Spotify's AI DJ now takes requests — here's how it works

Introduced in 2023, Spotify's AI DJ feature has some good things and a few drawbacks, and now the tool is getting its first significant upgrade. Starting today (May 13), the AI DJ can take your requests.

Beyond curating a personalized listening experience (with some radio DJ-esque commentary), now you can use voice prompts to change your tunes to a genre you're in the mood for, or a vibe like summer jams.

As an example, you could say, "Give me some electronic beats for a midday run," and the DJ will pull up something motivating for your run.

According to Spotify, the AI DJ has become very popular in the last year, and many people have apparently requested the ability to request and get more control over their listening sessions.

Giving the DJ tool a little more control is a nice feature, especially since one of the flaws we found was that sometimes it won't recommend new music, instead filtering through tracks and genres we already like without highlighting the latest singles.

As my colleague Malcolm McMilan said in 2023, "I’ve even thought about trying to reset my Spotify algorithm by unliking everything and starting fresh because I feel Spotify only recommends things I’ll like. And unfortunately, that problem is often exacerbated when using AI DJ."

Hopefully, this helps us freshen things up a bit.

How to request music with Spotify's AI DJ

AI DJ is only available to Premium subscribers, and for now, only in 60 countries and does require you to speak English to use the new voice prompts tool.

Fortunately, though, if you meet the qualifications, it's pretty simple to use.

1. Go to the Search and search 'DJ'

Press play to start the DJ

2. Press and hold the DJ button

When you're ready to switch the music up find the DJ button in the right-hand corner. A beep will sound when the tool is ready. From there, use your voice to ask the AI DJ for a specific kind of music.

3. Experiment

Hold the DJ button to switch it up or make new requests. If you want to change the mood but don't have a prompt, a quick tap of the DJ button will skip to the next section.

Beta mode

Spotify noted that the new feature is still in beta, so you can't use it for non-music audio like audiobooks or podcasts.

Again, you need to subscribe to Premium to access the AI DJ. Plans for an individual cost $11.99 a month and go up to $19.99 a month for a family plan.

More from Tom's Guide

• Spotify just got a major music discovery upgrade — here’s the new features
• Forget Spotify HiFi — I made a hi-res streaming service that's just for me
• It's been a busy week for Spotify - all the changes that affect you