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Spotify acquired music-discovery database WhoSampled in November 2025, including its team and database, according to Spotify’s confirmation to TechCrunch. The companies did not disclose the purchase price or other deal terms. Spotify now uses WhoSampled data in SongDNA, an interactive feature for exploring the creative connections behind tracks.
What Spotify bought
WhoSampled is a music-discovery resource focused on samples, remixes, and cover versions, and on connections among songs and artists. Its company profile says it was founded in 2008. Spotify’s acquisition brought in both the WhoSampled team and database, TechCrunch reported on November 19, 2025. The report did not disclose financial terms. TechCrunch’s acquisition report is the source for those deal details.
Spotify had already signaled WhoSampled’s role in its product plans on November 19, 2025: a Spotify for Artists post said SongDNA’s samples and covers were powered by WhoSampled. Spotify for Artists’ announcement connected the database to the feature before Spotify’s later consumer-facing launch announcement.
What SongDNA does with WhoSampled data
SongDNA presents an interactive map or network in Spotify’s Now Playing view. Listeners can explore contributors such as writers, producers, and collaborators, as well as relationships involving samples, interpolations, and covers. Spotify describes WhoSampled as the source powering those connections. The aim is to help listeners discover how tracks relate and to provide context about the people involved; Spotify’s stated recognition goal is a company claim, not independent evidence that contributors receive more credit or compensation.
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Spotify announced SongDNA as a beta on March 24, 2026, describing a global rollout to Premium users. In an April 20, 2026 update, Spotify again described the feature as powered by WhoSampled and available to Premium listeners. These are announcements at those dates, not a guarantee that eligibility, supported tracks, or availability remain unchanged. Check the current Spotify app and product information for access. See Spotify’s March 2026 SongDNA beta announcement and its April 2026 update.
What the acquisition does not establish
SongDNA is presented as a music-discovery and credit-context feature. Spotify’s announcements do not establish that the acquisition changes how samples are licensed or cleared, how royalties are paid, or how copyright is enforced. Finding a sample connection in SongDNA is not evidence that a recording has been cleared for use, nor does the feature description establish any change to the rights status of a track.
The reported deal confirms the acquired team and database, but not the purchase price or complete contract terms. The available announcements also do not give a current count of WhoSampled records, so a database-size figure cannot be reliably stated here.
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Spotify’s April 2026 announcement also introduced About the Song cards on supported tracks, offering context about a song alongside the broader effort to make musical connections and stories easier to explore. Those cards and SongDNA are distinct parts of the announcement; the source does not say that every track supports either feature.
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