Spotify is adding controls that let you filter Release Radar, the playlist the app makes for you every Friday with new songs from artists you follow and listen to often.

With these new controls, announced July 10, 2026, you can narrow the playlist to a specific genre or ask Spotify to show you only artists you haven't heard before The Verge. You can choose from five different filters, including "Discover new artists," "Editors' picks," and "Pop" Spotify Newsroom. The feature is available on both phone and desktop.

Release Radar refreshes every Friday. Spotify builds it by looking at artists you follow and songs you listen to regularly, then uses patterns in what similar users enjoy to suggest new tracks Spotify Support. It's one of Spotify's most popular playlists.

Spotify is also making changes behind the scenes to improve how the playlist is built, and updating its cover image The Verge. The company hasn't explained exactly how these filters work with Spotify's recommendation system, whether your choices carry over week to week, or whether similar controls will come to other Spotify playlists like Discover Weekly.

For a long time, music streaming services like Spotify built playlists using algorithms — mathematical formulas that learn from what you skip, save, or add to your own playlists. But you couldn't tell the algorithm what you actually wanted. These new filters change that. You're no longer just passive, waiting for Spotify to guess your taste. You can now steer the recommendation engine directly.

This shift matters because many streaming platforms have long believed the algorithm works better when left alone. Spotify offering clear, up-front controls on one of its most-used playlists is a change in how these companies think about personalization.

For artists and record labels, the "Discover new artists" filter is important because it could funnel listener attention toward newer or lesser-known musicians in a new way. Getting on Release Radar has always been a big deal for discovery, and this filter might shift how that discovery works.