Spotify Service

Overview

Spotify service provides automation for music playback, playlist management, and library monitoring. Control your music, manage playlists, and track your listening activity automatically.

Connection Setup

Navigate to /api/connections/spotify or use the frontend connection interface
Authorize AREA to access your Spotify account
OAuth scopes granted:
- user-read-playback-state - Read current playback state
- user-modify-playback-state - Control playback
- playlist-read-private - Read private playlists
- playlist-modify-public - Modify public playlists
- playlist-modify-private - Modify private playlists
- user-library-read - Read saved tracks
- user-library-modify - Modify saved tracks

Note: Both Free and Premium Spotify accounts can connect, but some playback features require Spotify Premium.

Service Details

Service Name: spotify
Display Name: Spotify
Description: Music playback control and playlist management
Requires OAuth: Yes
Actions: 3
Reactions: 3

Actions

1. Track Added to Playlist

Name: track_added_to_playlist

Description: Triggers when a new track is added to a specific playlist.

Configuration:

{
  "playlist_id": "37i9dQZF1DXcBWIGoYBM5M"
}

Parameters:

Field	Type	Required	Description
`playlist_id`	string	Yes	Spotify playlist ID (found in playlist URL or share link)

How to find playlist ID:

Open playlist in Spotify
Click Share → Copy link to playlist
Extract ID from URL: spotify.com/playlist/[THIS_IS_THE_ID]

Example Workflow:

{
  "name": "Log Playlist Updates",
  "action_id": <track_added_to_playlist_id>,
  "reaction_id": <log_message_id>,
  "action_config": {
    "playlist_id": "37i9dQZF1DXcBWIGoYBM5M"
  },
  "reaction_config": {
    "message": "New track added to your playlist!"
  }
}

Use Cases:

Track changes to collaborative playlists
Get notified when curated playlists update
Create backups of playlist changes
Monitor playlist growth

2. Track Saved to Library

Name: track_saved

Description: Triggers when you save (like) a new track to your library.

Configuration:

{}

Parameters: None

Example Workflow:

{
  "name": "Auto-Add Liked Songs to Playlist",
  "action_id": <track_saved_id>,
  "reaction_id": <add_to_playlist_id>,
  "action_config": {},
  "reaction_config": {
    "playlist_id": "your-favorites-playlist-id",
    "track_uri": "spotify:track:TRACK_ID"
  }
}

Use Cases:

Automatically add liked songs to a specific playlist
Get notifications when you like songs
Track your music discovery patterns
Create monthly “liked songs” reports

3. Playback Started

Name: playback_started

Description: Triggers when you start playing music on Spotify.

Configuration:

{}

Parameters: None

Example Workflow:

{
  "name": "Log Listening Sessions",
  "action_id": <playback_started_id>,
  "reaction_id": <log_message_id>,
  "action_config": {},
  "reaction_config": {
    "message": "Started listening to music"
  }
}

Use Cases:

Track listening habits
Create time-based listening logs
Trigger actions when music starts (e.g., smart home automation)
Monitor music playback sessions

Reactions

1. Add Track to Playlist

Name: add_to_playlist

Description: Adds a track to a specific playlist.

Configuration:

{
  "playlist_id": "37i9dQZF1DXcBWIGoYBM5M",
  "track_uri": "spotify:track:6rqhFgbbKwnb9MLmUQDhG6"
}

Parameters:

Field	Type	Required	Description
`playlist_id`	string	Yes	Spotify playlist ID
`track_uri`	string	Yes	Spotify track URI or ID (formats: `spotify:track:xxxxx` or just track ID)

How to find track URI:

Right-click track in Spotify → Share → Copy Song Link
Extract ID from URL: spotify.com/track/[THIS_IS_THE_ID]
Use as: spotify:track:[ID] or just the ID

Example Workflow:

{
  "name": "Backup Liked Songs",
  "action_id": <track_saved_id>,
  "reaction_id": <add_to_playlist_id>,
  "action_config": {},
  "reaction_config": {
    "playlist_id": "your-backup-playlist-id",
    "track_uri": "spotify:track:6rqhFgbbKwnb9MLmUQDhG6"
  }
}

Use Cases:

Automatically organize liked songs into playlists
Create genre-specific auto-curated playlists
Backup favorite tracks to multiple playlists
Share tracks across collaborative playlists

2. Create Playlist

Name: create_playlist

Description: Creates a new playlist in your Spotify account.

