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Last.fm Enricher

The Last.fm enricher provides community-driven metadata including tags, biographies, and artist information.

Features​

  • Community tags: Genre and mood tags from millions of users
  • Artist biographies: Detailed artist information
  • Similar artists: Related artist recommendations
  • Play statistics: Global play counts

Configuration​

Uses the same credentials as the Last.fm Provider:

SPOTTER_LASTFM_API_KEY=your_api_key
SPOTTER_LASTFM_SHARED_SECRET=your_shared_secret

Enriched Data​

Artists​

  • Biography (wiki summary)
  • Tags (genres, moods, eras)
  • Similar artists
  • Play count (global)
  • Listener count
  • Last.fm URL

Albums​

  • Wiki summary
  • Tags
  • Play count
  • Listener count
  • Last.fm URL

Tracks​

  • Tags
  • Play count
  • Listener count
  • Last.fm URL

Tag System​

Last.fm tags are community-driven and include:

  • Genres: rock, electronic, jazz, etc.
  • Moods: chill, energetic, melancholic
  • Eras: 80s, 90s, 2000s
  • Descriptors: female vocalists, instrumental, acoustic

Tags are weighted by usage, allowing Spotter to filter for the most relevant ones.

Rate Limiting​

Last.fm has generous rate limits:

  • No strict per-second limits
  • Recommended: 200ms between requests
  • Spotter handles throttling automatically

Troubleshooting​

"Invalid API key"​

  1. Verify your API key is correct
  2. Check it's active at last.fm/api/accounts
  3. Try regenerating the key

Missing Biographies​

Not all artists have biographies:

  • Lesser-known artists may lack content
  • Biographies are user-contributed
  • Consider contributing to Last.fm

Tag Quality​

Tags are community-generated:

  • Popular artists have better tags
  • Obscure artists may have fewer/no tags
  • AI enrichment can supplement missing tags