Calgary artist tapped by Spotify to curate playlist

Wyatt C. Louis says that when listening to an album, it's typically front to back. 

So when the Calgary-based Plains Cree folk singer was tapped by Spotify to curate its Indigenous playlist, that was, in part, the inspiration they drew on. 

"Putting my record together and having that flow — it's just an automatic thing of putting music together," they said. 

Louis says the playlist, which had more than 52,000 likes as of Friday, includes a mix of trailblazers, new songs and traditional powwow music. 

And it was a playlist they'd already been following, and featured on, for a while. 

"The last song I put on, which is Mountain Soul Singers, means a lot to my dad, when he started powwow dancing. I thought a lot about my family, in a sense, and where I'm from," they said. 

The curator of the playlist is selected on a rolling basis. In an online press release, Spotify said it is experimenting with playlist creation and discovery. 

"We're always testing unique and different listening experiences and programs for our fans." 

Louis included songs from other Canadian artists, such as William Prince, who is based in Manitoba, and Julian Taylor, who is from Toronto. 

Part of the promotion of the playlist is a billboard of Louis — at the bustling Toronto Eaton Centre. 

"I was just really fortunate that I was able to give some space to some of my favourite artists … it's still kind of surreal, even with a billboard," Louis said. 

LISTEN | Wyatt C. Louis explains their picks:

Calgary Eyeopener4:48Spotify "Indigenous" playlist

A Plains Cree folk singer-songwriter based out of Calgary recently curated Spotfiy's Indigenous playlist. We talk with Wyatt C. Louis about his picks.