Tag: tv

Interior Design Expert Bobby Berk Shares Top Tips for Making Your Living Room an Audio Oasis

November 16, 2023

a graphic illustration showing two people listening to spotify on television.

As the weather outside becomes more frightful, it’s time to make your living room delightful. So cozy up your home’s vibes by allowing your favorite music or podcasts to filter through the living room. From countless brands of smart speakers to easier-than-ever TV listening, it’s seamless to connect and enjoy audio with congregating family and friends. 

Bobby Berk knows a thing or two about cultivating the perfect ambience for a living room. The interior design expert and author is well-known for his stylish and youthful designs and has been one of the “Fab Five” on Netflix’s popular makeover show Queer Eye. This makes Bobby the perfect person for Spotify to partner with to show fans how audio and home design go hand in hand. And while your home decor aesthetic is as unique as your music taste, a few extra tips can go a long way in creating the perfect space for yourself.

For the Record sat down with Bobby to understand more about designing a welcoming living room space, as well as what you’ll find on his perfect music playlist for home entertaining.

What’s the historical function and significance of the living room?

From its beginnings in the late 19th century, the living room was a more formal space in the home used primarily for entertaining guests. It consisted mainly of more-tailored seating and a layout built around conversation. It wasn’t until the mid-20th century that the living room became a more casual space for spending time with family, relaxing, listening to music, or watching TV. The design itself was also adapted to be more about comfort and a sense of coziness.

What are your top three tips for designing a welcoming, comfortable, and functional living room?

First, add seating that looks—and most importantly feels—good. Next, create a layout that encourages connection but is also open. Place your furniture in a natural, conversational grouping. You also want the layout to feel welcoming, so be sure to leave space to enter the room and move through it easily. Finally, bring in soft and cozy materials. Adding pillows, throws, and a soft rug underfoot will create a comfortable living room that you really want to spend time in.

What do you like to listen to when designing and working? How about for hosting?

If I really need to get focused and get things done, I prefer a chill instrumental mix like Focus Flow or Workday Lounge. When designing, I’ll listen to something more upbeat, a pop mix or one of my favorite artists, Rozzi.

My ideal hosting playlist would take you on a journey starting with smooth jazz and a cocktail lounge vibe. Then I would move into some pop classics and top 40 hits, get things a bit more energized, and then finish things off with more relaxed, ambient tunes.

How do acoustics, sound, and entertainment fit into your living room concepts?

I’m always thinking about how someone will use a space when designing, and that definitely includes entertainment and sound. You don’t want a living room to be an echo chamber, so I bring in materials like a rug, upholstery, and curtains to soften things and improve acoustics.

What’s your go-to smart speaker?

I have a number of Sonos speakers throughout my home, and I love that I can easily connect Spotify to just one speaker—like, if I want to sing in the shower, the portable speaker if I’m outdoors, or the whole house if I’m entertaining.

Spotify’s daylist provides you with a custom playlist multiple times per day depending on what you listen to around the clock. What are you loving about the feature so far?

My mood definitely changes throughout the day, so it’s nice to have a playlist that changes along with it! In the morning, I have a mix that gets me motivated and focused for the day, a high-energy workout mix for the afternoon, and something a bit more chill for unwinding at the end of the day.

Whether it’s a Feel Good Morning Niche Mix for those who love a fresh, light, and airy aesthetic or a warm pumpkin spice evening daylist for those channeling a cozy winter atmosphere on the couch, Spotify’s personalized playlists can help you feel right at home.

Keep the ‘Barbenheimer’ Excitement Going With These 8 Podcast Deep Dives

July 31, 2023

The simultaneous release of Barbie and Oppenheimer was so widely anticipated that the internet gave the historic opening weekend a name: Barbenheimer. 

Barbie, written and directed by Greta Gerwig and starring Margot Robbie, brings the world’s favorite doll to life in a fantasy-filled, comedic adventure with an epic soundtrack. In an entirely different direction, Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer is a three-hour biopic about the father of the atomic bomb. The combined debut was a success, bringing in more than $311 million for the fourth-highest-grossing opening weekend in U.S. history. And both movies generated existential questions that have left fans wanting more. 

Spotify’s Podcast Editorial team curated an evolving list of the best Barbie vs. Oppenheimer podcasts, which can be found under podcast browse. Take a listen to learn more about the business behind Barbie or the conspiracy theories that surround the Manhattan Project, or just sit back and hear people gush about Ryan Gosling’s performance as Ken.

