🎁 Why do we love Spotify Wrapped?

PLUS: Who invented the 😂 emoji? December 6, 2021 [The Hustle]( Want a shot at winning a MacBook Pro, an iPhone 13, or $5k+ in other tech? This is the last week to enter our tech giveaway. Scroll to the bottom for details. Today’s rundown: - Spotify Wrapped: Inside the streaming giant’s secret growth hack. - Emojis: How 😂 became the most-used emoji. - By the numbers: Syrup shortages, day care margins, and dentist debt. - Around the web: A map of light pollution, a tool to create living pictures like Harry Potter, and more internet finds. Let’s do it. The big idea [Spotify logo dancing]( Spotify Wrapped is the streaming giant’s secret growth hack You may look forward to Spotify Wrapped because it's an annual reminder that you’re in the top 1% of Drake listeners. It turns out Spotify looks forward to its annual recap for another reason: app downloads. Per [Protocol](, the popularity of Spotify Wrapped led to a 21% bump in app downloads in the 1st week of December 2020, and has helped establish Q4 as the company’s biggest quarter, according to CEO Daniel Ek. What makes it so effective? For the unfamiliar, Spotify Wrapped is a year-in-review slideshow that shows users their most-streamed songs, artists, and podcasts of the year. It includes stats like number of listens for top tracks and hours listened for top artists. The beauty of Spotify Wrapped is its [shareability](: - The slideshow is delivered in a format that looks like an Instagram story with popping visualizations to accompany the music - Each slide contains a share button at the bottom, making it simple for users to share their data on social platforms The result? Over 90m+ people engaged with Spotify Wrapped in 2020. Wrapped is only getting better As Spotify collects more data on users, it can offer more interesting insights. For instance, this year’s Wrapped included a “Soundtrack to your life” feature and an “Audio Aura, ” which generates a customized color palette based on listeners’ favorite musical moods. So who [won]( 2021? - Top song: “drivers license” by Olivia Rodrigo - Top artist: Bad Bunny (2nd year in a row) - Top podcast: The Joe Rogan Experience But don’t panic, Drake fans -- he’s still in the top. [Share on Facebook]( [Share on Twitter]( [Send as email to a friend](mailto:?subject=The%20Hustle%20wrote%20something%20I%20think%20you%27ll%20like...%0A&body=Spotify+Wrapped+is+the+streaming+giant%E2%80%99s+secret+growth+hack%0Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fthehustle.co%2F12062021-Spotify-Wrapped%3Futm_campaign%3DMonday%2BEmail%26utm_content%3D12062021-Spotify-Wrapped%26utm_medium%3Demail%26utm_source%3Ddaily%0A%0AYou%20can%20subscribe%20with%20my%20link%20here%20to%20get%20the%20latest%20in%20tech%20and%20business%20daily:%0A [View on our website]( SNIPPETS Return of the toy king: Toys R Us is back -- the company, which filed for bankruptcy in 2017, [announced]( it’s opening a 2-story location in the American Dream mall in mid-December that will include a 2-story slide and ice cream parlor. Excel has company: Airtable, a cloud spreadsheet platform, [announced]( it is finalizing a $700m funding round at a $11.7B valuation. Grocery delivery unicorn: Jokr, an instant grocery delivery startup, raised $260m at a $1.2B valuation. (We covered Jokr previously [here](.) Textbook problems: Shopify was sued by 5 major publishers who say pirated versions of textbooks are being sold on the platform. The suit alleges damages of $500m+. Hold up: The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) sued chipmaker Nvidia for its attempted takeover of ARM, a chip designer. The regulator says the deal -- now worth [~$75B]( -- is anticompetitive. UPDATE: Windows made it easier to switch default browsers, going back on its update that pushed users to use its Edge product. (We covered the state of browsers previously [here](.) --------------------------------------------------------------- Hey — enjoy getting quick updates on what you care about? Take [20 seconds]( to personalize your Snippets. Pick your preferences👇 and we’ll send you more of what you love. Boom. [Personalize my Email →]( Most-used emoji [most used emojis]( The most used emojis in 2019 (Source: Unicode) Who invented