Spotify knows exactly what I want. It plays my "Discover Weekly," which is just variations of the same
Lo-Fi beats and Sad Indie vibes I've listened to for 5 years.
I am trapped in an echo chamber of my own taste.
For one week, I deleted Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube.
My only source of audio was a cheap FM Radio.
> DAY 1: THE INSANITY OF ADS
I switch on 93.5 FM.
"BUY GOLD NOW! SPECIAL OFFER! TMT BARS! CEMENT! INSURANCE!"
I forgot that radio is 40% yelling. On Spotify, I pay to avoid this. Here, I am a hostage.
I tried to skip. I turned the dial. 98.3 FM.
"HELLO DILLI! THIS IS RJ ROCKY!" (Sound effects of glass breaking and horns honking).
It is chaotic. It is loud. It is annoying.
> DAY 3: SURRENDERING CONTROL
On Spotify, if I want to hear "Bohemian Rhapsody," I play it.
On Radio, I have to wait.
I was driving to work when a song started. It wasn't my genre. It was a cheesy Bollywood number from the
90s.
Normally, I'd skip. But I couldn't. So I listened.
And you know what? It was catchy. By the second chorus, I was tapping the steering wheel.
The algorithm would never have served me this song. The Radio forced me to expand my horizon.
// AUDIO_LOG_HOUR_4
1. Arijit Singh (Okay, fine)2. [AD BREAK: 4 MINS OF DETERGENT ADS]
3. Some weird Indie Pop song I've never heard (Added to mental list)
4. RJ talking about traffic at Silk Board (Actually useful info)
5. Kumar Sanu Classic (Nostalgia hit)
> THE PARADOX OF CHOICE
Spotify gives me 100 million songs. I spend 15 minutes scrolling, trying to decide what to play.
Radio gives me 1 song. The one playing right now.
The cognitive load of "Choosing" vanished. I felt relaxed. I wasn't the DJ of my life anymore. I was
just a passenger.
There is freedom in lack of choice.
> THE HUMAN CONNECTION
The RJs (Radio Jockeys) are surprisingly comforting. They talk about the weather, the city, the local news. It feels liek a live connection to the city. Spotify feels sterile and isolated. When the RJ made a bad joke and laughed at himself, I smiled. It was a human moment. My Spotify AI DJ (X) tries to sound human, but it has no soul. RJ Rocky has too much soul (and sound effects).
| Feature | Spotify | FM Radio |
|---|---|---|
| Selection | Infinite | Zero (Serendipity) |
| Discovery | Algorithmic (Predictable) | Random (Wild) |
| Interruption | None (Premium) | Constant (Ads) |
| Vibe | Personal Bubble | Communal Experience |
> CONCLUSION
I reinstalled Spotify. I missed my specific playlists. But I kept the radio in the kitchen. Sometimes, I don't want to choose. Sometimes, I want to hear a detergent ad followed by a song I hate, followed by a song I love that I forgot existed. The algorithm feeds you what you like. The radio feeds you the world.