“Mattel Bets Big on Barbie” 

The Journal.

Spotify Studios 

After watching Barbie, many were left curious about Mattel’s unique role in the film. The Journal. is here to answer all your questions and then some. Robbie Brenner, Executive Producer at Mattel Films, discusses the challenges they faced while bringing the beloved Barbie doll to life in cinematic form. Plus, she shares some exciting news about what’s to come from Mattel Films (did somebody say Polly Pocket movie?). 

“The Manhattan Project” 

Conspiracy Theories 

Spotify Studios

This episode of Conspiracy Theories covers the true story of the top-secret military program that inspired Oppenheimer. Not only does the episode cover the official story in detail, but also all the captivating conspiracy theories it inspired—from aliens to a fluoride cover-up to a pagan cult. 

“The Enduring Appeal of Barbie” 

Into It: A Vulture Podcast with Sam Sanders

Vulture 

Barbie and fashion have always gone hand in hand. In this episode of Into It, host Sam Sanders sits down to talk all things Barbiecore with two fashion experts: Danya Issawi, fashion writer for New York Magazine and The Cut, and Darnell–Jamal Lisby, a fashion historian. Expect to hear some personal stories of what it was like for them to grow up with the doll that defines American girlhood.

“Christopher Nolan on ‘Oppenheimer,’ Mr.Cartoon on ‘Just My Imagination,’ Brooklyn Sudano on The Treat” 

The Treatment 

KCRW

Who better to hear from than the Oppenheimer filmmaker himself? On this episode of The Treatment, host Elvis Mitchell speaks to director and writer Christopher Nolan about his work. The pair discuss themes that run through Nolan’s work and are especially apparent in Oppenheimer, including “the danger of knowledge.”

“‘Barbie’ and ‘Oppenheimer’s’ Epic Weekend Face-Off” 

The Town with Matthew Belloni 

The Ringer  

On this episode of The Town, a podcast that covers all things Hollywood, host Matthew Belloni is joined by David Herrin. Herrin is the founder of Quorum, the industry leader in film data research and insights. Conversations include the marketing strategy behind Barbie, the birth of “Barbenheimer,” and the role COVID-19 played in creating an opening weekend unlike anything they have ever seen.

“The Barbie Tapes: A Toy is Born” 

LA Made: The Barbie Tapes 

LAist Studios

From the time Barbie first entered the toy scene in 1959 until the release of Barbie in 2023, the brand and the doll have been at the center of controversy and culture. “The Barbie Tapes: A Toy is Born” is the first episode in season two of LA Made that tells the true story of Barbie in the words of her creators. The series covers Barbie’s colorful history from start to finish, illuminating details that we all may have missed. 

“A Barbie v. Oppenheimer Game”

Pop Culture Happy Hour 

NPR 

First, play along as the NPR hosts discuss “pop culture’s most contentious matchups.” Then, if your friends still haven’t seen Oppenheimer and you don’t want to spoil it for them, listen to this episode to hear the hosts gab about the plot, the cast, and the complicated history behind the movie. And when you finish listening to “Oppenheimer,” you can check out one of Pop Culture Happy Hour’s two episodes on Barbie, one with spoilers and one without.

“The ‘Barbie’ Deep Dive w/Greta Gerwig!”

The Big Picture

The Ringer

Greta Gerwig is the mastermind behind Barbie. On this episode of The Big Picture, she discusses her approach to recreating the iconic doll for the big screen, the unique challenges she encountered, themes that run through Barbie and her previous work (Lady Bird and Little Women), and the movie’s overall cultural impact. 

Whether you want to revisit history or take a trip to Barbie Land, Spotify’s Podcast Editorial team has you covered on podcast browse. Check out these podcasts and more on our Barbie vs. Oppenheimer shelf.

Cristobal Tapia de Veer, Composer of the Viral ‘White Lotus’ Theme Song, Reveals His Process and Expectations for Season 3

June 8, 2023

Plenty of TV sitcom theme songs stand the test of time. The singability of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, clap-infused pop of “I’ll Be There For You” from Friends, and nostalgic harmonies of “Where Everybody Knows Your Name” from Cheers each holds a notable slot in the cultural zeitgeist. It’s less common for a drama’s theme song to meet the same reception. And that picture is even more complicated when the theme is a wordless instrumental used—in the first moments of the show—to set the scene for dead bodies washing ashore.  

