The finding
MySpace made a profile feel like a room, with a song, a layout and a public friend ranking. It also played music at visitors without asking.
Instagram brought the profile song back in August 2024. A member picks a segment of up to 30 seconds. Unlike MySpace, it does not play when someone opens the profile; the visitor taps play. The research read that single choice as what separates nostalgia people like from nostalgia that feels like an intrusion.
There is a legal catch for small products. Spotify's widget terms say its Play Button may not be used for commercial purposes.
Why it mattered to the design
Profiles in the first release have modular cards, photos with the face optional, a preset avatar kit, a 15–30 second voice intro and a song. The song is a link-out with title and artist, never autoplay. Embeds wait until they are cleared for commercial use.
Expression is optional depth, not a duty. There is no infinite video or photo feed, because feeds compete with meetups.
How it was checked
AI research agents produced the first answer; it was then checked against primary sources. The TechCrunch report on Instagram's launch was opened and matched the date, the 30-second clip and the tap-to-play behavior. The Spotify widget terms were opened and matched the commercial-use restriction on the Play Button; they do allow embedding on pages that carry ads, so the limit is narrow, and the plan treats embeds as needing legal review first.
Sources
- Relive the Myspace days by adding a favorite song to your Instagram profile, TechCrunch, published 2024-08-22. Checked 2026-09-28.
- Spotify widget terms of use, Spotify for Developers. Checked 2026-09-28.