Shuffling album playing random songs instead of the songs from the album

[ColeGateNB]

Plan

Free

Country

UK

Device

iPhone 12

Operating System

iOS 16.4.1 (up to date)

My Question or Issue

Hi, the issue I've been having with trying to play one particular album is that it often plays these random Indian songs instead of the album I want to listen to. This wasn't an issue before I stopped using Premium but has become much worse over time. It isn't the same thing as getting to the end of the album's songs and then it playing similar ones because 1) The songs are completely different to the album and 2) It plays them far before the album is over, even sometimes when I press play, those songs are first before any of the actual album. I don't know if this is an intentional feature to try and annoy people to pay for premium but there seems to be no other people talking about this specific issue.

Thanks for the help! 

[Alex · Accepted solution]

Hi there @ColeGateNB,

Thanks for the post.

On Spotify free you can play playlists and albums only on Shuffle mode. This means that other recommended content can also be included in between the songs in the album you're playing. 

If you're getting too many random songs, it's a good idea to clear your queue before playing any album. This way no previously queued content will come into your stream.

Hope this helps.

[ParentalControl]

It's highly recommended if you're using a free account to create a playlist with multiple albums at least 4-5 albums to keep the shuffle on the topic or tracks of the music you want to be played.

Playlist should have around 50 songs (Minimum sometimes more I recommend getting up to 100) and 4-6 albums minimum so that Spotify doesn't turn your playlist or album into a radio playlist and automatically add new suggested tracks. I've been on free for years.

If you don't like this, I suggest 5 other options. Any one of these options will allow you to select individual songs rather than shuffle mode only (shuffle mode on free accounts is an intentional limitation of the Mobile app by Spotify developers):

1. Use the web player on a desktop/laptop browser (Allows selection of individual tracks on free account)
2. Use the Desktop download app on desktop/laptop (Allows selection of individual tracks on free account)
3. Use TV supported app like Google TV, Chromecast (Allows selection of individual tracks on free account)
4. Use a Tablet. (Allows selection of individual tracks on free account)
5. Purchase Premium Subscription. (removed shuffle mode requirement on mobile and all apps. This removes ads too.)

[ColeGateNB]

Ah ok that makes sense, I didn't realise that's how it worked. Weird how it recommends me things nothing like the album or any similar songs to the things I listen to but thanks for the help!

[ColeGateNB]

Good ideas! I'll definitely create a playlist with a couple albums I frequently listen to. ATM I've just got a huge playlist with all the songs I like but yeah that works better. Thank you!

[ParentalControl]

@ColeGateNB Yes create multiple playlists if needed with different moods, genres or themes and get creative using the above techniques I mentioned. For Example: If you like a certain artist-1 and you like a whole bunch of their albums but they also are similar sound to another artist-2 maybe create playlist with just the single artist if you have enough tracks/albums you like or mix it up with the other one that sounds similar in style or mood.

This should make free account way more enjoyable going forward. That's what I've been doing for years, and it helped me really enjoy the free features after understanding the techniques mentioned. Ironicly it's a limitation that sparked fun creativity with the playlists.

The only other Free with ads Rival is YouTube Music which allows you to pick any song but it comes with big negative that you can't close the app and multitask or run the app in background or in lock screen. So YouTube Music not ideal for use beyond a quick listen to an individual track or two.

Don't even bother with Pandora or Apple or Amazon on free they are all random shuffle play radio style with no controls beyond thumbs ups and down.