Yet composer Cristobal Tapia de Veer’s “Aloha!” and “Renaissance,” which serve as the theme songs for first and second seasons of The White Lotus, respectively, have reached such success. Each track features a consistent melody with high-pitched instrumentation, a  danceable beat, and breathless vocals. Each is also tailored to reflect its season’s location—Hawaii in the first and Sicily in the second. 

Each season, The White Lotus offers colorful, suspenseful commentary on exploitation, wealth, class, and race with a backdrop of murder and dysfunction set in a fictional luxury resort. The combination of Cristobal’s masterful composition, the show’s alluring storytelling, and a rabid global fan base has propelled both themes to viral fame and millions of Spotify streams, and raised the profile of their composer. 

Fans on the prowl 

Since its July 2021 release, “Aloha!” has been streamed most by fans in Warsaw, Berlin, and Paris. The song’s popularity only grew in the lead-up to the October 2022 premier of the second season, with fans taking to the internet to share commentary on the song. 

One popular fan theory was that its repeated notes created a musical allusion to the Gregorian chant “Dies Irae,” or “The Day of Wrath.” In a rare interview with For the Record, Cristobal explained that this is but a coincidence. “Those melodies are the result of chanting with voices and finding a melody that works with the sound. For lots of reasons, I ended up with those types of harmonies, but I wasn’t specifically inspired by that music or trying to use it intentionally.” 

Following the debut episode of the second season on October 30, 2022, searches for “White Lotus” on Spotify increased more than 500%. But to the chagrin of fans, “Renaissance” wasn’t released on Spotify until December 11, the end of the season. 

Even so, dedicated fans steadily played “Aloha!” on Spotify while they waited, and on December 12, streams of “Aloha!” jumped 200% compared to the month prior. Searches for “White Lotus” soared to 4,800% compared to two months prior. 

Once released, daily streams of “Renaissance” hit an all-time high on December 13, 2022, with fans in Paris, Oslo, and Berlin leading the charge. And as for Cristobal? The composer saw a 162% lift in his own catalog’s daily streams following season two. 

Even after the season came to an end, fans continued to circulate the song, using it as the musical background to their viral videos. On February 17, 2023, Dutch DJ Tiësto put out his own remix of “Renaissance,” which became a favorite among fans in Sydney, New York, and Oslo in particular.  

Soundtracking suspense

So what went into creating the right soundtrack? Cristobal employed wind instruments to create the whirling bird sounds on “Aloha!” “For the first season, I wasn’t trying to make Hawaiian music. It was more about making something about nature kicking the characters in the ass, and the wild stuff coming for the characters,” Cristobal explained. To hit his mark, he combined bird calls with tribal chants for an island feel with a spooky tropical depth.

Composer Cristobal Tapia de Veer

“The temp score was this loungy, rather soft thing—something that would be playing in a nice luxury cafe when you’re on vacation somewhere,” he recalled. “It was very different from what I came up with. I went with a tribal, rather aggressive screaming, and drums and flutes.” 

That “screaming,” which seems to be the best way to describe the vocal sounds, became a driving force behind the song’s virality when it came time to adapt it for the second season. Cristobal knew he wanted to match the vibe of the location and utilize disconcerting vocal tones.

“The ‘oululus’ are the most important thing,” said Cristobal, using his tongue heavily to propel the sound from his own mouth. “For the second season, I was trying to fit into the Italian and the Sicilian vibe. We spoke about having some renaissance sounds, some harps, mandolin, violin, things that we’d connect with Italian music and opera. I did a demo of some classical Italian music, something operatic, and that’s the beginning of the track. From there, I wanted to somehow bring back the sound of the first season, which is these screaming voices that are so recognizable.” 

He also wanted to evoke a different journey for a new cast of characters. 

“In the first season, there’s a lot of conflict in the music,” he said. “It feels very stressful and more tense than how it should; it has more dissonance. But this was something calculated. And I think the second season is funnier because things become dark later, towards the end of the show. So the song keeps it more playful, more light and harmonious.” 

A trip to Thailand

Cristobal finds the composing process as tumultuous as life is for the White Lotus patrons at times. “I don’t do anything particular to get into the zone,” he notes. “Sometimes people try to have the best conditions—relaxed and with a view—but surprisingly, for me, I like to see the stuff that results from being in a bad situation, a stressful situation, not having the right equipment, or not being in the right place.” 

For Cristobal, discomfort is more impactful, motivating, and conducive to creativity than pleasure or perfection. “When I feel that I’m in danger, it feels like I’m gonna probably come up with something better, a more original idea—as long as I’m surviving a situation—than if I’m too comfortable.” 

