Now that we're approaching the end of the year, one of the most exciting moments for music listeners is opening up their Spotify Wrapped and revisiting everything they connected with throughout the year. However, for an A&R, that experience is much more than nostalgia. Specifically, those metrics offer valuable insights into your discovery patterns, listening habits, and areas for improvement. 

One of the most important metrics to look at is the total number of artists you listened to throughout the year. For an A&R, this is especially critical, as staying curious and consistently discovering new music is what makes someone great at this role. With so many talented artists out there, it’s essential to keep your ears open and actively listen to new music. This past year alone, I listened to 2,455 artists on Spotify. As an up-and-coming A&R, I make it a goal to discover new artists daily as a way to stay up to date with what's going on in the music world. Therefore, I'm able to better understand trends, identify emerging talent, and what's becoming popular.

Total artists Spotify data

The next important metric to look at is the total number of genres you listened to throughout the year. For an A&R, this is important because you want to have a high amount, as that shows you are successfully working towards identifying talent across a wide range of sounds. With new artists constantly coming out, it's crucial that you don't get stuck in the trap of only listening to a couple of familiar genres. Back in 2024, I specifically made this one of my goals, and by sticking to it, this year I was able to explore 331 genres. A lot of this is thanks to my time as an A&R scout at Independent Co., where I was able to push myself to dive into various genres beyond just rap and hip-hop.

Total genres Spotify data

Although recently introduced, the last important metric to take a look at is your listening age. In particular, there's no right or wrong estimated age, but as an A&R, you still want to be aware of the age of your music taste. For instance, a younger listening age will reveal that you are listening to more trendy and newer music, which is very much needed if you want to be successful in identifying emerging talent. As a result, you want to be tapped into the current music scene and know which artists and songs are popular at the moment.

Listening age Spotify data

Ultimately, as we head into 2026, I'm focused on growing as an A&R by continuing to listen to new artists and exploring different sounds.