How to add variety to a station

[alc515]

Hello!

I'm hoping the community has some good answers for me...

I use to be able to 'Add Variety' to a station I already created.

I am familiar with going to the Station details to see the seeds the 'Station Created From', however I no longer see the button to 'Add Variety'. When I click on the '...' (ellipsis) that would give me an option to 'Edit Station', that option is greyed out- I can see it, but I can't click it.

Is this for Pandora Plus members or for Pandora Premium members? Or does this option not exist at all anymore?

Moderator Edit: Edited title for clarity

[Meowrissa]

Add variety is not available on any station I have any more, but that particular station is Justin Timberlake Radio

[TannerPandora]

Hi @Meowrissa, 

I was just checking out your stations.

Keep in mind, Genre and Hybrid stations, such as "Today's Hits" or "Classic Rock," are stations curated by Pandora, and they behave a little bit differently than your own personalized stations. You won't be able to add variety to these stations.  

That's because Adding Variety could change your listening experience on these stations; added seeds would most likely inspire music outside of the scope of the intended genre.

There was a bug previously that allowed listeners to add variety and edit genre stations. This bug has since been resolved. I did look at your 'Justin Timberlake Radio' station and notice this was renamed from a genre station called 'Today's Hits Radio', that's why you aren't able to add or edit variety to this stations.

I was able to make a small change on my end, you should now be able to edit or add variety once again. 

Hope this helped. Thanks for listening! 

[eveflyaway]

I just got the $4.99 subscription to Pandora and I'm already thinking of canceling and go back to free. Is it really worth it? I hear the same artists, again and again, every day. I have more than 100 stations, and it's the same with all of them, even with Shuffle and Thumbprint. There are hundreds of artists out there, even in a single genre, and Pandora seems to get stuck with 10 to 12 artists in 5 to 6 hours or more, and only occasionally add a new one. It's frustrating! I searched in the Help area and did not find much to try to get more variety, and it shouldn't be so complicated anyway. Any ideas or things I need to know?

[joemd1960]

Sorry, it won’t let me post the link in the help section. I am sure one of the Mods will help out soon. Good luck 😊

[eveflyaway]

Thanks, you're very kind. I don't know if it's worth paying $4.99 per month just for no ads and being able to skip songs as many times as I want; everything else is just the same in Pandora and ads were only 1 or 2 and brief (not like regular radio ads that are usually more than 5 ads, most super annoying, for 6 to 7 minutes!). 🙂

[TannerPandora]

Hi @eveflyaway!

Thanks for posting! I moved your message over to an existing thread: How to add variety to a station

Sorry to hear that songs have started to get repetitive on your stations. I'd recommend checking out @AdamPandora 's post here for steps on how to add variety. Adding an artist(s)/song(s) to your current stations will definitely help bring in some new content. 

I'd also recommend using Modes if you haven't already given it a try. I find myself using Modes more than anything, and really enjoy the variety it can offer. 

Hope the steps help!

++

Thanks for trying to post the help page article @joemd1960! You mentioned that it wouldn't let you post the link - did you get an error message?

Thanks!

[joemd1960]

Thanks Tanner, no error message. It just wouldn’t let me copy the link to the help page. 
And if I typed in the link you would have to do some digging to find what you needed. No worries though, it’s very helpful. 
Maybe the support team could create a sticky thread for all the help links. 
I used that help page, and it works. Like you said, you can add or delete artists to the station to create some variety. 
And the station modes is a great feature of Pandora! 
Sometimes I use Discovery or Deep Cuts. You can find new music that way. 

[TannerPandora]

Thanks for letting us know @joemd1960! 

And yasss! Modes is so much fun. It has to be my favourite feature on Pandora.  🎉

[joemd1960]

It’s certainly my favorite!😄

[terridan]

The "add variety" option doesn't seem to exist anymore. Can't find it anywhere. 

[joemd1960]

I checked my iPhone, the option is not there. But I think you’re best checking on a computer, or if you have an iPad. Good luck 

[joemd1960]

It’s still there, go into the station that’s playing, and scroll up. You will see station settings. Click on that and you will see add variety. 😉

[AdamPandora]

@terridan You should still be able to add variety to your regular artist/song based stations.

Please let me know the name of one of the stations you are unable to add variety to, as well as the device you are using to stream Pandora. 

[ahussey]

There is no longer a "station created from" button on a PC. This answer is no longer applicable.

[TannerPandora]

Hi @ahussey 

There is no 'Station Created From' button on a computer, that is on mobile only.

You'll simple choose the station you'd like to add variety to, and scroll down to the 'Station Created From' section - screenshot below for an example. 

If you're having trouble adding variety to a particular stations, let me know the name of the station(s) and I'll take a closer look. 

[fangrocker]

On my mobile device I do not see "Add Variety".  I don't see it from my desktop either.  All I want to do is add an artist to one of my channels.  

[TannerPandora]

Hi @fangrocker,

Sounds like you are trying to add variety to a genre stations.

Genre stations, such as "Today's Hits" or "Classic Rock," are stations curated by Pandora, and they behave a little bit differently than your own personalized stations. Adding variety could change your listening experience on these stations; added seeds would most likely inspire music outside of the scope of the intended genre.

However, I'm happy to take a closer look at the station. Can you let me know the name or the names of the stations you're trying to add variety to.

Thanks!

[haakon]

Hey Tanner!

I'm in a similar situation as the original poster, except that I'm trying to edit a station that I've created. I've attached a few screenshots below! I originally seeded it with another station, and added a Kanye West song successfully. Interestingly, the App allows me to interact with the "Edit Station" interface while the browser does not. But neither app nor browser allow me to "Add Variety", which doesn't really make sense because clearly I did this in the past.

Is it possible the restrictions around station editing have changed and this station is somehow no longer mine...? Is there anywhere I can read about "patch notes" that outline information about how my Pandora content is being changed? It feels really bad to have a station I created and enjoy suddenly lose functionality 😞

Big fan of Pandora! Been a happy paying customer for over 10 years 🙂 Thanks for all the great work!

[AlyssaPandora]

Hi there, @haakon. 👋

Thanks so much for posting about this. It's nice to see you around the community space.

First, I can tell that you've been a long time listener based on your issue. We appreciate your continued support. We have seen a few of these instances over the years.

Looks like the original seed for this station is Rap Strength Training Radio, which is a Genre station curated by Pandora. In the past (years ago), listeners were able to edit genre stations, which is why you were able to add that Kanye West song as an additional seed. 

Today, Genre stations behave a little bit differently than your own personalized stations. One difference is that you cannot Add Variety to these stations. That's because Adding Variety could change your listening experience on these stations; added seeds would most likely inspire music outside of the scope of the intended genre.

That said, when listening from a computer, mobile device or the Sonos app, you can access Pandora Modes to customize your station experience. You can pick different modes like Crowd Faves, Discovery and Deep Cuts.

++

Even if you are unable to Add Variety, you can still edit your Thumb feedback from a computer. This process is different from a mobile device as you can click on "Edit" to manage your Thumb Feedback.

From a computer:

If you want to remove the Kanye song from the station, I can make that change. However, I do not have the ability to add any additional song or artist seeds to your existing station.

Hope this information helps explain. 🎧

[zenrn71]

I am a premium member on my desk computer and I don't see any of the options you are mentioning.  I don't see an edit icon, pencil, or add variety anywhere.  Can you please assist?