BEYOND THE SOUND BARRIER

DECADE AGO, Daniel Ek CONVINCED LABELS AND ARTISTS TO STREAM THEIR SONGS ON SPOTIFY, REVIVING THE FLATLINING MUSIC INDUSTRY. NOW, AFTER AMASSING A $4.4 BILLION FORTUNE, HE’S MOVING PAST POP STARS, OPENING HIS SUPERSTREAMER TO STORYTELLING, LIVE TALK AND A NEW BREED OF AUDIO CREATORS IN A BID TO OWN THE WORLD’S DIGITAL EARDRUMS.

- STEVEN BERTONI

It's lunchtime in late October, and 71 stories above Wall Street at 4 World Trade Center, Daniel Ek is strolling along the polished concrete floors of Spotify’s headquarters. He passes sleek sculptures of headphones crafted in neon-hued metal, couch-lined luxury lounges for VIP advertising clients and soundproof podcast studios custom-built for the medium’s biggest stars, then enters a large cafeteria rigged with stage lighting for pop-up concerts.

The room is being prepped for dinner with Spotify’s board, which will include a surprise performance by Brothers Osborne—a hip country-rock duo whose hit song “Stay a Little Longer” has been streamed 180 million times on Ek’s music service. Spotify just reported third-quarter earnings, and Ek, a 38-year-old self-described introverted engineer who seldom gives interviews, is having a rare day in the spotlight.

The soft-spoken Swede, who has a shaved head and a beard, has been on the move since 5 a.m., hosting calls with financial analysts, sitting for a parade of interviews and leading a 200-employee town hall. “It was crazy, because it was the first in-person meeting we’ve done here in two years,” says Ek, decked out in black jeans, a black suede coat and patent-leather sneakers. “It had a great, warm vibe. Everyone was hugging and applauding.”