the ‘face with tears of joy’ emoji? In the world of digital communication, one emoji reigns supreme: 😂. Per the [Unicode Consortium]( -- a non-profit that sets standards for emojis -- the “face with tears of joy” is the most-used emoji of 2021 (5%+ of all usage). The emoji also topped the only previous list (2019). The ❤️ emoji was 2nd in both years. Emojis were invented… … in the late 1990s in Japan by NTT DoCoMo, one of the country’s leading telecoms. Per [The Guardian](, NTT wanted to woo young consumers to its pager product and an employee -- Shigetaka Kurita -- suggested the use of simple images to accompany text. Kurita created a 1st batch of 176 emojis “inspired by manga, Chinese characters and street signs” that laid the groundwork for future emojis. The ‘face with tears of joy’… … first came out as part of an emoji set from a competing Japanese telecom, [SoftBank](. The Unicode Consortium officially blessed the emoji with its name in 2010. At the time, emojis were still very much a Japanese thing. Apple didn’t make emoji keyboards an international standard for iOS until 2011. Emojis exploded in the following years. By [2015](, 😂 was already the most popular emoji on Twitter and it’s been pure dominance since. Interesting: Among health-related emojis, “only 🥵 and 🥴 managed to enter the Top 100 in 2021. 😷 moved up from 186 to 156 while 🦠only just made it into the Top 500.” [Share on Facebook]( [Share on Twitter]( [Send as email to a friend](mailto:?subject=The%20Hustle%20wrote%20something%20I%20think%20you%27ll%20like...%0A&body=Who+invented+the+%E2%80%98face+with+tears+of+joy%E2%80%99+emoji%3F%0Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fthehustle.co%2F12062021-emojis%3Futm_campaign%3DMonday%2BEmail%26utm_content%3D12062021-emojis%26utm_medium%3Demail%26utm_source%3Ddaily%0A%0AYou%20can%20subscribe%20with%20my%20link%20here%20to%20get%20the%20latest%20in%20tech%20and%20business%20daily:%0A [View on our website]( Free Resource Excel marketing templates you can steal Hey, we’re not advocating anything. We’re not saying you should download these spreadsheets, make copies, and present them as your own at your next big meeting. That’s why they’re here, though. HubSpot team members use top models to keep business operations spick-and-span, and now they’re yours. Download [9 essential templates]( to streamline: - Marketing budgeting - Blog and social content calendars - On-page SEO - Google Ads planning - Service-level agreements (SLA) - And more Next week, you’ll present one of these excellent spreadsheets on Zoom. Jimmy will raise his hand and say, “That’s a very excellent spreadsheet.” We won’t say a word. [Spreadsheets for stealing/sharing →]( Digits [maple syrup]( Source: [Creative Touch Imaging Ltd./NurPhoto/Getty Images]( By the numbers: 50m pounds of syrup, child care’s 1% profit margins, and more 1) In what’s perhaps the most Canadian stat of the year, the Quebec Maple Syrup Producers group will release [50m pounds of syrup]( (½ of the supply) from its strategic reserve to address a 21% spike in demand on one end and low yields on the other. 2) In most states, child care costs more than in-state college tuition, and the individuals providing care -- 87% of whom completed some higher education -- earn ~$24k annually. The dicey business model means the average child-care center has just a [1% profit margin](, according to the US Department of the Treasury. 3) Some news about Huckleberry Finn(ance): As with many things at the moment, huckleberry demand is up and yields are down. The [$50m huckleberry market]( has seen per-pound prices double to $17 in the last 2 years. 4) Cavity to fill: Around 10% of dentists in America are educated at NYU, where they can expect to spend $572k+ on their education. The program’s 2015 and 2016 graduates had a median debt of ~$349k and [median income of $82k]( 2 years after graduating. 5) Shares of e-signature company DocuSign [dropped 42%]( Friday after the company lowered guidance for the 4th quarter. As pro-memer Dr. Patel [said]( so eloquently, “Docusign stock price [is] down… after analysts discover that the entire business can be replaced by pen and paper.” [Share on Facebook]( [Share on Twitter]( [Send as email to a friend](mailto:?subject=The%20Hustle%20wrote%20something%20I%20think%20you%27ll%20like...