50 Spotify-Free Ways To Listen To Music
Is there more to life than streaming?
The top question asked on my “So I Finally Quit Spotify” post is this:
…but how would I listen to music without Spotify?
You can write it off as a stupid question, but I understand it. A lot of us have made music synonymous with Spotify. Listening to music? Oh, you mean listening to Spotify? Discovering new music? …Uhhhh… how do I discover new music without Spotify?
Here’s the thing: to me, listening to music isn’t just about putting on a playlist and letting it fill the silence.
Listening can be active, too! You can be playing an instrument and listening! Discovering new music is listening to music! Hearing a busker on the street is listening to music! The world is full of opportunities to interact with music, if you just pay attention.
💿 50 ways to listen to music without Spotify.
Choose a genre and search through the new releases in Bandcamp’s Discover section.
Download the BBC Sounds app and search shows by mood.
Keep a list on your phone of songs which make you go “ooh!” and add to it constantly. At the end of the month, buy these songs on Bandcamp/iTunes/wherever you buy your music.
Ask a friend to make you a mix CD (…and maybe buy a disc drive if your laptop doesn’t have one).
Rummage around in the music section of a thrift/charity shop.
Listen to your local or regional radio station. All times of day. Breakfast shows, drivetime, evening specialist shows. I like the specialist shows the best, as they’ve got the stuff not currently in chart rotation.
Listen to another region’s radio station! Go further afield! I live in London but listen to MPR (Minnesota’s Public Radio) and KEXP Seattle.
Go on the Internet Archive and find some obscure audio, or even a radio show from 1999 (my current favourite).
Go to an open mic at your local pub (and enjoy the mixed bag!!!).
Buy a ticket and go to the show of an artist you want to get to know better.
Check local venue listings and listen to the Bandcamp pages of each artist.
Go on Last.fm and see if anyone you know still uses it. Stalk their listening history.
Download Swinsian or MusicBee or Foobar2000 (or any other desktop music player) and start to build up your digital collection through purchases on iTunes, Bandcamp, Amazon, etc.
Buy a refurbished iPod.
Buy a walkman.
Go to a friend’s house for dinner and let them choose the night’s playlist.
Scan the iTunes Store for an album you love that’s on sale.
Put a seashell to your ear.
Go to a karaoke night.
Ask someone you love to sing you a song.
Go through your old voice memos on your phone and listen to them like you’re listening to a public radio talk show.
Stand outside (or inside!) a church on a Sunday morning.
Watch a concert you wish you could’ve attended on Youtube.
Buy tickets to a tribute act and go all-out on your costume. Bring flowers to throw at the stage.
Stop whilst walking past a busker and listen to a full song from them. Leave them a tip.
Browse radio shows on Mixcloud.
Go dancing.
Ask someone you think has cool music taste for them to write you a rec list.
Find bootlegs of concerts on obscure sites.
Buy tickets to a music festival in your area.
Watch a documentary on your favourite artist.
Go to your parents’ or grandparents’ houses and ask them to show you their music collection.
Go see a musical.
Buy a coffee and enjoy the playlist in your favourite hipster cafe.
Go lucky dip on eBay and buy a job lot of cassettes or CDs.
Buy a second-hand cassette player or CD player (double-check the condition before buying!).
Listen to the rain, or the birds.
Search for a local pub or bar with a jukebox.
Go to a record store and talk to the person working there.
Search local listings for an evening concert of classical music.
Go to a jazz bar.
Walk past a music college and linger by the open windows (Trinity College in London is very good for this).
Play or practise an instrument.
Do Youtube karaoke in your bedroom.
Go to an all-night rave.
Go on a long drive with your friend and sing at the top of your lungs.
Turn on the TV and find the music channels.
Tune in to your local college/university radio stations.
Sing.
🎸 Let’s Jam in the Comments
What’s your favourite way of listening to music? Leave a comment below!
🎧 Where Can I Listen to Your Music, Olivia?
If you are feeling inspired, head to Bandcamp and buy my new album, a concept album about geology (and life!) called ‘Typical Forever’. Think volcanoes meets earthquakes meets Regina Spektor meets Americana.
💿 Bandcamp is the best place to buy the digital version of the album. And I now have CDs, too! Go buy the record today:
💻 Streaming? Seriously? Yeah, I’m still cool with it. FOR NOW. Check it out on Spotify, or Apple Music or Youtube Music.
🪩 Anywhere else? Just search “olivia rafferty typical forever”
🌈 Had fun? Subscribe:
Til next time! Be good,
Olivia 🌈✨🏔🎶
Geeking out over this post. I'm such an old soul and radio nerd. This inspires me to create a list of my radio show and stations recommendations.
To my distress, the BBC is yanking Sounds for the rest of the world (and whether I can still listen to 6 Music here in the Philippines remains unclear).
But radio all the way, and radio all the way!