Spotify, the popular music streaming platform, has introduced a new audio mascot to enhance user experience and engage with its audience in a unique way. This innovative addition aims to create a more personalized and interactive environment for users while also adding a touch of fun to the overall Spotify experience. The audio mascot, nicknamed "Spot," is designed to be a playful and lively character with a distinct personality. Spot can communicate with users through audio cues, providing them with recommendations, updates on new releases, and even the occasional joke or two. This audio mascot has been created to make the user experience more enjoyable and to establish a deeper connection between the user and the Spotify platform. By having a virtual character that communicates directly with users, Spotify hopes to make the music streaming experience feel more personal and interactive, as if the user is receiving recommendations and updates from a friend rather than an algorithm.
“You know,” he said, “you can’t just look at someone and say that fellow is a witch unless they are flying around at night and have a light. When someone is sick in the family, we will take the family to a place where there is water. It’s special water with some herbs. You go there and drink the water. The person the water catches will drink the water continuously. They will not stop, even when their stomach is full, they’ll continue to drink the water. As they drink, they shit everywhere.
With the family gathered at a sacred place in the forest, all swallowed copious amounts of water containing the dissolved poisonous bark of the odom tree sasswood. The island of Siquijor, found in the Central Visayas region of the Philippines, is a mysterious other-world of witchcraft, the unknown and to mangkukulam these are practitioners of a form of Filipino witchcraft called kulam.
By having a virtual character that communicates directly with users, Spotify hopes to make the music streaming experience feel more personal and interactive, as if the user is receiving recommendations and updates from a friend rather than an algorithm. Spot's voice and dialogue will be tailored to match the user's preferences and music taste, making the interaction even more personalized. This audio mascot is an innovative step towards creating a more immersive and engaging music streaming experience.
Witches in Philippines’ Siquijor province are old hat
At the end of a dirt road deep in the mountains, Consolacion Acay hobbled onto her porch and picked up her tools of the trade: a glass cup, a bamboo straw, a stone the size of an apricot pit and a bottle of potion. Then she began casting spells to heal her client.
“I found this stone while I was swimming near waterfalls in the middle of the island,” the unassuming 86-year-old said later. “That night I had a dream that taught me how to use the stone to heal people, and I’ve been doing it ever since.”
Acay dabbed the potion on certain points of her client’s body, then half-filled the cup with water, dropped the stone in and began blowing air into the water with the straw. The water became murky — a sign, she said, that she was removing the malaise. She repeated the process until the water was clear.
AdvertisementAcay’s magic doesn’t put her on the fringe of society here; sorcery, both for good and evil, is a fact of life in the island province of Siquijor.
Throughout the Philippines, mention of this place instantly conjures images of healers, witches and demons. One gruesome tale features a vampire that splits in two, its upper torso flying from rooftop to rooftop, devouring fetuses out of pregnant women.
Magic in Siquijor consists mainly of traditional beliefs that have existed in the Philippines for centuries. When the Spanish arrived in the 16th century and introduced Catholicism, locals began to blend ancient practices with their newfound religion.
Many witches in Siquijor use Catholic imagery in their sorcery, and almost all regularly attend church. All their potions for the year are brewed in the week leading up to Easter.
Father Larry Catubig, the senior Catholic priest on the island, said he realized the complicated nature of proselytizing to religiously devout witches.
“It’s good that the witches are going to church, and we try to steer them away from magic,” he said. “But when they go back into the mountains, we have no control over what they do.”
AdvertisementDuring Holy Week, vigilance is required at the religious processions because the witches steal parts of the relics on display for use in their potions, Catubig said.
It’s not unusual for gravestones in Siquijor to have pieces missing — stone angels without heads or perhaps a stump where a cross once stood. Often it’s the work of “black witches” looking to enhance their brew.
Although Acay works strictly in healing the sick, other witches here aren’t so benevolent.
Cayetano Umbalsa, 76, has been practicing witchcraft since his father began teaching him almost 60 years ago. Although he is well-versed in the healing spells, people come to him mainly for his proficiency in the dark arts. Jealous spouses and scorned lovers make up the bulk of such clients.
The spells range from one to make your ex-lover constantly remember your face to those to cause sickness and even death.
The black witches command steep fees: $345 to almost $700 in a region where the average annual income is about $2,500. The witches who limit their work to healing often ask for a small donation of a few dollars.
Richard Quezon, the mayor of Siquijor town, the capital of the province, remembers being terrified by stories of evil witches in the mountains that rise from the middle of the island.
“Before, everyone went to healers for things like liver problems or cancer,” he said. “But now, with modern medicine, only those who can’t afford to go to the hospital seek out healers.”
To some, that’s a positive development. Evelyn C. Retana, a retired surgeon at the Siquijor town hospital, has seen sick people spend months hoping to be healed by witches only to eventually seek treatment at the hospital.
But Quezon defends witchcraft. Last month he went to a witch because of a skin condition that wouldn’t go away.
“The medicine from the pharmacy didn’t work, but the herbs and spells from the healer worked right away,” he said. “Some things science can’t explain.”
Haas is an intern in The Times’ Beijing bureau.
“It’s about envy,” she said. “Maybe you’re rich, and the other person is not. If you have children and they are richer than someone else—that person may want to kill you or cause harm so you won’t get anything. Sometimes you might quarrel with someone, and that person may find a way to catch you. Or if a woman is envious that you have a child, and she does not, she can catch you.”
With Spot, Spotify aims to make the platform feel more human and relatable, establishing a stronger bond between the user and the app. By adding this unique and playful feature, Spotify continues to push the boundaries of what a music streaming service can offer, all while keeping the user's enjoyment and satisfaction at the forefront..
Reviews for "The Impact of Spotify's Audio Mascot on Brand Identity"
1) Emma - 2/5 stars - I was really excited when I first heard about the Spotify audio mascot, but I was left disappointed. The idea of having a voice assistant specifically for music sounded great, but the execution fell short. The audio mascot often misunderstood my requests, and even when it did understand, it would often play the wrong song or artist. It also lacks the ability to answer general knowledge questions or perform other tasks like other voice assistants. Overall, it feels like a half-baked feature that needs a lot of improvement.
2) Mike - 1/5 stars - The Spotify audio mascot is simply a gimmick. It feels like Spotify is trying to jump on the voice assistant bandwagon without putting in much effort. The audio mascot's voice is annoying and unnatural, making it difficult to listen to for extended periods. It also seems to have a limited range of commands compared to other voice assistants. I don't see the point in using the audio mascot when I can just use a proper voice assistant like Siri or Alexa, which are much more capable.
3) Sarah - 2/5 stars - I didn't find the Spotify audio mascot to be very useful. The voice recognition is not very accurate, and I often had to repeat myself multiple times before it understood what I was asking for. Even then, it would sometimes play a completely unrelated song or artist. It's frustrating and time-consuming. I also didn't like the fact that the audio mascot doesn't have the option to personalize voice settings or have a male voice option. Overall, I don't think it adds much value to the Spotify experience.
4) John - 3/5 stars - While the concept of the Spotify audio mascot is interesting, it falls short in a few areas. The voice recognition is not entirely reliable, and it can be frustrating when it misinterprets my commands. Additionally, the audio mascot doesn't have the ability to control other smart devices or perform tasks outside of music-related requests. Overall, it feels like a missed opportunity to create a truly comprehensive voice assistant for Spotify users.