The most followed Peloton instructors didn't build their communities primarily through coaching technique. They built them through a recognisable presence — and a significant part of that presence is musical. Riders who book specific instructors repeatedly aren't just booking a workout. They're booking the feeling that instructor's playlist creates.
The Peloton instructor music style differences are instructive not because you should copy them — but because they demonstrate something that applies at every level of the industry: music communicates values, not just tempo.
Four Instructors, Four Musical Identities
Alex Toussaint: Hip-Hop as Discipline
Toussaint's hip-hop selections aren't party playlist choices — they're aspirational ones. The artists he chooses communicate achievement, resilience, and the dignity of hard work. His playlist tells riders that showing up and pushing through is a statement of who they are. The music doesn't just accompany effort; it dignifies it.
What this communicates about his teaching: a belief that spinning is a practice with stakes. Not a workout to get through, but an expression of character.
Cody Rigsby: Pop as Anti-Pretension
Rigsby's Britney Spears and chart-pop selections are a deliberate rejection of the idea that serious fitness requires serious music. His playlist says: this can be fun. You don't have to earn your way to a good time. The approachability of his music choices is inseparable from his coaching philosophy — fitness that doesn't take itself too seriously is fitness more people can access.
What this communicates: spinning is for everyone, and you don't have to perform seriousness to belong in this room.
Robin Arzon: Empowerment Pop as Narrative
Arzon's selections tend toward anthemic pop and hip-hop with strong narrative content — tracks about overcoming, transformation, and identity. Her playlist positions each ride as a chapter in a personal story. The music doesn't just accompany the class; it argues for the class's significance. A Arzon ride feels meaningful because the music insists it is.
Emma Lovewell: Emotion-First Contrarian
Lovewell is willing to choose a quiet, textured track where another instructor would default to a hype build. Her musical selections communicate emotional honesty — sometimes effort is contemplative, not explosive. Her playlist tells riders that their inner experience of the ride matters as much as their output metrics.
What Does Your Playlist Actually Say?
Every instructor's playlist communicates something — whether they've chosen the message deliberately or not. An instructor who plays only safe EDM defaults is communicating something: "the music is infrastructure, not identity." An instructor who plays unpredictable, eclectic selections across genres is communicating something else: "music is how I express what I believe about effort and experience."
The diagnostic question: If a new rider heard your playlist without ever meeting you, what would they assume about you? About what kind of class they'd just attended? About the kind of effort they'd just done? If the answer is "nothing in particular" — your playlist is communicating a missed opportunity.
Building a deliberate musical identity doesn't require the most eclectic taste or the most extensive catalogue. It requires knowing what you believe about spinning — and choosing music that says that. For the practical approach to developing this identity, see How to Build a Signature Sound.
Build a Playlist That Sounds Like You
Tell Song2Run your genre identity and the feel you're going for. Find tracks that fit the brief and reflect your musical personality — not just the BPM chart.
Try Song2Run