With the third season of The White Lotus confirmed for Thailand, we asked Cristobal to hint at some musical elements fans might expect when the show debuts.  

“For Thailand, I want to bring in some Eastern philosophy, something a little bit spiritual,” he said. “I love the Buddhist temples there, and funnily enough I have a collection of Thai gongs. I have 36 Thai gongs to make melodies with, so you can expect to hear some of those. I’d really like to go deep with it, make it take a journey.” 

Prepare for the third season of The White Lotus with The White Lotus Official Playlist on Spotify.

Movie and Film Buff? Spotify’s ‘Listen If You Watch’ Page Has the Perfect Podcast for You

January 20, 2022

The third season of the show you’ve been bingeing ends with a sudden cliff-hanger. A movie with many twists and turns comes to a conclusion that leaves you wanting more. There’s nothing else you can watch until you’ve sufficiently processed. It’s time to turn to podcasts. 

“With TV shows and movies, sometimes we finish and we just want to talk to somebody as passionate as we are about it,” said Jessica Diaz-Hurtado, Spotify Podcast Editor, Music and Entertainment. “Podcasts are a great entry point to hear people, specifically pop-culture experts who studied television and film, talk about a piece of media—or maybe you can even hear from the director themselves. Podcasts can give an entirely different point of view.”

Jessica recommends queuing up Spotify’s “Listen If You Watch” page, which she helps curate alongside a team of pop-culture aficionados. Their job? To help fans find the interviews from, insights on, and analysis of their favorite media—and maybe, just maybe, help them find their next favorite podcast, too. 

Where to “listen if you watch”

On Wednesdays, when fans navigate from Spotify Search to the Podcast tile, they’ll see a shelf called “Listen If You Watch.” Each week, the Podcast Editorial team takes a relevant cultural TV or film moment and builds out a set of podcast recommendations that are related to it. 

But if you miss a Wednesday, have no fear—type “Listen If You Watch” into Search to find an even more expansive page curated by Podcast Programming Lead (and self-proclaimed industry aficionado) Isabella Way, complete with refreshed curations every week. Isabella explained how she takes the shelf from the podcast page and builds it out into four distinct sections:

  1. Listen if you watch … – The first shelf is the same as what’s on the homepage of the podcast section—curated episodes about and inspired by the TV show, movie, or genre of the moment. It’s updated every Wednesday, but you can find it here throughout the week. Recent themes have included West Side Story, the Emmys, and Don’t Look Up.
  2. For [GENRE] fans – The second shelf features podcast episode curations around your favorite TV- and film-related themes—think superheroes, true crime, or action. “This is also where we have a chance to tie in our Owned and Exclusive content,” said Isabella. “For example, when we curated for ‘Horror’ fans we were able to feature three Parcast episodes, one of which highlighted haunted houses that they made into fictional stories on The Conjuring.”
  3. made for … [NAME] stans – The third, brand-new shelf has a tagline that reads, “episodes inspired by the celeb of the moment, curated by our resident Gen Zer.” This shelf allows the team to ensure they’re programming content that all our audiences, including Gen Z, are interested in. At the forefront of culture, Gen Zers are passionate about diversity and inclusivity, and having this space allows us to program content that is equally so. The first week of the new shelf, timed to the season two debut of Euphoria, was “made for … daya stans” (aka Zendaya). An upcoming title could include “made for … timmie stans” (that’s Timothee Chalamet). And yes, it’s curated by an actual Gen Z Spotify employee, lowercase and all.
  4. Stay up on all things TV and Film – The final shelf features 8-10 different podcasts around the TV and film industry, and it captures a broader picture instead of a specific topic or theme. This shelf features podcast titles on the show level, rather than by episode, so it paints a more holistic view of the space. It’s updated monthly, which gives you ample time to get deeply invested in a show or host. 

Always in the know

With a film and TV hub to update weekly, the podcast editorial team needs to constantly stay on their toes, ready to feature a new obsession at any moment. The secret? They don’t plan that far in advance. 

Of course there are some events and dates and cultural moments to time curation to—annual award shows and big movie franchise release dates are always top of mind. But the team stays loose and flexible, ready at any minute to jump on a trend like Squid Game. They do this by keeping up on social media, online publications like magazines and newspapers, and podcast newsletters—and of course, they’re listening to podcasts like Pop Culture Happy Hour from NPR to introduce them to media they haven’t heard of.

