Spotify Star Jam 2024: The Stars Recap

[Billy-J]

Hi Community, Billy here!

If you didn’t know by this point, then I'm here to tell you that there is a special program within the Spotify Community, called the Spotify Stars Program, where Stars (like myself) engage in the forums helping users, encouraging and propelling discussions and so much more!

A few weeks ago, some of us attended the Spotify Star Jam which is an annual event where a handful of the top contributors of the Stars Program get together to celebrate, and meet one another in person! This gives us a chance to connect, get closer to Spotify, and of course experience the amazing city it's hosted in.

Previously, the Spotify Star Jam event was held in Sweden at Spotify's main office - if you want to know about that you can learn more about last year’s event here. This year was the second one back in person after a halt between 2021 - 2023, and we headed to London for the first time.

For 2024, 7 stars, including myself, got together and we were incredibly happy about it!



As we (the 'in-person' Stars) met in the beautiful city of London at the Spotify UK office, our fellow Stars back home were hanging out with us virtually, and had some extra Virtual Jam activities taking place so that everyone was truly celebrated for their amazing contributions in the program (you can hear more about that at the end of this blog)! So, for me... this Jam was powerful.

In this blog, I would like to try and encapsulate some of the significant moments of this incredible event which was held between August 21st & August 23rd. These three days were amazing, as we got together for many different talks and workshops that were held at the London Spotify Headquarters. I can definitely say our time together was nothing but fulfilling and inspiring and I feel like I literally don't have the words to express how cool it was to partake in this year’s Jam.

So, without further ado:

Wednesday:

We arrived in London and had the opportunity to settle in at our hotel rooms to get ready for a jam-packed week. This was mostly a rest day, but once everyone arrived, we had some time to speak to one another over a nice cup of coffee, before we headed to the Spotify office.

At the office, we synced up with our fellow Stars back home virtually by participating in a listening party. This was a great way for all of us to reunite no matter where we were around the world! As the listening party went on, we had a wonderful selection of food to indulge in. After the listening party, we conducted a 'DIY Swag Painting' session where we got to paint tote bags and chat with fellow Stars really testing out our creative skills.

As the night came upon us, many of us started to experience the jet lag as we'd traveled from different parts of the world. There were Stars who arrived from Brazil, India, Canada, Spain, and the USA! 

Thursday:

Office Tour:
To start the first main day off, we had an office tour where we got to explore the different Spotify office setups and recreational areas - such as a gaming room, meditation room, and where everyone typically hangs out day-to-day. It was amazing to see the unique and articulate styles of the office, and I felt immersed in the Spotify experience (in person!).

Being able to see and explore what different teams at Spotify do to enrich the user experience is impressive. I like to think of it as different teams working together towards one common goal, which also embodies the Stars Program. 

Music Teams:

After the office tour, we got to meet with the Music Team to learn about them, their roles, and how they co-operate with artists and creators to make the experience more personal between fans and artists. They shared stories with us about their life at Spotify, and we really got to connect and ask all of our burning questions.

Desktop Teams:
Next, we met the Desktop team where we got to understand the history of the Desktop application, starting as a Web Client. We also got to know what their progress was like up to this point and how it plays into the overall Spotify experience. And, of course - we also got the chance to take a photo with the team at the end of our session!

Audiobooks:
Moving on (after lunch of course), we settled in for a panel chat with the head of Audiobooks. Audiobooks are included with Premium and a newer addition to Spotify’s platform, so it was very interesting to understand what their progress has been thus far and how Audiobooks bring so much value to Spotify and listeners. 

Live Panel Chat with CS & Commerce (and us!):

In the afternoon, we learnt about the value of the Customer Support teams and the Commerce teams, and the role they both have in ensuring a positive user experience. It was super cool, and streamed live for the rest of those teams and our fellow Stars to watch along!



Featured in this session was my fellow star, @MattSuda and myself taking the stage(!) where we also shared our experiences as Spotify Stars (including when we joined, why we joined, and some of the favorite moments in the program thus far) so the CS and Commerce teams could get to know us too. 

Music and Fun!:

As if this wasn’t a jam-packed day, we also had a social session by the stage, which meant folks in London could meet us and learn about the program whilst we watched two live acts perform! There had to be music - it is Spotify after all!

As if that wasn't enough excitement, we then walked round the city, and had dinner at Sarastro, an amazing theatrical themed restaurant. As we started eating, there was a master of ceremonies (emcee), followed by live music. The emcee got everyone in the restaurant involved to make it a fun, enjoyable dinner experience. Does that sound amazing? You’re right, because it was amazing x100!

Friday: 

Before I knew it, the final day was already upon us. Friday was another day filled with fun and memorable events. You may be wondering in the back of your mind - how is the jet lag? We had way too much fun and met amazing people to even think or worry about that.

Product Director:
To start our final day off, we met with an amazing Product Director at Spotify, where we got to learn about her role within Spotify but also her journey before Spotify, how her many achievements have shaper her career, and how her team works hard to ensure the app experience is simple, yet enjoyable. It was amazing to understand more about the decision making processes that go on behind the scenes.

Podcast Studio & Community Improvements:

After this wonderful session, we separated into groups! One group got to explore the Podcast Studio first, which is a super cool place hidden away nicely in the office, while chatting about our experiences within the Stars Program and answering trivia questions. Hopefully the podcast will be out there some time! It was such an amazing time, and it was my first time being in a podcast setting!

The other group focused on the Community website experience, ensuring that Stars have all the resources they need to help fellow Spotify users, while making it easier to find and locate content that is relevant to your use case of the forums. It is always great being able to share feedback on a platform that you use every day. (We then swapped sessions, so we all got to experience the same activities).

As we wrapped up the day in the Spotify office with our final roundtables and discussions, we took a group photo in front of the Spotify logo. A memorable moment - Stars from around the world coming to one place where we take a photo of us right next to one another: 

Exploring and Darts!:
After our final day in the office, we hopped on a Boat Tour that set off right below the London Eye, exploring some of the scenic sights of London while chatting amongst ourselves! This was a great way to experience London and what it has to offer. 

       

So, to conclude the Jam days while celebrating our last night together, we went to Flight Club! This was such a great experience, where we got to play Darts and indulge in delicious food while spending our last few hours together.

Whilst all this had been going on (remember those virtual elements I said i'd come back to?) our fellow Stars back home were engaging in virtual fun too! I won't name everything they got up to, but they were able to join some of our roundtable improvements workshops virtually (as well as the listening party), they ran some awesome online Star competitions, and... they kept supporting users on the Community platform too of course! Hopefully some of the Stars who enjoyed this back home will comment too, and share more about this 🙂

So, to try and wrap things up it was time to say goodbye, and we started missing it the very moment our last day of activities had officially concluded.

Attending this Star Jam in-person has been one of the best experiences in my life, and meeting everyone in-person was empowering. Every day of the year, with the exception of the Jam we are communicating online and through video calls - so being able to see everyone in person, coming from different parts of the world, brings true meaning of what Community stands for 🙂

Thanks for reading and I hope to see you at the next Spotify Star Jam!

Billy