Asian and Pacific Islander (API) artists are making waves globally with genres like J-Pop, C-Pop and Pinoy Hip Hop gaining widespread popularity. During API month in May,  Spotify marks this occasion with a spotlight on various talents through a mix of curated playlists, editorial features, and data-driven promotional tools.  

On the musical front, Spotify’s Jasmine playlist aims to spotlight emerging API artists worldwide. With a mission of “illuminating Asian artists everywhere,” Jasmine was launched in 2017 as Asian Americans on the Rise and continues to foster cross-cultural connections.

Featuring 100 tracks that are entirely editorial at any given moment, Jasmine now has 288.2K followers. Over the past year, the playlist has gained over 2.3K followers, with its biggest spike at the start of May 2024 with over 1K followers gained in the week of May 6-12, 2024.

Currently, more than 3,000 public playlists on Spotify contain the word “Asian,” with 48 curated by Spotify. However, only 11 of those have been updated in the past four months. Jasmine stands as the second biggest playlist in terms of followers, after Desi Hits (890k followers), showing the popularity of the genre. While mostly genre-agnostic, the genres featured on Jasmine include R&B (41%), Indie (22%) and Pop (12%), indicating a diverse yet distinct musical trend in the playlist.

Independent Artists Take Center Stage in Jasmine

Exploring the tracks in Jasmine can also reveals insight into the record label landscape. Out of 100 tracks, 91 tracks are from independent record labels, while only 9 comes from the major label (4 SME, 3 UMG, 2 WMG). This indicates that the majority of the artists featured are not signed to major record labels, suggesting that much of momentum behind API talent is driven by the independents.

Although Spotify does not provide geographical data for Spotify playlist followers, we can map out the impact of the API campaign by examining the rise of selected artists who received heavy marketing support such as Towa Bird, Emei, and Paravi. In partnership with Gold House, they released new Spotify Singles and received mentoring opportunities and editorial support.

Towa Bird

Filipino-British singer songwriter Towa Bird is a 23 year old rising rockstar who gained recognition through her guitar covers on Tiktok. She’s a vocal representation for both the Asian and queer communities, and quickly made her mark through her songs that explore themes of identity and self discovery.

During the API campaign, “B.I.L.L.S” from her debut album American Hero was one the first tracks to be added to Jasmine in honor of API month. This was soon followed by two more tracks “Sorry Sorry” and “Time to Pretend (Spotify Singles)” which was added in the following week.

In the two months following the campaign, Towa Bird’s presence on Spotify grew significantly - her editorial playlist reach more than doubled, increasing by 106% and her tracks were featured in over 1.1K playlists on the platform, indicating a strong post-campaign impact. Currently, Towa Bird featured in 10 editorial playlists, with “B.I.LL.S” ranking as her second most popular track on Spotify of all time.

As her music started climbing the Spotify charts and she steadily makes her way into bigger editorial playlists like Pop Sauce, All New Rock and The Rock List, Towa Bird’s musical presence began to expand. In the first week of the API campaign alone, she saw her biggest gain of over 190K monthly listeners in the Week of April 27 to May 7 and has further grown her own fan base of over 834K Monthly Listeners at the end of API month.

Paravi

Indian-American singer songwriter Paravi rose to prominence on TikTok and was featured on the 2022 ELVIS soundtrack with the cover of “Suspicious Minds” Her recorded single for Spotify “we can’t be friends (wait for your love) - Spotify Singles” was added to Jasmine during the API campaign, and has seen a 1.3K percent increase in the past year alone. The track is currently featured in more than 115 independent and editorial Spotify playlists, exposing more than 1.26M listeners to her sound.

As her career continues to gain momentum, Paravi now boast over 212k Spotify Monthly Listeners, with top cities spanning beyond her home country such as United States (71.6K), Philippines (30K), Germany (25K), Australia (14.6K)  and Poland (13.8K). Just a year ago, India was among her Top 5 markets with 18K Spotify Monthly Listeners, but her growing audience distribution in the international regions now highlights her expanding global recognition.

Emei

Chinese-American pop artist Emei gained early recognition through her audition on Chinese Idol with a heartfelt rendition of Judy Kuhn’s “Colors of the Wind.” Today, Emei is known for her songs that incorporate a unique mix of apathy and vulnerability as she appeals to the cultural zeitgeist of the Gen Z through an honest exploration of heartbreak, anxiety, and self-expression.

For the API campaign, “Watermelon Sugar (Spotify Singles)” was the first track added to Jasmine, quickly reaching #2. Released on May 15, 2024, the song hit 22.8M playlist reach in its first week and continues to be featured in more than 900 independent and editorial Spotify playlists, reaching over 4 million listeners.

Despite her Western pop success, Emei remains connected to her Chinese heritage while growing her international fan base. Currently, The Philippines ranks among her top markets accounting for 8% of her estimated overall audience, following the U.S. at 49.5%. In addition, her global reach also spans Asia (Indonesia and Malaysia), Europe (Germany, Poland, Netherlands), Australia, and Canada.

Why Jasmine matters?

While data informs editorial playlists, human creators bring a personal touch to select artists and tracks that will truly resonate. Each song on Jasmine is thoughtfully curated to highlight emerging API talents and connect them with a wider audience. As more people discover and connect with these artists through Jasmine, it is more likely that these artists’ voices are heard and appreciated. This cycle of discovery is crucial in ensuring that API artists and their unique stories are celebrated as they continue to pave the way for future generations to witness their own culture reflected in the mainstream spaces.

However, it is also pertinent to note that Spotify’s API campaign is just one part of a larger ongoing promotional effort by the artists and their team. Towa Bird was gearing up to release her debut album American Hero on June 28, 2024 and kept the fans engaged through consistent social media teasers leading up to the launch. One of the highlights was the release of her single “Sorry Sorry” on May 10, dedicated to her queer community, whom she described as “friends-to-lovers lesbian trope enthusiasts” The release sparked her biggest single day increase in Spotify followers in the month of May, where she gained an additional 914 followers.

Her strong connection to her audiences was evident in one of her top performing videos on Instagram about the queer community on May 23, which led to a surge of nearly 2k Instagram followers in a single day. This suggests that, alongside Spotify's promotional push for the API campaign, Towa Bird’s personal engagement with her fans was instrumental in fueling the growth of her followers.

Similarly, Emei was in the middle of "The Cynical Tour" European tour in May 2024, where she performed in Berlin, Amsterdam, Paris and London. While she actively shared her pride in her Chinese heritage and Spotify’s campaign during API month, her posts also featured numerous tour highlights and fan videos. One notable highlight was a reel shared on May 26, when she posted a surprise performance with special guest Haiden Henderson as they sang along to Justin Bieber’s “Baby.” This sparked her biggest single-day increase of nearly 2K Spotify followers and over 1.6k Instagram followers in the month of May, suggesting that the power of direct fan interaction is crucial in driving Emei’s engagement and follower growth.

While leveraging key moments like Spotify’s API campaign is valuable, long term success comes from a steady commitment to authentic fan engagement and a consistent, holistic marketing approach. Rather than just the highs of a single campaign or a viral moment, every chapter of the process contributes to a continuous narrative that is vital in amplifying the voice of the artist.