Spotify Wrapped season is finally here, and with it brings many questions — like how is it physically possible that you listened to “As It Was” by Harry Styles that many times? Just kidding. We get it. But the biggest question still looms large: When exactly does the Wrapped tracking period end?
The internet’s colloquial understanding was that Wrapped stopped tracking at the end of October, leaving November and December as safe months to listen to your guilty pleasures. (I’m looking at you, Glee soundtrack.) But Spotify busted that myth in mid-October of this year in a reply to a since-deleted tweet from pop culture update account, Pop Crave, about Wrapped ending on Halloween. Spotify replied, “The only thing that we end on Halloween is eating candy corn. Stream (and snack) all through the year and we will see you in Wrapped season.”
Spotify remains cagey about when exactly Wrapped stops tracking. “The Wrapped personalized experience covers streaming for 2022, so beginning in January and ending a few weeks prior to the launch on November 30. We aim to leave the cut off date as late as possible to really create a truly personalized experience for the millions of listeners around the world,” Babar Zafar, Spotify’s vice president of product development, explained at a press preview of Wrapped on Nov. 29.
Perhaps we will never know the precise date Spotify Wrapped stops tracking our listening habits, but it’s safe to say that the first couple weeks of November are fair game. Condolences to those who were misinformed and let their guard down to listen to something embarrassing. Hopefully, it didn’t affect your Wrapped too much.