Jordan O'BrienIt’s no longer enough for streaming services to make upcoming songs invisible to users, it’s now a requirement to ensure that not even virtual assistants can access them. This was highlighted when Lady Gaga’s latest album, Joanne, began streaming to users on the Amazon Echo when users asked Alexa to play the album.
Joanne is set to be released on October 21, but due to a bug discovered by some Alexa users it was possible to listen to preview clips of the new songs ahead of that date. Amazon has since fixed the bug, and it’s thought that it was solely limited to the US.
Streaming services typically show albums on their services ahead of schedule, with track listings available for users to view. Typically, the actual song is unplayable until the release date however, as was the case when attempting to play Joanne on other streaming services or directly from the Amazon website. Alexa was able to view the preview clips however, and in turn decided to play them as soon as users asked.
Some of the songs revealed by Alexa, and since posted online by fans, include Hey Girl, which is a duet with Florence Welch from Florence + The Machine, and Just Another Day, a song about Lady Gaga’s break-up with fiancé Taylor Kinney.