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A BIG THUMBS UP AS PANDORA REBOOTS

I’ve been a loyal Pandora subscriber for well over five years now and have discovered at least fifty different artists via that algorithm (among them Amos Lee, Bebel Gilberto, Stateless, Seven Lions, AlunaGeorge) but I’ll admit my usage has certainly been waning with all the new competition in the marketplace that has allowed me, a former radio program director, the ability to listen to a smash like “Can’t Stop The Feeling” 500 times in a row if I want to. So my general time spent listening with Pandora has definitely suffered because of this limitation.

But the new update certainly gives the Pandora One subscribers a major refresh. After digging around the app for the last 24 hours, I can report that you will like what you get in this update.

Instead of just listing your pre-selected artist stations at entry, the New Pandora has added a “Browse” tab next to the “My Stations” list. The Browse tab functions as a centralized home page of sorts now, complete with a rotating promo carousel talking about all the cool things going on at the service that I would have never bothered to dig for myself (The Roots Picnic Mixtape, Pandora Sessions, Questlove Supreme, Life Is Beautiful Festival Radio) with a noticeable, distinct lean towards promoting country artists— a guess I venture to make here because I’ve never ever, ever thumbed-up even ONE country person in my entire existence including anything from Taylor Swift. So this appears to be targeted music promotion by Pandora.

As you continue to scroll down “Browse” more content options appear; suggestions based on your thumbs-up history with the algorithm (which I have a deep and complicated history with because I INTERACT, yo) and in an obvious nod to consumer preference options in competitive services such as Apple Music and Spotify, Pandora now has Mood and Activity Playlists. My recommendations were everything from “Workout” to “Driving “ to Work “Focus” (yes, a “Focus” playlist) and the ever-present “Love Songs.” Maybe they had this content before, but I never saw it, searched for it, or found it.

Scroll further and several channels themed around genres they know you like appear; “Today’s Music,” another batch themed around “Decades” and of course, “Recommended Artists.” Under each channel there’s information about how many listeners each one has, but it’s unclear if that number means people who have added it to their My Stations queue or people who are currently listening. Still, it gives insight to just how popular a given station is and the massive number of people who use this service.

Pandora has also integrated a new feature called “Feed,” which appears to be their version of Apple Music’s Connect, except focused around their partnerships with Songkick and Ticketfly, pairing you with every concert and live music happening connected to your favorite artists, all in one scrolling feed. It’s a cool added interaction and if you love live music, this will be game-changing for you.

Another alteration is the new Profile section, which has undergone a social media integration with Facebook, allowing you to import a profile picture and no doubt interacting with FB the way Spotify does—by putting your listening habits on blast. Pandora’s Profile section gives you a complete rundown of your listening history – every station or song you jammed, along with how long you listened and how many thumbs-up likes you’ve given in total. There is a tab to comment as well as a “followers” and “following” count, so clearly they are laying the groundwork for their own music community to bloom here.

Although it’s been less than a day of interacting with the New Pandora, overall I’d have to give this update a big Thumbs Up. Their next phase should be an interesting one.

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