%0A&body=By+the+numbers%3A+50m+pounds+of+syrup%2C+child+care%E2%80%99s+1%25+profit+margins%2C+and+more%0Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fthehustle.co%2F12062021-digits%3Futm_campaign%3DMonday%2BEmail%26utm_content%3D12062021-digits%26utm_medium%3Demail%26utm_source%3Ddaily%0A%0AYou%20can%20subscribe%20with%20my%20link%20here%20to%20get%20the%20latest%20in%20tech%20and%20business%20daily:%0A [View on our website]( TRENDS What’s ahead for the future of work? This Wednesday, our expert explains The world of work is constantly evolving, and it doesn’t just impact whether you can Zoom without pants. ​In this interactive seminar, Steph Smith will bring you up to speed on the future of work. Whether you’re looking for an edge, seeking new ideas, or hoping to attract the best talent, you’ll learn about: - ​How to stay competitive in the new landscape - New benefits companies are using to attract talent - ​10+ gaps for untapped products and services... ​… and much more. ​Steph is a director of marketing at HubSpot, podcaster, and one of the original creators of Trends, our premium newsletter surfacing emerging business opportunities. ​As she says best, it was crazy to think the 40-hour workweek wouldn’t change. But it’s even crazier to think it won’t keep changing. [RSVP now to stay ahead →]( AROUND THE WEB 📜 On this day: In 1865, the US [ratified]( the 13th amendment, which abolished slavery. President Abraham Lincoln had already [issued]( the Emancipation Proclamation in September 1862. ⚡That’s interesting: This map shows [light pollution]( across the world. 🤩 Useful: [This tool]( from Plynth lets you bring your greeting cards to life -- like [Harry Potter](’s living pictures -- for free. Make and upload a video to get a QR code to include on your paper cards. Then, recipients can scan the code with their phones to turn still images into video! 🧑‍💻 How to: If you’re lucky, a recruiter might contact you. But how do you reach out to them? Harvard Business Review [explains](. 🐦 Wait, what: When people think of bird-watching, they typically imagine going to forests, parks, or jungles. But one author [makes a case]( for observing the urban pigeon. 🐘 Aww: Baby elephant Pyi Mai, who lives at the Elephant Nature Park in Thailand, recently celebrated her 1st birthday. Here’s an adorable [highlight reel](. Images of the day [early emojis] Some of the first emojis ever designed. Shigetaka Kurita created 176 emojis for [NTT DoCoMo]( in the late 1990s. Above are 20 of the 12x12 pixel images… Not an 🍆 in sight. Tech Giveaway [prizes]( Our Biggest Holiday Giveaway, Ever Want a shot at one of the prizes above?* Here’s what you need to do: Step 1: Copy your personal referral link below. Step 2: Share your link with everyone you know. Send emails, post it on social, give it to your mailman -- we don’t care, the more the merrier. Every friend that signs up through your link gives you one ticket in the raffle (1 referral = 1 ticket). Step 3: Cross your fingers and find out if you’re one of the 10 winners after December 10th! [Share To Win →]( Copy & paste your referral link to others: [ Prizes: Airpods Pro, Nintendo Switch OLED, Apple Watch Series 7, Fully Standing Desk, iPad Pro, Trends Lifetime Membership, iPhone 13, Macbook Air, Samsung 49-Inch Monitor, Macbook Pro *NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Legal residents of the 48 contiguous United States or D.C. 21 years and older. Ends 12/10/21, 12pm ET. To enter and for Official Rules, including odds, and prize descriptions, visit [thehustle.co/tech-sweepstakes-rules/](. Void where prohibited. How did you like today’s email? Refer friends. Help us grow. Get cool stuff 🤠Share The Hustle with your custom referral link: [ Your referral count: 0 Today's email was brought to you by [Trung Phan](, [Jacob Cohen](, [Juliet Bennett Rylah](, [Rob Litterst](. Editing by: Brad “😂😂😂😂” Wolverton. [PODCAST]( [JOBS]( [CONTACT US](mailto:news@thehustle.co) [Facebook]( [Youtube]( [Instagram]( [Trends]( 25 FIRST ST. 2ND FLOOR, CAMBRIDGE, MA 02141, UNITED STATES  +1 888 482 7768 Never want to hear from us again? Break our hearts and [unsubscribe](list=thehustle). [The Hustle](