BOTH APPLE MUSIC AND SPOTIFY have catalogs of over 80 million songs, but for many music lovers, access to these giants’ seemingly limitless options hasn’t translated to more diversity in listening habits. Indeed, monotony tends to prevail. When an algorithm limits discovery, all roads seem to lead to Drake, Dua Lipa or whatever rut you’re in, even though these platforms upload new songs everyday.
If you’re ready to break that musical routine, plenty of platforms that have been launched in recent years by both established players and tech upstarts offer wildly different ways to seek out new music. Also worth your consideration: services that have been around for a while, but haven’t been adopted as widely by folks outside the audio industry. Here, five apps to try—all, unless noted, are available to download on both Apple and Android phones.
