Reading list · 10 books
Daniel Ek's reading list
Co-founder and CEO of Spotify. A voracious reader (reportedly 60–70 books a year) whose tastes run from socio-anthropological history to music-industry chronicles and business strategy.
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01
7 Powers: The Foundations of Business Strategy
Hamilton Helmer
Endorsed it directly: "At Spotify the 7 Powers are widely used as we discuss new initiatives"; calls Helmer "the best kind of big thinker."
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02
Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind
Yuval Noah Harari
On his One Grand list; calls it "both sobering and conservatively optimistic," more relevant than ever for learning from our socio-anthropological history.
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03
Matthew Syed
Says he has "literally incorporated this approach to problem solving into my everyday life," encouraging those around him not to fear failure.
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04
Paulo Coelho
A personal favorite; he recounts an "inspiring evening with Paolo at his Rio home" around Spotify's Brazil launch, drawn to Coelho's free-to-read instincts.
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05
Jared Diamond
Calls it "a brilliant Pulitzer Prize-winning book about how the modern world was formed," prizing its biologist's-eye view of why societies diverged.
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06
Charlie Munger
"The ultimate collection" of Munger's speeches, which Ek says he had enjoyed online for years — a core source of his mental-models thinking.
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07
Hit Men: Power Brokers and Fast Money Inside the Music Business
Fredric Dannen
Calls it "still the essential" portrait of the music industry's hustle era — directly relevant to Spotify's mission.
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08
Bass Culture: When Reggae Was King
Lloyd Bradley
"Such a great history of reggae music and the influences it has on other genres," praising artists who kept their integrity against the odds.
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09
Alex Ferguson & Michael Moritz
On his One Grand list; he's fascinated by how Ferguson "grew Manchester United into one of the best known brands today."
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10
Steve Biddulph
A personal pick he found "super helpful... in setting out a clear map of girls' developmental stages."
More on Daniel Ek's picks
Ek curated an official "top ten" list for One Grand Books and discussed his reading habits at length with Tim Ferriss. His picks blend big-history and biography with operating texts; most notably he wrote a public endorsement for Hamilton Helmer's 7 Powers, noting the framework is "widely used" inside Spotify. His reggae- and music-history selections reflect Spotify's roots.
