Spotify Hosts Clarify: a Digital Series to Encourage Young Voters

Music streaming service, Spotify is taking over Nashville, Tennessee to get a discussion on gender equality restarted, as part of Spotify’s Clarify initiative, which explores “the intersection of music and key issues important to young people.”

Spotify, in collaboration with There., a partnership that develops cultural initiatives for clients by identifying strategic opportunities and translating them into relevant cultural experiences, is hosting a night of art and music at East Nashville’s Red Arrow Gallery on November 1 at 6:30 pm.

The partnership with There. allowed Spotify to bring the digital videos and topics series to life by hosting live events on the same topics.

“The idea is that people are very savy about marketing now and you can get a lot of more traction by supporting your audience and speaking to them directly in the lengths they already care about,” Ken Miller, the Principal at There. explained. “Spotify is a very natural fit because music is a topic that’s culturally connected and bringing that to these events makes a lot of sense.”

“Clarify: An Exhibition and Conversation” will feature a discussion about the intersection of art, music, and gender equality with host Jessica Hopper of MTV News, who will lead the panel.

“We don’t know for sure that we will be able to solve the world’s problems with this program but we are trying to encourage a dialogue here,” added Dave Gallagher, of There. He emphasized that all their events had speakers that reflected both sides to present a neutral and convincing case.

The Nashville event will also include a DJ set by Brandi Cyrus, singer Miley Cyrus’s older sister and a performance by Amanda Shires. The gallery will also exhibit an installation based on gender equality by artist Indie 184.

This is the final event of the 8-week series, which hosted events in 7 other swing states targeting issues such as student debt, civil rights, and climate change.

“We have such an incredible group of people to have to this important conversation about gender equality and it’s a great fit to do it in a city like Nashville which is such a music-centric city,” said Kerry Steib, Director, Social Impact at Spotify. “It feels like such a great opportunity to really talk about gender equality not only in the music industry but also in our culture.”

The series was originally launched by Spotify and web publisher Mic in September featuring a new video series aimed at reaching the younger voters by covering topics that concerned them.

Hosted by author and former Daily Show producer Baratunde Thurston and co-produced by Headcount.org, the weekly series includes conversations and roundtables with well-known artists.

“I think that’s a really special dynamic when you can use art and music as a way to have conversations about really difficult topics in a way that everyone feels that they can get involved in,” Steib explained.

“I am really proud that we have created an event that allows people to share their voice,” she added.

Spotify hopes to continue the series beyond the election because “because music, social action, and social issues really do go hand in hand every day, not just during the elections.”