a kid friendly playlist or skip the song.

[HopefulHamster]

The OP isn't saying 'it's a service for kids' she's saying a kid-friendly filter might be helpful to some of the app's audience.

I have the same issue with Amazon Prime. My kids and I love pop music, and I do use playlists before anyone starts, but I'd like there to be an easy way to find the non-explicit tracks so we could all enjoy something a bit more spontaneous than 'one of mum's playlists... again'.

[DoJo]

Their tagline is 'Spotify: Music for Everyone'. Not sure which part of that suggests it is a service for adults. I can't see why some posters on here believe that they would be in some way 'forced' to listed to radio edits if the option were simply available to those who wanted it.

[weeblueberry]

The app shows as 12+ on the App Store and suggests content might include 'infrequent/mild profanity'. Suppose this covers them legally...

[Sn0wdr0ps]

Spotify is a service that you pay for, so you would need to have a bank account, therefore it assumes a degree of adulthood

You can sign up for Spotify Family and create play lists for family members
where they have a seperate login

Why not listen to the radio instead ?

[eternalopt]

No one is suggesting that everyone should be forced to listen to sanitised versions of songs. However, if I look up a song that we like listening to on the radio to play, it would be useful if there was a warning that what I'm about to listen to with my children is much more fruity than what's on the radio. Suggesting we listen to nursery rhymes instead isn't the same (the point of getting my kids to like "real" music is so I don't have to listen to nursery rhymes all the time, and they've outgrown those now anyway) and listening to the radio instead doesn't allow you to find and choose a song - otherwise I wouldn't use spotify.

Really don't understand why people are so tetchy about a suggestion that an app includes an option that you don't to have to use if you don't want to.

I've had to lunge for the controls quite a few times to end a song more quickly after realising that there's swearing in the song that isn't usually there when we listen to it, and that's not using other people's playlists, but just looking up a song and there being no "explicit" warning.

[slightlyglitterbrained]

Okay, for those outraged at the idea of "catering to children" - my workplace allows us to play Spotify at the end of the day sometimes, but the rule is no NSFW lyrics. That an "adult" enough usecase for you?

[xenapants]

Why are you letting a seven year old use something on the internet unattended? If you don't want him to listen to adult material, supervise him properly.

[AndNowItsSeven]

Swearing is not necessary to enhance a song. I don't see how anyone would miss out not hearing them as they were intended.
Do people honestly listen to a song and think " that song was quite good but if that had said fuck a few times it would have been fantastic?"

[AndNowItsSeven]

*they

[vitalite]

I'm with you op. I'm all for others being able to listen to the unsanitised version of a song but I (and my 7 year old ds) would like to be able to listen to zayn Maliks song without the swearing! There is a radio edit in existence, after all, they do play it on the radio, but neither Spotify, deezer or Apple Music seem to have this available ( although at least Apple Music do have it marked as explicit which Spotify does not!)

[eternalopt]

It's not an issue of supervision. I find the songs myself for myine, but it's not obvious when there's swearing.

However, I'm all for swearing when they're not around. And as for swearing being necessary in songs, after some days in work, a very loud sing a long to "killing in the name" by rage against the machine is essential for the commute home! A sanitised version of that song would be very short indeed!

[martinknibbs]

I think this problem has become more serious...A lot more serious. I love Spotify and love they have a family pack which allows all members of the family to have an account for £15 a month. Before you could restrict children to a playlist. Brilliant I hear you say. However, it means minors using a multi-room system like SONOS will be able to access the 'cooler' EXPLICIT songs with their own account. I have worked in the mobile phone industry for a long time and Vodafone worked really hard to avoid minors getting adult content as did other mobile providers. I think this is outrageous from a social responsibility point of view but worse from a Spotify business perspective. I hope they get a lovely legal suit from someone in the states!

[acasualobserver]

Children should be restricted to the Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra. Problem solved.

[Bluemanta]

Hello All,

The user community has been asking Spotify to add an Explicit Content Filter button, similar to the one found in Pandora and Google Music, since 2012.

You can see the thread here:
community.spotify.com/t5/Live-Ideas/Explicit-button/idi-p/3869/page/213#comments

Spotify has everything they need, already in place but they continue to ignore this request.

We recently started a Facebook page and as concerned parents we want to put real pressure on Spotify.

The facebook page is at:
www.facebook.com/MakeSpotifyChildSafe/

Please like the page and share it. Together, we can hpefuly make Spotify listen to their users.

Additionaly please tweet and include @spotify and @SpotifyCares in your tweets as well as the hash tag #SpotifyExplicitButton

[Proseccocino]

Why do you "want to put pressure on Spotify"?

Whatever happened to taking personal responsibility for doing something?

[kali110]

Proseccocino i'm with you. Their pages are just going to be bombarded now.
Reminds me of the simpsons "won't somebody think of the children!"

[contortionist]

I agree with you OP - if I'm listening to Spotify at home, I want to be able to let it play me new music but not things I don't want DC to hear.

I recently switched to Apple Music which does have a simple "clean versions only" option you can select - I'd go back to Spotify immediately if they implemented the same thing.

[Bluemanta]

Proseccocino I will take full responsibility if Spotify will provide the proper tools to do so.

We are not asking Spotify to censor or filter the music but rather add the option to allow me, the user, to filter the explicit content if I want.

[Arseicle]

Spotify are a business, if they thought there was money in this they'd already be doing it.

Reporting the spammy zombie reviver post.

[DrinkMilkAndKickAss]

You don't necessarily have to make your own playlists - there other publicly available ones that you can follow which will only include radio editions. Eg most of the compilation CDs you can buy (like the Now CDs ect) are available to stream on Spotify. So you could listen to those when kids are around/in the car and be free to listen to whatever you want at other times.

[DrinkMilkAndKickAss]

Oops sorry, missed that it's a zombie thread!

[Kenduskeag]

Like vodka and motorbikes, it would never occur to me to let a 7 year old 'play' with Spotify. It isn't a toy and it isn't for children.

If you want your child to listen to some age-appropriate music, find him some.

I don't understand this need some people have to ensure their toddlers and little kids know all the latest chart songs. My kids' teachers have the hassle every time there's a 'talent show' or the kids are invited to sing a song of going through their chosen titles and reminding kids of 5, 6, 7, they can't sing explicit lyrics about knives, murder and drug use.