𝟮𝟬𝟬 𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 just reflected on their 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁, and felt something. 𝗦𝗽𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗳𝘆 𝗪𝗿𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗱 is a 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 dream.

Once again, a nicely presented data dump turned a year of small, often forgettable actions into one emotional story.

Wrapped isn't especially accurate; it cuts off in November and ‘listening age’ is clearly a stab in the dark. You might not always recognise yourself in it, but it 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘴, because it 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭𝘴 true enough to provoke a reaction.

And that’s where things get interesting, not just for individuals, but for anyone thinking about behaviour, identity and risk.

Here’s some of what Wrapped quietly reminds us:

• 𝗦𝘂𝗺𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘁 — every data story we tell is framed by decisions; what to count, what to cut, how to frame it.

• 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹𝘀 𝘂𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘄𝗵𝘆 — your top track might be for your toddler. Data without context invites false narratives.

• 𝗦𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗮𝗱𝗱 𝘂𝗽 - you didn’t mean to listen to that track 137 times. But you did. Conduct is often the same: a pattern built from unremarkable moments.

• 𝗣𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗴𝗻𝗶𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗼𝘂𝗿 - if we don’t like what we see, is it a distorting mirror or just an uncomfortable truth? ‘𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵’𝘴 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘮𝘺 𝘵𝘰𝘱 𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘵?!’.

• 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗻𝗰𝘆 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗽𝘁𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 - Wrapped partly works because it jars; the misalignment between who we think we are, and what the data says.

• 𝗪𝗲’𝗹𝗹 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗹𝘃𝗲𝘀 - Wrapped lists are shared on social media, not because they’re entirely accurate, but because they give us aspirational snapshots that project us at our (un)coolest.

• 𝗦𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺𝘀 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗼𝘂𝗿 -not all choices are truly free. Spotify nudges us through playlists, algorithms, autoplay. Organisations do something similar.

• 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺 𝘂𝘀𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 — Wrapped isn’t just a nostalgic reflection, it’s a retention tool masquerading as insight. A clever way to keep you listening, looping, and logged in.

• 𝗦𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝘀𝗼𝗻𝗴 - Wrapped was the brainchild of a Spotify intern.  Sometimes, it takes fresh eyes to see new stories in old data.

Wrapped isn’t perfect, but it 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘴 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦.

If you want people to think about the decisions they’ve made, 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺.