Tag: driving

Discover the Songs that Help Superstar Driver Lando Norris Get Ready for Race Day

May 5, 2023

He might only be 23, but McLaren Racing’s Lando Norris is already one of the world’s biggest motorsport stars. And it’s not just racing enthusiasts who are captivated by the charismatic driver—Lando is attracting new fans to the sport in droves.

Fans are showing their love for the driver through their Spotify playlists. Last fall, searches for Lando spiked more than 400%, and to date, fans around the world have made nearly 25,000 Lando-related playlists, with title themes like “driving with Lando” and “pov: you’re dating Lando Norris.”

From among all Lando Norris–related playlists, some of the top tracks added include “Yellow” and “Speed of Sound” by Coldplay, “Golden” by Harry Styles, “Smooth Operator” by Sade, “Ferrari” by James Hype and Miggy Dela Rosa, and, of course, “Let’s Go Lando!” by Pitstop Boys. 

Meanwhile, top tracks added to Lando Norris “dating” playlists include “London Boy” and “Paper Rings” by Taylor Swift, “Perfect” by One Direction, “Adore You” by Harry Styles, and “Kiss Me More” by Doja Cat (featuring SZA). 

As Lando prepares for the big race in Miami this weekend, he’s created an exclusive Spotify playlist, Sunshine & Tan Lines, that gives fans an inside look at how music helps him get into the right mindset.

Featuring hits from the likes of Bad Bunny, Drake, Burna Boy, Lizzy McAlpine, and even Alan Jackson, Lando’s playlist has a fun and laid-back vibe inspired by the Miami sunshine.

For the Record sat down with Lando to discuss the playlist, his favorite music to listen to before getting in the car, and how he likes to relax when he’s not on the track. 

How do the songs on your playlist help you get ready for a race?

Before a race, I just want to listen to songs with good energy that remind me of good times and make me happy. I like to make sure I’m in a good mood before I go into the garage. 

So there’s a bit of variety on this playlist. There are lo-fi tracks that let me relax and chill out, and upbeat ones that get me focused. But Miami is a hot and fun place, so there are also some fun, quirky, and cheerful tracks that I can have a cheesy sing-along to.  

Are there any songs on the playlist that might surprise people?

Most of them are probably songs that people know, but they may be surprised that I have some sad songs on the playlist. I don’t know why, but I love sad songs for some reason. Not because it connects me to anything. I think a lot of it is just enjoying the lyrics, the melody, and the vibe.

What’s your go-to song when you’re on a drive?

I love a bit of country, so Alan Jackson’s “Drive (For Daddy Gene)” is one of them. Not because it’s about driving necessarily, but it’s more that I like the tune. Miley Cyrus’s “Party In The USA” is another one that I like to throw on. It’s a song that always puts a smile on my face. 

When I’m driving somewhere alone, I love singing along to songs. And typically, slower-paced songs are easier for me to remember and keep up with. It’s a time to be free, so it has to be songs that I know the lyrics to.

How do you like to relax when you’re not focused on racing?

Mostly, it’s about doing ordinary things that let me be a bit more normal and less of a racing driver. My main thing is just hanging out with friends. It doesn’t really matter what we’re doing, but as long as I’m with them, it takes my mind away from racing. As much as it’s good to focus on racing, it’s easy to overthink things. So my time with friends is important.

But when I’m chilling at home, I like to play video games and binge TV shows. I also got back into cycling recently, so when I’m in Monaco, it’s nice to ride down to Cannes or Saint-Tropez and enjoy the coast and countryside.

Golfing with friends is another thing I love. It’s one of the sports I enjoy the most outside of racing. It helps take my mind off racing, but still has a competitive aspect to it where I want to strive to be better.

What’s your favorite song that you’ve discovered recently?

Probably “ceilings” by Lizzy McAlpine. My friend sent this to me yesterday and said I had to listen to it, probably because it’s a sad song. It’s a very different song than what most people would imagine I’d listen to, but we had some good laughs about that. I also watched a documentary about Lewis Capaldi recently, so I’ve also been listening to “Wish You The Best” a lot. 

Are there any Spotify playlists or features that you love?

I probably listen to my Liked Songs playlist the most, so I would say that’s my favorite. I also thank Spotify for enhancing some of my playlists—I like to find a couple of songs that I like, and then Enhance does the rest for me, saving a lot of time.

Stream all of Lando’s favorite race-day jams on his playlist, Sunshine & Tan Lines.

Spotify’s Car Thing Device Debuts New Features

April 7, 2022

In February, Spotify released Car Thing in the U.S. Now, fans can enjoy a smart player that creates a more seamless and personalized in-car listening experience—no matter the year or model of your vehicle. Car Thing makes it simpler to play exactly what you want, thanks to the intuitive product interface and the ease of using “Hey Spotify” to control what you want to listen to.

But there’s always room to make a great thing even better, which is why Car Thing has some new updates rolling out this week.

With these updates, you’ll now be able to answer phone calls on Car Thing, queue songs and podcasts, and display and control other media. Car Thing also connects to and now mirrors your phone, giving you access to more functionality.

Here’s the full scoop on all the new features:

  • Answer phone calls seamlessly*: You can now see, answer, and dismiss incoming calls via Car Thing. 
  • Control other media*: You can now play and control other media on the Car Thing device. Easily switch back to Spotify by using presets, or voice, or simply tapping the screen.
  • Add to queue: One of our most requested features—the ability to queue additional songs and podcasts—is also now available. You can access it in a few different ways:
    • With touch: Tap the “Add to queue” icon next to a track in your tracklist. 
    • With the dial: When you have a track highlighted, press and keep holding the dial—one press will play, while pressing and holding will add to the queue. 
    • Request music with Voice: Just say “Hey Spotify, queue ‘drivers license’” or whatever track you’d like to listen to next! 
    • View your queue: Say “Hey Spotify, open my queue” or press and keep holding the dial when in the “Now Playing” view. 
  • Use voice to get a personalized playlist for any mood: Simply ask for any genre, mood, or activity that describes the kind of music you want to hear. For example, say “Hey Spotify, play cozy Sunday RnB,” and we’ll do our best to instantly create a personalized playlist from your request. This feature is available wherever “Hey Spotify” is available.

Bringing these highly anticipated new features to Car Thing is part of Spotify’s ongoing commitment to building a truly frictionless experience for users across devices—whether in the car, at home, or on the go. Already a Car Thing user? No worries, updates will roll out for iOS users automatically! 

Love these features but don’t yet have a Car Thing? The device is available to purchase for $89.99 and requires a Spotify Premium subscription plan along with a phone with a mobile data connection. You can find more details about how to buy and use Car Thing at carthing.spotify.com.

*This feature is currently available on iOS only; availability for Android will be rolling out at a later date.  

How To Drive With Spotify and Waze

March 17, 2022

Music and road trips pair well together—and so do Spotify and the navigation app Waze. In 2017, Spotify and Waze teamed up to bring your favorite artists and music directly into the Waze app, enabling a more musical, enjoyable journey in which users could get both the best directions and playlists in the car without having to switch screens. 

Since then, plenty of Spotify and Waze users have been able to navigate with Waze from within Spotify as well as access their Spotify playlists from within Waze and easily change tracks.

 

Car Thing From Spotify Is Now Officially Available in the U.S.

February 22, 2022

Listeners, start your engines: Car Thing is officially here. 

Back in April 2021, we announced our exploration of a smart player that could seamlessly fill your car with a world of music, news, entertainment, talk, and more. Then in October, we unveiled our limited release of Car Thing to Spotify Premium users. Now, after these successful explorations, we’re excited to share that the device is available to purchase in the U.S. for $89.99.*

Designed for your drive

We developed Car Thing because we saw that our users desired a more seamless and personalized in-car listening experience, no matter the year or model of their vehicle. With Car Thing, even more audio fans can access Spotify’s entire catalog of music and podcasts across an even wider range of vehicles. 

Car Thing enables listeners to play their favorite music and podcasts quickly using “Hey Spotify” voice commands, as well as simple taps, turns, and swipes—allowing listeners to start playing that hit song or the latest podcast episode before they pull out of the driveway. (And it makes it even more effortless to switch to something else when the mood strikes.) 

A seamless in-car audio experience 

During our exploration phase, we discovered a lot about how people listen in the car, and for many users, how Car Thing can help improve that experience. We learned two major things from device owners: First, users were listening to Spotify in the car more than they had before. Second, Car Thing made it simpler to play exactly what they wanted, thanks to both the product interface (which they enjoy more than their previous in-car media) and the ease of using “Hey Spotify” to control what they wanted to listen to.

Plus, we heard from drivers some requests that we are working to incorporate into future Car Thing updates. These include Night Mode, which dims screen brightness in the evening, and an Add to Queue command, which lets you queue up your favorite music and podcasts by simply using your voice. This exploration and innovation is part of our ongoing commitment to building a truly frictionless experience for users across devices—in the car, at home, or on the go.

Whether it’s using your voice, touch, or physical controls, Car Thing is intuitive and responsive during every in-car situation. Previously, Car Thing was only available to select eligible users in the U.S. who had joined the waitlist. Now, we’re excited to make the device generally available in the U.S. and bring it to even more users. 

Car Thing is now available to purchase for $89.99 and requires a Spotify Premium subscription plan along with a phone with a mobile data connection. You can find more details about how to use the device at carthing.spotify.com.

*Users will need a Premium account to use the device.

5 Things to Know about Spotify’s Latest Test

May 17, 2019

Americans spend 70 billion hours behind the wheel each year. That’s a lot of time spent on the road. So what you do—and what you listen to—to help you get through those long hours in the car matters. That’s why Spotify is trying to learn more about people’s listening habits and preferences to help create an unparalleled experience for our users.

Here’s what you need to know about our test:

  1. We’re testing how people listen in the car through a voice-controlled music and podcast device called “Car Thing.”
  2. While we know there has been some speculation about our future plans, Car Thing was developed to help us learn more about how people listen to music and podcasts. Our focus remains on becoming the world’s number one audio platform—not on creating hardware.
  3. The test will be done in the US only, with a small group of invited Spotify Premium users.
  4. We might do similar voice-specific tests in the future, so don’t be surprised if you hear about “Voice Thing” and “Home Thing.”
  5. We don’t have any current plans to make this specific device available to consumers, but the learnings from our test will dictate how we develop experiences everywhere you listen.