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Song My Station is Created From Never Plays

zsquire
Local Performer

I have used the radio station feature for a long time.  I have an issue where the song(s) I create the station from are never actually played on the station.  I understand they can't be played on command, but they haven't come up on the station ever and it has been literally years (and there are a large number of other songs which I have heard repeatedly).  

Songs I have given a thumbs-up to cycle through fairly regularly, but not the song I used to create the station (ans the songs I use to "add variety" to it play relatively infrequently compared to thumbs-up'ed songs).  Is it possible to pre-emptively thumbs-up a song or add it to the list of thumbs-up'ed songs directly?  I thought adding a song to the "add variety" section would work this way but they seem very different in terms of the effect of hiw much the song gets played.  Again, to emphasize, the song the station is created from and named for has literally never played after years.  

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AdamPandora
Community Manager
Community Manager

@zsquire Nice to see you around the community.

I definitely understand that it can be frustrating not to hear the track you created your station with.

For more information around this, I recommend checking out the accepted solution to this thread. If you scroll down, you will see a heading titled Not hearing the artist or song your station was created for.

In regards to giving tracks a thumbs up, there is not a way to do that preemptively. Additionally, adding variety to a station doesn't narrow the song pool that Pandora chooses from, nor does it increase your chances of hearing a particular song or artist. Rather, it opens up your station to a lot of variety, which can make for some undesirable matches.

I hope this helps!

 


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6 Replies

SadAlex
Opening Act

Interesting 

sad alex﫠
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AdamPandora
Community Manager
Community Manager

@zsquire Nice to see you around the community.

I definitely understand that it can be frustrating not to hear the track you created your station with.

For more information around this, I recommend checking out the accepted solution to this thread. If you scroll down, you will see a heading titled Not hearing the artist or song your station was created for.

In regards to giving tracks a thumbs up, there is not a way to do that preemptively. Additionally, adding variety to a station doesn't narrow the song pool that Pandora chooses from, nor does it increase your chances of hearing a particular song or artist. Rather, it opens up your station to a lot of variety, which can make for some undesirable matches.

I hope this helps!

 


Adam | Community Moderator
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New music alert! Picks of the Week (5.26.26)
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Rswanson25
Local Performer

I have been experiencing this same issue recently, two of my stations haven't heard a few of the "seed" songs for several months, maybe even over a year.. I have been a Pandora Premium subscriber for over 10 years, between this and the repetition it's starting to feel a lot like Spotify, which I hated and was the reason I've always stuck with Pandora.

 

Is there really nothing that can be done? Do I have to create a new station and start all over? Is there any way to review the station activity and confirm the last time a song played?

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AdamPandora
Community Manager
Community Manager

@Rswanson25 Thanks for sharing your experience, and I completely understand why this would be frustrating—especially as a longtime Pandora Premium subscriber. If you've seeded a station with songs you love and haven't heard some of them in months (or longer), it's understandable to wonder whether something is wrong or if there's a way to influence what plays.

While station seeds help shape the overall sound and variety of a station, they don't guarantee that specific songs will play within a certain timeframe. At this time, there also isn't a way to review station history or confirm the last time a particular track played on a station.

The good news is that, as a Pandora Premium subscriber, you do have a few additional options if there are specific songs you'd like to hear more regularly:

  • You can search for and play any song on demand whenever you'd like to hear it.
  • You can create custom playlists with the exact songs and artists you want included.
  • If you'd rather not build playlists yourself, you can also take advantage of AutoPlay. Simply play a song you want to hear, and when it finishes, Pandora can automatically continue with an AutoPlay station based on your recent listening activity and similar music. AutoPlay can be managed in Settings > Advanced, or with the AutoPlay toggle found at the bottom of tracks, albums, and playlists.

Please note that AutoPlay stations are personalized based on your recent listening habits, so they may be a little different each time.

I know that may not be the answer you were hoping for, but I appreciate you taking the time to let us know how this has impacted your listening experience. Feedback like yours helps us understand where listeners are running into frustrations, particularly around station variety and hearing the music that's most meaningful to them.


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Rswanson25
Local Performer

I am not discussing auto play stations, as I do not use them, only stations created directly from artists or songs, and I always have. My primary use of Pandora is for these stations while traveling (driving), meaning this is not helpful for my primary use as that would require me to operate a phone while driving.

I was curious if there's a wider issue going on so I created a brand new station based off of only the song in question, and immediately it started just only playing the same songs that are played repetively on my other station (the one that hasn't played the seed song in 12 months). It's almost like it's pulling that stations info for this new station.. why? 

Does any Pandora engineer have the ability to see the date a song was last played by a station?

--

Why is this marked as "Solved"? This issue has been prevalent for a while and is getting more and more repetitive.. I just tested creating a brand new station with only one song as the seed, almost immediately it was repeating the same songs from my similar station created off of similar artists/songs.. I have been using the 'Tired of this track' feature nonstop, yet songs keep coming back after only a few hours of listening, constantly only playing the songs that were thumbs'd up from the other station. How long does a song get put on hold when you use this feature? Why is my brand new station seemingly carrying over preference data from another station?

Moderator Edit: Merged comments

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AdamPandora
Community Manager
Community Manager

@Rswanson25 Thanks for following up and clarifying. I completely understand why this would be frustrating, especially as a longtime listener who primarily uses Pandora stations while driving.

To clarify, I understand that you're referring specifically to stations created directly from artists or songs, not AutoPlay stations.

Regarding the brand new station you created, a new station may still have overlap with other stations in your collection if the song or artist it was created from is musically similar to the songs or artists used on those other stations. That can sometimes result in similar tracks appearing across stations, even when the station itself is new.

For “I’m Tired of This Track,” that feature applies to the specific station where it was selected. Using it on one station won’t prevent that same track from playing on a different station.

I know you specifically asked how long a track remains on the shelf after using this feature. Pandora is continually evaluating and refining the listening experience, including features like this, so there isn't a specific duration that we can provide. If you selected "I'm tired of this track/song," don't worry, it will come back eventually.

Unfortunately, there is not currently a way to undo this action. I've noted your request for the option to take these songs off the shelf and put them back into rotation.

As for confirming the last time a specific song played on a station, there isn't currently a listener-facing feature that shows station activity or the last play date for a particular track.

Since you're a Pandora Premium subscriber, you do have a couple of additional listening options available if you'd like to experiment with something different while we're documenting your feedback around stations. Creating custom playlists gives you complete control over what is included in your listening sessions and can help avoid some of the repetition you've described.

You may also find it worthwhile to give AutoPlay a try, even if it isn't something you've typically used. For example, you can start with a specific song you want to hear, and when that song ends, Pandora can continue playing similar music automatically. This doesn't require interacting with your phone while you're listening and may provide a different experience than the artist- or song-based stations you're currently using.

I realize this may not fully resolve the concern you're raising about repetition and station variety, but I do appreciate you sharing these details. I've made sure your feedback is documented, especially around seed songs not playing for extended periods of time, repeated tracks across similar stations, and interest in more visibility into station activity.


Adam | Community Moderator
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