Spotify is getting ready to serve up full-length music videos for listeners in the U.S., furthering a feature it’s been piloting in various corners of the world. A spokesman confirmed that the rollout is planned for the next few weeks, in what would be a major move in how Spotify wraps music, visuals and artist promotion up within its core app.
What U.S. listeners can expect from Spotify videos
Spotify’s version here will look much like that for its existing international one: for supported tracks, users can tap to switch from audio to video and then drop back into the audio feed without losing their place. Expect to see videos at launch on some tracks, and for the catalog size to grow as rights are cleared and labels opt in.
The company hasn’t specified whether U.S. videos will be accessible to all users or gated behind its Premium tier. In markets where videos are already available, access usually comes with a paid subscription. That positioning would provide Spotify with an additional incentive to hawk Premium while maintaining a status quo of free users’ central audio experience.
In terms of products, video is likely to appear in familiar settings: on track pages, artist profiles and editorial playlists. The experience ought to be a native one, not something that feels like leaping over to another player, according to Spotify’s thinking – and this should cut down on the friction involved with jumping from inside an app or website over to a separate audio playback app.
Why music videos matter on Spotify for artists and fans
Music videos are still a potent accompaniment to audio streams — especially for new releases. Of Spotify’s 40 most-streamed tracks in 2023, 36 had official music videos, according to an analysis by Chartmetric. Those videos averaged 374 million views; the audio tracks for them, 1.1 billion streams. The divide underscores the fact that while audio may lead, visual storytelling remains a huge discovery and branding engine for artists.
Until now, Spotify’s visual layer has rested on Canvas — looping, seconds-long clips that display behind a track. They work for mood and identity, not narrative. Full videos afford artists room to turn a song into a cultural moment, and Spotify richer surfaces for editorial programming, pre-release teases and behind-the-scenes add-ons.
There’s also a retention angle. After all, short-form services have rewired viewing habits, and many fans do not rewatch long videos. By reaching listeners where they’re already streaming audio, Spotify can grab the casual listening that might otherwise go to YouTube Shorts, TikTok or Instagram Reels, and help direct that attention toward full tracks and playlists.
Licensing details and evolving industry dynamics at play
The U.S. addition expands on the new direct license agreement between Spotify and the National Music Publishers’ Association. Spotify says the service’s pricing allows it to create more video experiences and make better payouts for independent publishers and songwriters. Labels will generally have the sound recording and publishers’ participation rights in general, though. A clearer set of rules around what features Spotify can offer may help them move more quickly without resorting to a painstaking process of negotiating everything feature-by-feature.
Labels — both major and indie — will still decide when and how to join. Anticipate a gradual plan: new frontline releases from the top artists, built out to the catalog, live sessions and alternate cuts. For artists, in-app video can be used to prompt pre-saves, merch and touring calls-to-action — effectively turning a single screen into an infinitely richer conversion funnel.
Video is premium real estate for Spotify. It unlocks more sponsorship models, such as the ability for an advertiser to buy more valuable ad slots if it blows up among free users, as well as deeper analytics for labels and artists around everything from completion rates to audio replays following a video view.
How Spotify’s move fits into the competitive landscape
YouTube is the mainstream destination for official music videos, while YouTube Music smoothly switches between audio and video. Apple Music also has a robust collection of music videos, editorial video playlists and in some cases 4K remasters of classics. Tidal has always combined hi-fi audio with a curated video library. The move by Spotify marries that with a “second screen” approach of bringing video alongside your stream in-app, which also makes it less likely that listeners need to switch apps when they want the visual.
The question won’t be, “Does Spotify have videos?” but: How well do those videos sync up with listening behavior? Does a video nudge a user to complete an album? Does it result in more saves, follows or ticket clicks?
Spotify’s expertise is data-informed curation; if it can bring that to video discovery — without modifying the app into an empty-calories video feed — it might stake out a unique lane.
What to watch next as Spotify rolls out U.S. music videos
There are a few key indicators you might want to check out, to find early clues regarding the broad availability of this feature on day one, its position (or not) behind Premium, and which labels participate at launch. Keep an eye on parental controls, content ratings and whether creators receive self-serve tools to make alternate cuts, vertical versions or director’s commentary — places where Spotify might add value beyond hosting the official video.
Done well enough, music videos on Spotify might make the app a more rounded home for everyday music culture — discovery, listening and visual storytelling all in one place. And it’s long overdue in the U.S. when other streaming services and how fans already interact with the music they love are taken into account.
