Also called: Music Programmer, Editorial Curator
Chooses songs for the big playlists on streaming services.
A playlist curator listens to hundreds of new releases each week and updates a major playlist that can launch an artist's career. They study listener data to see what works.
Approximate.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Bachelor's degree (4-year), about 4 years after high school. A bachelor's degree helps, but deep music knowledge matters most, usually built through music writing, college radio or label work.
Ways in: 4-year college. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Music Business.
Growing slowly. Algorithms replacing some.
High risk for 10 years. Algorithms and AI now build most streaming playlists, so very few human curator jobs remain.
Classes: Music, Media studies, Marketing, AP Statistics.
Official data: O*NET occupation 27-2041.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.