Music services such as Spotify have become more popular in recent years compared to the traditional approach of purchasing albums and building up your personal music library. Google Play Music is a great app for finding music you love and discovering new artists and today Google has announced a new way to enjoy your music with their first original podcast: City Soundtracks.
Join us after the break for more.
Hrishikesh Hirway from Song Exploder and West Wing Weekly will host City Soundtracks and each podcast will highlight the story of a musician and the places, people, and memories that shaped who they are. There will be a big emphasis on “hometown roots” with conversation and music that not only reflect the person, but also where he or she is from.
There currently are three podcasts available in Google Play Music and one of them, for example, is from the musician Kehlani, who grew up in Oakland, CA.
“Kehlani grew up all over the East Bay. She is only 21 years old, but already has an impressive musical career. In this episode, she shares how growing up in and around Oakland shaped her into the musician she is today.”
What's especially interesting, and probably taking a cue from Apple Music's curated radio stations, is that it's not simply the musician playing their own music. In addition to talking about their life and experiences from their hometown, the podcast will feature a curated playlist from the musician that best relates to the story they are telling. The other two musicians currently up on City Soundtracks are Big Freedia from New Orleans, LA, and Spoon from Austin, TX.
You can head over to the Google Play Music site now to listen to these podcasts or stream them from whatever podcast app you use. Currently, City Soundtracks is only available in the U.S. and Canada, but hopefully we will see it expand to more locations over time.
Source: Google
