Initial Token Generation¶

Use of the playlist generator requires users to obtain their own client_id and client_secret token from the

Spotify Developer’s Dashboard. Once these tokens are obtained, follow the steps below to obtain your initial access_token and a refresh_token.

1. In the project root directory, create a keys.json file with the following contents (Note: The access_token and refresh_token are intentionally left blank for now, but should conform to valid JSON standards):

   {
       "client_id": "<Your Client ID>",
       "client_secret": "<Your Client Secret ID>",
       "access_token": "",
       "refresh_token": ""
   }
   

2. In the auth_page directory, run npm install to download the dependencies needed to run the auth page

3. In the project root directory, run node ./auth_page/app.js

4. Go to localhost:8888 in a web browser and click “Log in with Spotify”

5. Authorize the app for access by logging in with your Spotify user credentials

6. Copy the access_token and refresh_token and use those values for the corresponding keys in the keys.json file

Refreshing the Access Token¶

At this point, an access token has been generated, and the playlist generator is able to authenticate with Spotify.

However, the access token expires after 1 hour. The access token can be regenerated using your refresh token via the following steps.

1. Ensure your keys.json file exists with all required fields. client_id, client_secret, and refresh_token must be accurate. If they are not, rerun the steps for “Initial Token Generation”.

2. Run ./spotify_token_refresh/refresh.py. The access_token in keys.json will be updated in place and should now be able to authenticate with Spotify.

The GUI method can always be used to generate a new access token, but this method allows for it to be updated directly

from the command line.

Running the Playlist Generator¶

Once the access token has been updated in keys.json, the playlist generator can be executed with the following command:

./playlist_generator.py -f <Path to csv playlist> -n <Playlist name> -d <Playlist description (Optional)>

The script will print to stdout which songs were and were not added to the playlist.

Running the Flask App¶

In the project root directory, run

flask run

Navigate to localhost:5000 and log in when prompted. Enter your desired playlist name, description, and the playlist content. Tracks should be separated by a line break. The dash (-) delimiter is used by default to separate artists and song titles, but a comma or slash can also be used. Click submit, and the playlist should be created.