5 annoying Spotify settings you need to turn off now (and why)

We all have certain icks with our favorite apps—a bug, subpar display, long navigation, or even core features that we want to change to our liking. With streaming platforms like Spotify, you can get annoyed quickly when these issues manifest every day.

For most features that you have a problem with on the audio streaming app, there may be a way out. Here are five annoying or inconvenient Spotify features you may have come across and how you can disable them.

Create button for UI change

A polarizing change

One of the most divisive UI changes in Spotify’s recent updates is the Create button. Intended to help you quickly create new playlists, Blends, and AI playlists, the button shortens the navigation for the same Create option you find in Your Library.

While it seems convenient, many users did not love the four-button navigation bar that it created in the Spotify mobile app. And while I found it a harmless addition in the beginning and got over the annoyance of no longer finding the Your Library button in a convenient spot, I find myself (like many others) barely even using it. Thankfully, there’s a way to remove the Create button from your bar permanently.

On your Spotify mobile app, tap your profile picture (upper-left corner), then go to Settings and Privacy. From here, tap on Content and Display, navigate to Display Preferences, and toggle off the Create button. Your Spotify app will quickly reload, and your UI display will reflect the original three buttons (Home, Search, and Your Library).

Smart Shuffle

Time to turn it off

This is my (and many others) least favorite Spotify feature for a reason. Smart Shuffle can be a thorn in your side when you’re trying to shake up your playlist order. Initially, many users were annoyed with how the feature became a priority, but a more insistent problem with the feature (that is not as prevalent with other Spotify discovery features, in my experience) is that recommendations get old really quickly.

While in theory, it’s a no-hassle way of discovering new songs, but Smart Shuffle doesn’t always match my playlist vibe or taste profile, which has made me prefer features like Song Radio and AI DJ.

While you can skip the feature while playing songs from your playlists or library by going for the normal Shuffle option instead, you can also remove it from the equation completely. To disable Smart Shuffle, go to your profile, tap Settings and Privacy, then tap Playback. Toggle off Include Smart Shuffle in play modes.

Audio/volume normalization

You might need to experiment

Meant to make your listening experience feel more uniform, audio (or volume) normalization is a feature that essentially balances soft and loud songs. But many audiophiles who like to listen to songs as they are recorded recommend disabling this feature, although it is something to experiment with for yourself (and your audio equipment).

To disable this setting, go to your profile, tap Settings and Privacy, then tap Playback > Volume controls, and toggle off Volume Normalization.

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Canvas

Consider your connectivity first

There are many ways to reduce your Spotify-related data consumption, including reducing your download quality and streaming quality. A feature that many listeners overlook is Canvas. This is the looping, short video you see when you play (most) songs, replacing the static album cover in the Now Playing view. I also like disabling this feature because I prefer looking at the album covers of my favorite songs anyway, but it does consume some data, so it’s a good idea to turn it off when you have connectivity issues.

If you want to disable Canvas, go to your profile on the Home tab, then tap Settings and Privacy > Content and Display. Toggle Canvas off.

Autoplay after your queue

No more random suggestions

One auto-enabled feature that you may want to try turning off is Autoplay Similar Content. This can be a way for you to get more playback control over your queue, especially if you don’t like how random your recommendations can get after a playlist or album queue ends. I do use this feature when I’m on a drive or going hands-free, unable to control my queue after a point, but for discovery, you can skip this feature and use others like Song Radio instead.

To disable this feature, go to your profile and tap Settings and Privacy > Playback. From here, disable Autoplay Similar Content.

The thing about streaming, whether it be audio or video, is that you can tweak and experiment with settings and features to personalize your experience, so make sure you explore more than what you see in your library and home feed and make your streaming more customized.

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Spotify is a pioneer in music streaming. It features a vast library, impressive bitrate, curated and custom playlists, as well as offline streaming. Spotify is available for free and for a monthly or annual fee.

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Stephan Dorsey

Stephan is the sports journalist for the Maple Grove Report.

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I Wish My Brother Had Been Diagnosed With Schizophrenia Before He Turned 18

Do you ever walk past a person on the streets exhibiting mental health issues and wonder what happened to their family? I have a brother—or at least, I used to. I worry about where he is and hope he is safe. He hasn’t taken my call since 2014.

James and his brother as young children playing together before his brother became sick. James is on the right and his brother is on the left.

When I was 13, I had a very bad day. I was in the back of the car, and what I remember most was the world-crushing sound violently panging off every surface: he was pounding his fists into the steering wheel, and I worried it would break apart. He was screaming at me and my mother, and I remember the web of saliva and tears hanging over his mouth. His eyes were red, and I knew this day would change everything between us. My brother was sick.

Nearly 20 years later, I still have trouble thinking about him. By the time we realized he was mentally ill, he was no longer a minor. The police brought him to a facility for the standard 72-hour hold, where he was diagnosed with paranoid delusional schizophrenia. Concluding he was not a danger to himself or others, they released him.

There was only one problem: at 18, my brother told the facility he was not related to us and that we were imposters. When they let him out, he refused to come home.

My parents sought help and even arranged for medication, but he didn’t take it. Before long, he disappeared.

My brother’s decline and disappearance had nothing to do with the common narratives about drug use or criminal behavior. He was sick. By the time my family discovered his condition, he was already 18 and legally independent from our custody.

The last time he let me visit, I asked about his bed. I remember seeing his dirty mattress on the floor beside broken glass and garbage. I also asked about the laptop my parents had gifted him just a year earlier. He needed the money, he said—and he had maxed out my parents’ credit card.

In secret from my parents, I gave him all the cash I had saved. I just wanted him to be alright.

My parents and I tried texting and calling him; there was no response except the occasional text every few weeks. But weeks turned into months.

Before long, I was graduating from high school. I begged him to come. When I looked in the bleachers, he was nowhere to be seen. I couldn’t help but wonder what I had done wrong.

The last time I heard from him was over the phone in 2014. I tried to tell him about our parents and how much we all missed him. I asked him to be my brother again, but he cut me off, saying he was never my brother. After a pause, he admitted we could be friends. Making the toughest call of my life, I told him he was my brother—and if he ever remembers that, I’ll be there, ready for him to come back.

I’m now 32 years old. I often wonder how different our lives would have been if he had been diagnosed as a minor and received appropriate care. The laws in place do not help families in my situation.

My brother has no social media, and we suspect he traded his phone several years ago. My family has hired private investigators over the years, who have also worked with local police to try to track him down.

One private investigator’s report indicated an artist befriended my brother many years ago. When my mother tried contacting the artist, they said whatever happened between them was best left in the past and declined to respond. My mom had wanted to wish my brother a happy 30th birthday.

My brother grew up in a safe, middle-class home with two parents. He had no history of drug use or criminal record. He loved collecting vintage basketball cards, eating mint chocolate chip ice cream, and listening to Motown music. To my parents, there was no smoking gun indicating he needed help before it was too late.

The next time you think about a person screaming outside on the street, picture their families. We need policies and services that allow families to locate and support their loved ones living with mental illness, and stronger protections to ensure that individuals leaving facilities can transition into stable care. Current laws, including age-based consent rules, the limits of 72-hour holds, and the lack of step-down or supported housing options, leave too many families without resources when a serious diagnosis occurs.

Governments and lawmakers need to do better for people like my brother. As someone who thinks about him every day, I can tell you the burden is too heavy to carry alone.

James Finney-Conlon is a concerned brother and mental health advocate. He can be reached at [email protected].

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