Make the short looping video that plays behind your track in the Spotify app. Upload your cover art or a vertical still, describe the motion, and download an MP4 for Spotify for Artists.
From Spotify's published guidelines, which can change. Size and length: a vertical 9:16 video, 3 to 8 seconds long and between 720 and 1080 px tall, uploaded as an MP4, or a 9:16 still as a JPG. Where it plays: full screen behind the track on the playback screen of the Spotify mobile app, in place of the cover art, on a loop. Which tracks: any track, including unreleased music, if you are a main artist on it or have Admin or Editor access in Spotify for Artists. What to leave out: talking, singing, or rapping on camera, rapid cuts or flashing, and the song title or artist name.
Canvas replaces the static cover with motion for listeners on mobile, which is where most streaming happens, and it shows on the Now Playing screen and in shares to Instagram Stories. Spotify has published its own figures on shares and saves for tracks with a Canvas; treat them as directional rather than a guarantee, but the cost of finding out for your track is one image and a few credits.
Describe motion that could continue forever: a slow push-in on the artwork with drifting dust and warm light, clouds moving behind the figure with hair lifting in a breeze, neon reflections shimmering on wet ground. Keep the subject where it is, name one or two moving elements, and avoid anything with a clear start and finish. Rain, smoke, light leaks, water, and camera drift are reliable; text reveals and fast cuts are not.
Canvas is uploaded in Spotify for Artists, not in Solmi. According to Spotify, you can add one if you are the first main artist on the track, or the main artist on both the track and the release, with Admin or Editor access. On the web, open Music, select the track, and click Add Canvas; in the Spotify for Artists app, tap Music, select the track, and tap Canvas. Spotify's guidelines also ask for no talking, singing, or rapping on camera, no rapid cuts or intense flashing, and no title or artist name in the frame, since the Now Playing screen already shows them.
A Canvas is a short looping video, 3 to 8 seconds long in 9:16, that plays full-screen behind a track in the Spotify mobile app instead of the static cover. Artists add one per track through Spotify for Artists.
Spotify's published guidance is a 9:16 vertical video between 720 and 1080 px tall and 3 to 8 seconds long, uploaded as MP4, or a 9:16 still image as JPG. This preset is set to 8 seconds; the clip keeps your image's shape on Standard, and Best starts on 9:16. Requirements can change, so confirm the current spec in Spotify for Artists before you upload.
Upload a vertical 9:16 version of the cover, keep the pre-filled prompt or describe the motion you want, choose a tier, and generate. Download the MP4, open the track in Spotify for Artists, and add it under Canvas.
On Standard, no: the clip keeps the cover's square shape, and Spotify asks for 9:16. On Best, Aspect ratio starts on 9:16 and the cover is cropped at the sides to fill it, keeping the middle. For full control, crop a vertical version of the art first in any image editor and animate that; on Best you can also pick Match image to keep the cover whole, or 16:9 if the loop is for YouTube instead.
Spotify loops whatever you upload, so the clip does not have to be a perfect loop, but slow, continuous motion hides the restart best. Avoid prompts with a clear beginning and end, such as a door opening or text appearing.