can ai pick the perfect playlist?

By Jess Santacroce
Music Writer, Phoenix Radio

Attempting to replace artists, educators, and other content creators with AI nearly often results in disasters known as “AI slop.” We get portraits of people with six huge fingers on each hand, lyrics for songs nobody could even sing, videos featuring ten people with the same eyes, fiction that holds the attention of absolutely no one, and essays and reports featuring exactly what would be expected to come next after each sentence, including the misinformation pulled from the most accessible reddit posts and personal blogs. Lesson templates and lectures are similarly bland and standard, with no originality or acknowledgment of audience.

At the same time, AI is praised for its ability to complete those tasks that we want to be basic and expected. Once you enter your pertinent information, a bot can create a budget or a schedule much faster than you with a stack of pens and pieces of scrap paper and a calendar or bank statement. It can count exactly how many verses in the Bible (or whatever scripture is sacred in your faith or path) address money or rest or safety much faster and more accurately than you could ever search and catalog the same information.

What about those things that lie somewhere in between, particularly, music choice? We’ve all seen the Netflix or the YouTube algorithm produce some strange and questionable choices based solely on things we’ve clicked on. But what if the bot were given just a little bit more information?

Playlists are reportedly increasingly generated by AI today,  but like anything else, the question isn’t so much if AI can do it, but if AI can do it well, or even adequately. 

Experiment # 1: Can an AI chat bot create a good themed playlist?

For this experiment, chatgpt was asked, “Can you make me a playlist for staying inside on a cold winter’s day?”

In response, the bot generated a weird “Ohhh yes. Cold winter day, nowhere to be, maybe a blanket burrito situation? I got you. This is cozy-with-a-little-dramatic-energy—perfect for watching snow fall or pretending you’re in an indie film.” answer, but it did add on a list of twelve songs.

The song choices had some successes and some failures. It did provide a bit of variety. There were a couple of Taylor Swift songs, one by Coldplay, one by Billy Joel, and one by Kacey Musgraves. Oddly, it reportedly based its choices on what it called “vibes” rather than lyrics. In one instance, it adds a second song by the band “Bon Iver,” with the comment, “Yes another Bon Iver, winter allows it.” (bon hiver is “nice winter” or “good winter” in French). This seemed more like a programmer’s attempt to insert more human word choice into the bot than the bot displaying genuine ability. A band being named after winter doesn’t mean their work is suitable for any particular winter situation. 

Perhaps the most perplexing choice was “The Night We Met” by Lord Huron. The chatgpt bot described the song as “Main character staring at snow energy.” The song is about a main character who wishes they could go back in time and not even start a relationship with someone, because the situation faded away painfully and ended badly. One certainly could contemplate such a situation while staring at snow, so the bot isn’t entirely wrong….but this song definitely isn’t suitable for everyone stuck inside on a winter’s day.

Using AI to create a themed playlist is not a bad idea for a first draft of the playlist, but human editing for audience might be in order before setting the playlist for a specific situation or person.

Experiment # 2: When given some personal details about an individual’s music tastes, can AI come up with a playlist that person would want to listen to at least once a week or more?

The prompt for this experiment was: I like at least some of all types of music, but my favorite genre is Punk/alternative and I also love Christian pop, Jazz, Blues, classic country, and modern folk. My favorite bands are the Beatles, Train, the Replacements, Blink 182, and Gaslight Anthem. My favorite solo artists are John Mayer, Bruce Springsteen, and Norah Jones. What ten songs should I put on my main playlist first?

My expectation for chatgpt was that it would be able to easily do this. I gave it a list of bands and artists, so I would think it could easily find the most popular song from each of them, pop them onto a list, and fill it out with one or two more from the list of genres I also gave it.

The bot failed. Giving it a list of my favorite bands and artists didn’t tip it off that I actually might like to listen to those bands and artists. Only one John Mayer song made it onto the list. The rest were all artists and songs that chatgpt described as a sort of synthesis of everything I input into the prompt.

Experiment #3: Playlists for moods and situations are all over streaming services. Can AI create a personalized playlist when given a situation?

Mental health experts have nearly unanimously issued strong warnings against using Microsoft copilot, chat gpt, Replika, or any other AI chat bot as a therapist, life coach, or even peer counselor. Anyone experiencing any mental health issues should seek treatment from a human being who has been properly trained and licensed to provide mental health care. If that is not an option for you,  contact a human being on a free help line dedicated to dealing with the issue you face, or speak to your pastor or other religious or spiritual leader for guidance.

Assuming a person is already doing all of this, that they just need some music that reflects the way they feel and what they are going through, can AI generate an appropriate, helpful playlist?

As an initial prompt, I entered my real situation into chat gpt. I explained that I am an independent writer, and my writing work varies widely, from writing and presenting lessons in writing to rooms full of college students and grading, to writing a music blog, to networking to doing research for and writing my own blog and novels. I then asked it for an encouraging playlist. 

Oddly, the bot seemed to pick up on my past prompts, and offered me a list of songs that included Springsteen, Norah Jones, Blink 182, and Gaslight Anthem. It then asked me if I wanted certain modes, one of which included music blog writing. I followed up with that prompt, and received another list, one that was suitable, a mix of the artists and genres previously entered. But just like before, the bot also made choices that sharply illustrate the fact that these things can only predict what is likely to come next in any given situation, not thoughtfully reflect on real human experiences as only a real human can do. One of the songs on the list is “Subterranean Homesick Blues” by Bob Dylan. Chat gpt groups this song under the heading “Smart, Writerly Energy.” And while I do like Dylan and the song, the tempo and lyrics make it more than a little distracting to listen to while writing. Perhaps the idea is to listen to it for inspiration beforehand, but it certainly isn’t suitable for background music while writing.

Overall, AI seems to be suitable for creating first drafts of playlists in limited circumstances, but not something to be trusted completely. As of the middle of February of 2026, the bot’s responses also make it clear that issues of the dialogue being overly and unnecessarily flattering have not been addressed. Each one of these lists came with not just the list of songs it was asked for, but some type of attempt to sound like a life coach or even a friend, such as “Ooh I love this prompt” or “you’ve got taste taste.” That may be annoying at worst, even amusing or cute in some situations when you’re just asking for playlists, but can be dangerous for vulnerable people looking for deeper insight or information.

 Similarly, the constant use of terms like “vibes” and “energy” is concerning. These are terms borrowed from new age philosophies, which is going to be a concern for many Christians and others who follow spiritual paths that do not welcome new age influence already. But regardless of your opinion on new age thought and spirituality, this should still concern you, as these terms are contemporary human speech trends. Despite promises from the CEOs of the companies that market these bots, they are clearly not being programmed to sound more clinical and computer-like, and less like a human talking to you. The exact opposite appears to be true.