I think Deezer has been reading my mind.
I’ve only been using the music streaming app for a few weeks and it already knows me too well. Deezer’s recommendations have been spot on, helping me rediscover songs I already love and new artists who might just snag a permanent spot on my playlists. (I’m talking about you, Ransom Collective, you guys rock.)
Nailing your sweet spot
Gina Daryanani, Deezer PR manager for Asia, explains: “Deezer uses a smart algorithm to track songs that you’ve been listening to. If you’ve been listening to a lot of electro, the recommendations will be in the electro genre. It’s very tailored to you. We keep track of what you super like. We try to nail your sweet spot.”
While other music streaming apps also use algorithms in figuring out the songs you’d like, Deezer goes a step further by introducing human curation and hiring editors from around the world who recommend songs they think you’ll enjoy (see related story).
You can enjoy your recommended tunes by clicking on Hear This or Flow.
Gina said, “A lot of recommendations are of unknown artists because Deezer’s mantra is to really push the obscure artists. We want to champion the indie artists.”
Deezer, founded in France, has been available in the Philippines since 2012. “It was a soft launch, we were testing the market. Music streaming is so new in Asia,” Gina pointed out.
In July, Deezer finally had its big launch in Manila, announcing its partnership with Smart Communications.
“Smart has 72 million subscribers. It wants to cater to the urban and hip lifestyle market and we have the same values— we are very passionate about music. Smart is known for high-speed Internet connection which is really important. Smartphone penetration is so high in the Philippines and everyone is taking their world, their music on the go,” Gina said.
“Deezer completes Smart’s music portfolio as we strive to provide the complete music experience to all kinds of users,” said Charles A. Lim, EVP and head of Smart’s wireless consumer division.
While everyone is welcome to sign up for Deezer’s free and Premium+ services, existing Smart subscribers can avail of the paid subscription for P25 (one day), P125 (one week) and P250 (one month) using their accounts.
Postpaid users can register by sending Deezer25, Deezer125 or Deezer250 to 7577 (for All-In Postpaid Plans), 9990 (for Freedom Postpaid Plans) or 2207 (for other postpaid plans).
Deezer25 will give you access to Deezer Premium+ for one day plus 10 MB of mobile internet for Deezer streaming and 25 all-network texts. Deezer125 gets you Deezer Premium+ access for one week, 50 MB of mobile Internet and 125 texts, while Deezer250 gives you Deezer Premium+ for a month, 100MB of mobile Internet for Deezer Streaming and 250 all-network texts.
Premium+ means unlimited streaming, no ads and access to offline mode—you can listen to all the albums and playlists you synced to your device even if you have no access to Internet, 3G or 4G.
Deezer has 16 million monthly active users worldwide and 5 million of them use Premium+. Gina said, “We’re available in 180 countries. If someone’s a Smart subscriber, when he or she travels abroad, they will still be able to use Deezer.”
Quick access
I’ve been enjoying getting to know Deezer. I love how it gives me quick access to songs. I was reading “Landline,” Rainbow Rowell’s latest book, and the song “Leather and Lace” was mentioned. I was curious so I picked up my phone, opened Deezer and, within seconds, I was listening to Stevie Nicks and Don Henley.
I’ve been able to find music I had been wanting to listen to so easily—whether it’s the more mainstream (Lily Allen’s latest album “Sheezus”) or the slightly more obscure (Hunter Valentine, an all-girl alternative rock group that I’ve been wanting to see live). But I shouldn’t have been surprised—after all, Deezer has 30 million tracks in its catalogue.
Deezer has even helped me at work. When I have upcoming interviews with bands and musicians, I use Deezer to listen to their songs.
Modern mix tape
I enjoy going through other people’s playlists and discovering new songs to love. And I’m not alone.
Gina said, “I like listening to Deezer 10 by my Singapore editor every week because I don’t have time to listen to 20 tracks; but 10 songs are easy. I enjoy creating my own as well. I’m a big fan of playlists whenever I go to festivals because I need a one-stop shop playlist to discover all the music that’s gonna be played there. And I find that whenever I create a playlist like that, I get a lot of fans as well.”
Playlists are the modern mix tape, and with Deezer’s social media integration, sharing music with your friends is super easy. (It’s also a great way to discover your friends’ musical guilty pleasures.)
Apps add even more fun to Deezer. I asked Gina to list her favorites: “Tune Wiki. I’m a sing-along kind of girl. I especially use Tune Wiki before I go to concerts because I want to sing along with the artist. I also like Chordify because it gives me chords and I’m trying to pick up the guitar again. I like Stateeztics, it shows you your most played track of the month, compares you with your friends and shows you the songs you’ve been listening to and stats about your music habits on Deezer. Sometimes it shocks me that I’ve been listening to a song way too much. Sometimes it shocks me that my friends are listening to a song that I don’t approve of.”
Gina and I are big fans of Deezer Sessions, too. This app gives you access to live gigs that Deezer produced and filmed in London and Paris. “We’re planning to do this in Asia, too,” she said.
You can use Deezer on all your devices—your phone, tablet, computer and even your TV.
Deezer for Mac is also on beta testing; this desktop app will import all your iTunes music, putting together your songs in one place.
Gina said, “A journalist told me, ‘I listen to only five albums and I have them on my iTunes. So why should I use Deezer?’ I asked him, ‘Do you like these five artists? Do you love them? Do you want to support them? If you play their songs five million times on iTunes, the artists will never get to see the royalties. But if you stream those albums on Deezer, the artist gets paid, they get compensation. You are supporting the artist by streaming.”
I’ve already had so much fun with Deezer but I feel like we’re only getting started.
“Deezer is like a friend—the more time you spend with it, the more it understands you and your music taste,” said Gina.
Visit smart.com.ph/Deezer.