Configuration:

{
  "name": "My Automated Playlist",
  "description": "Created by AREA automation",
  "public": true
}

Parameters:

Field	Type	Required	Description
`name`	string	Yes	Playlist name (max 100 characters)
`description`	string	No	Playlist description (max 300 characters)
`public`	boolean	No	Make playlist public (default: true)

Example Workflow:

{
  "name": "Weekly Playlist Creator",
  "action_id": <time_matches_id>,
  "reaction_id": <create_playlist_id>,
  "action_config": {
    "time": "00:00"
  },
  "reaction_config": {
    "name": "Weekly Favorites",
    "description": "Auto-generated playlist",
    "public": false
  }
}

Use Cases:

Create monthly/weekly playlists automatically
Generate playlists based on time or date triggers
Organize music collections programmatically
Create themed playlists on schedule

3. Start Playback

Name: start_playback

Description: Starts playing a specific track or playlist on your active Spotify device.

Configuration:

{
  "track_uri": "spotify:track:6rqhFgbbKwnb9MLmUQDhG6",
  "context_uri": "spotify:playlist:37i9dQZF1DXcBWIGoYBM5M"
}

Parameters:

Field	Type	Required	Description
`track_uri`	string	No	Spotify track URI to play
`context_uri`	string	No	Spotify playlist/album URI for context

Note: At least one parameter should be provided. If both are provided, track plays within the context.

Example Workflow:

{
  "name": "Morning Alarm Music",
  "action_id": <time_matches_id>,
  "reaction_id": <start_playback_id>,
  "action_config": {
    "time": "07:00"
  },
  "reaction_config": {
    "context_uri": "spotify:playlist:your-morning-playlist-id"
  }
}

Use Cases:

Wake up to music at specific times
Start playlist when arriving home (with location triggers)
Play focus music during work hours
Automated DJ for events

Common Use Cases

1. Auto-Archive Liked Songs

Trigger: Track saved to library
Reaction: Add to monthly backup playlist

2. Morning Music Routine

Trigger: Time matches (7:00 AM)
Reaction: Start playback of energizing playlist

3. Playlist Change Notifications

Trigger: Track added to followed playlist
Reaction: Send email notification

4. Monthly Playlist Generator

Trigger: Date matches (1st of month)
Reaction: Create new playlist for the month

5. Music Discovery Tracker

Trigger: Track saved to library
Reaction: Log to Drive file for monthly review

API Endpoints

See OAuth Connections for connection endpoints.

Limitations

Playback Control: Requires Spotify Premium for on-demand playback
Active Device: Start playback requires an active Spotify device (phone, computer, speaker)
Rate Limiting: Spotify API has rate limits
Track URIs: Must use valid Spotify URIs or IDs
Playlist Access: Can only modify playlists you own or have edit access to
Free Users: Limited playback control features

Troubleshooting

Tracks Not Being Detected:

Verify OAuth connection is active at /api/connections
Check playlist ID is correct
Ensure playlist is accessible to your account
Scheduler runs every 1 minute - there may be a delay

Add to Playlist Fails:

Verify you have edit permissions for the playlist
Check track URI format (should be spotify:track:ID or just ID)
Ensure playlist ID is valid
Track must exist in Spotify’s catalog

Start Playback Fails:

Most common: No active Spotify device
- Solution: Open Spotify on phone/computer/speaker first
Verify Spotify Premium subscription (required for playback control)
Check track/playlist URI is valid
Ensure OAuth scopes include user-modify-playback-state

Create Playlist Fails:

Check playlist name doesn’t exceed 100 characters
Verify OAuth connection is active
Ensure description doesn’t exceed 300 characters

Advanced Usage

Finding Spotify IDs and URIs

Playlist ID:

URL: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/37i9dQZF1DXcBWIGoYBM5M
ID:  37i9dQZF1DXcBWIGoYBM5M

Track URI:

URL: https://open.spotify.com/track/6rqhFgbbKwnb9MLmUQDhG6
URI: spotify:track:6rqhFgbbKwnb9MLmUQDhG6
ID:  6rqhFgbbKwnb9MLmUQDhG6

Playback Devices

For start_playback to work, you need an active Spotify device:

Open Spotify on any device (phone, computer, web player, smart speaker)
Start playing any track (can pause it immediately)
Device is now “active” and can receive playback commands
Device must remain connected and logged in

URI Formats

AREA accepts multiple formats for track URIs:

spotify:track:6rqhFgbbKwnb9MLmUQDhG6
6rqhFgbbKwnb9MLmUQDhG6
https://open.spotify.com/track/6rqhFgbbKwnb9MLmUQDhG6

All formats are automatically normalized to the correct Spotify URI format.

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