For tracks in my library, I actively rate them up and down, per listen. It crosses my mind often to check when I’m into the groove. I don’t want to lose a track in the ocean.

The Scale

0 stars = Unrated. No more, no less
1 Star = I hate this song
2 Stars = This song is annoying
3 Stars = Meh
4 Stars = I like this song and wouldn’t mind hearing it again
5 Stars = I love this song
5 Stars + Heart = Please play this song on repeat until the end of time

I won’t lie, generally music I purchase is rated 3 or higher, though I own compilations, soundtracks and a few albums that contain songs I do not want to hear.

I make an initial rating, and on subsequent listens, if I feel it should be higher or lower, I will only adjust a single star at a time, either way.

This makes my personal soundtrack/personal radio station very easy to listen to when I put high-rated tracks on random play.

There are exceptions. There are some tracks from albums I adore that don’t make sense out of context. I’ll typically down-rate those to a three.

This can be painful, it requires attention, but the outcome is the thing us tapeheads always wanted. Hours and hours of music I want to hear, the endless personal mix tape.

Using a heart for a track makes sense on the context of adding a streaming track to a library, but lacks the nuance that the star-rating allows. I will continue to advertise and lobby for this particular feature in iTunes/Apple Music.