Spotify, NIVA partner to boost independent venue visibility

Announced on 16 April, the agreement includes expanded promotion of indie venues and live events across Spotify’s venue pages and live events feed. A new beta feature titled “Venues we think you’ll like” has also been introduced within the events section, offering personalised recommendations based on listening history, location and other user data.

The platform said the feature will highlight NIVA-certified independent venues, with Spotify also adding the certification seal to venue pages.

The partnership will also introduce a monthly playlist titled Independent Booker Spotlight, which is expected to launch this summer. According to Spotify, the playlist will be curated in collaboration with a different NIVA-selected independent booker each month, highlighting professionals responsible for programming at independent stages.

Spotify’s senior director of live music, Rene Volker, described independent venues as central to the live music ecosystem.

He said indie venues are “the heartbeat of live music” and added that Spotify intends to support them “for the long game”.

NIVA executive director Stephen Parker said the initiative recognises the role of independent venues in developing artists and live audiences.

“Independent stages are where every artist gets their start and where nearly 200 million fans a year experience the joy of music, comedy, and performance,” Parker said.

He added that NIVA’s certification programme highlights the challenges faced by independent operators.

“NIVA’s Certified Live Independent is a seal that shows the sacrifices and ingenuity that goes into keeping their venue or festival independent. We’re grateful that Spotify is elevating that seal and independent stages on their platform to allow millions of fans to experience the magic of these spaces,” he said.

The partnership forms part of a broader push by streaming platforms to integrate live music discovery and ticketing into their services.

Spotify began expanding its live events features in 2024 and has since introduced presale access options and ticketing integrations. Other companies have also moved into the live events space, with SoundCloud partnering Ticketmaster in 2025 and Apple Music integrating Bandsintown listings into artist pages.