It’s also important to the team to find, listen to, and program shows that represent diverse populations. Jessica is a fan of The Bechdel Cast, which features women in TV, film, and music, and Isabella often tunes into Black Men Can’t Jump [In Hollywood], which is a comedic podcast that reviews films with leading actors of color and analyzes them in the context of race and diversity. And the team makes sure to vary the size and scope of the podcasts they feature as well. “When I was curating around Reservation Dogs, I was also trying to pull some more shows by indie podcast creators, especially since I wanted to highlight podcasts that were created by Native Americans who were talking about the show or talking about issues related to the show,” Jessica shared. 

The “Listen If You Watch” page is full of episodes and shows with hot takes, thoughtful reflections, fan theories, and much more. It holds up a topical, relevant audio mirror to the world of TV and film media that surrounds us. What’s more, it’s a great way for you to find an episode or two related to your interests—then be launched into an even larger and more expansive world of podcasts. 

Tune in weekly (or even more often) to hear podcasts curated from—and for—people who are just as obsessed as you. 

This week’s “Listen If You Watch” is: YA Movies. Hear about Twilight, To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before, The Hate U Give, Booksmart, and Lady Bird from culture fans and experts. 

How Pshycotic Beats’ “Killer Shangri-Lah” Went From A Twin Peaks Playlist to TV’s Hottest Psychodrama

May 22, 2019

Killing Eve is one of the past year’s most-obsessed-over TV shows. The BBC America psychodrama, which stars Sandra Oh and Jodie Comer as a spy and a contract killer, respectively, who engage in a cat-and-mouse game that takes them all over Europe, has featured incredible performances, jaw-dropping plot twists, and electric banter since it debuted in March 2018.

The show’s darkly funny mood is greatly helped along by its music—and its tone was set almost instantly by “Killer Shangri-Lah,” a vampy, drama-heavy offering written by the Madrid-based songwriter and producer Pshycotic Beats. The artistic project of Andrés Costureras, Pshycotic Beats has released three albums, with songs from the most recent one, The Black Sea, appearing on playlists curated by Spotify’s team in Spain.

“Killer Shangri-Lah” appeared in the first episode of Killing Eve, soundtracking one of Comer’s character Villanelle’s typical flourish-filled kills. The song’s sweep and theatrics, as well as its retro feel, make it an ideal match not only for Villanelle’s character, but for Killing Eve as a whole.

While “Killer Shangri-Lah,” which has vocals by Pati Amor, is a defining song for one of the biggest small-screen smashes of the late-2010s, it actually dates back to 2013. “It was the sixth single from my Dormihcum album,” Costureras recalls, “and the excuse to launch it as a single was to launch my own record label, which is called Log Lady Records. I’m a huge Twin Peaks fan.”

Andrés Costureras at work

Costureras’s Twin Peaks­-heavy promotion of the single, which packaged the original song with an instrumental version and a strings-only arrangement, led to it appearing on the “Twin Peaks: Nighttime at the Roadhouse” playlist, which is put together by the David Lynch fansite Welcome to Twin Peaks. “It’s the most important fansite for fans all over the world,” says Costureras. “It was a huge surprise, and I was so honored.”

The song’s placement on that playlist and others made Spotify’s algorithms aware of it, and it started appearing on users’ Discover Weekly playlists—including the one made for Catherine Grieves, the music supervisor for Killing Eve. (Grieves puts together the show’s wide-ranging soundtrack with members of the similarly cinematic outfit Unloved.) “As far as I am concerned, Discover Weekly is this magical playlist featuring whatever music you’re into at the moment,” says Costureras.

“She told me that she discovered the song in her Discover Weekly playlist,” he notes. “That was one or two years ago, and she was saving it for the right project to try and make it work.”

Costureras in his “Killing Eve” element

The song has racked up nearly 700,000 streams, and it’s been a staple of playlists for and by fans of the show, sitting alongside songs by the likes of Unloved, Julia Michaels, and Françoise Hardy. In April, Emily Haines of Canadian new wavers Metric performed “Killer Shangri-Lah” at the Governor General’s Performing Arts Awards in Ottawa, where Oh was being honored for her contributions to the arts. “I’m dying to listen to what they have done with it,” says Costureras.

Costureras is working on Pshycotic Beats‘ fourth album and watching his Spotify for Artists dashboard as viewers enjoying Killing Eve discover his music. “The response has been huge,” he says. “I’m amazed.”

Stream “Killer Shangri-La” below.