Spotify, Riot Games sign 'League of Legends' esports partnership

League of Legends hub on Spotify

Spotify inks its first multi-year partnership with game developer Riot Games, who is behind the highly popular title League of Legends. The music streaming service will be LoL's official and exclusive audio-streaming partner for global events. Spotify will offer a League of Legends esports hub on its apps that contains "new and existing music, podcasts, and playlists inspired by the gaming community."

The two companies will launch several LoL podcasts, starting with Untold Stories: Top Moments from Worlds. It's a nine-episode series leading up to the 10th League of Legends World Championship this fall. There will also be a behind-the-scenes look at creating the Worlds Anthem through the Worlds Anthem Takeover on the app. The track is the game's hero song of the year, and it will be released alongside a "bespoke music video." The theme will be performed during the opening ceremony of the World Championship Finals. 

Spotify desktop app now lets you start a Chromecast session

The much-requested option to start a Chromecast stream from Spotify's desktop app is now available. It works from both Windows and Mac desktop apps. Previously, you were only able to control Chromecast streams that started from Spotify's Android or iOS apps using Spotify Connect. Now you no longer need this workaround. It's available in the desktop app version 1.1.38. All you need to do is head to the "Devices Available" icon to see available Chromecast devices.

Source: 9to5Google

Taylor Swift's 'Folklore' smashes first day streaming records

Taylor Swift's Folklore is raking in its streams, breaking several first-day streaming records since its release on July 24. Folklore now sets the global record for first-day album streams on Spotify by a female artist with 80.6 million streams. On Apple Music, it's the most-streamed album in 24 hours with 35.47 streams. And it has set indie/alternative streaming records in the US and worldwide on Amazon Music, though we don't get official figures. Swift's representatives have confirmed that the album sold over 1.3 million copies worldwide within the first 24 hours of its release.

The pop star announced the surprise album on social on Thursday, July 23, which she was inspired to make and release since the coronavirus pandemic hit and affected her plans to tour her previous album, Lover. You can check out the lead single of the record in the music video above.

Source: NME

Spotify introduces new podcast charts feature

You can now check out the "Top" and "Trending" Podcasts in the country with this new Spotify feature. The streaming service introduces these new podcast charts to 26 markets, including Canada. It's accessible through the Podcasts section. And that can be seen if you head to the Search tab on mobile. These charts are only available on iOS and Android to show you the latest and greatest podcasts. The Top Podcasts list the top 200 shows in the selected region or category, while Trending Podcasts show the 50 "rapidly rising shows." Some markets—including Brazil, Australia, Germany, Mexico, Sweden, the UK, and the US—can even separate the Top Podcasts by category. You can also check out the participating countries' rankings through the "Podcast charts by country option."

Source: Spotify