From bustling cities to majestic natural wonders, physical locations have inspired songwriters everywhere. With the help of geoTunes, a new Spotify app from KUSC Interactive, finding songs written about the world around us is now just a click away.

Within the app, users can navigate an interactive map of the United States and listen to handpicked music written about cities, states and landmarks from coast to coast.

“We’re excited to help people explore the relationship between music and their geolocation through this app,” said Brenda Barnes, president of USC Radio.

Not only does geoTunes display playlists of songs, it also tells the hidden stories behind the tunes.

From the small Midwestern town that moved Antonin Dvorak to write his String Quartet No. 12 (Spillville, Iowa) to the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ “City of Angels” (Los Angeles), geoTunes unveils the background of particularly intriguing tunes to connect them to their sometimes not-so-obvious geolocation.

Users can select themes, such as “bars” or “bodies of water,” from a drop-down menu to read more about songs with similar points of reference.

Though it was built by KUSC, geoTunes isn’t only about classical songs. The app was created for music lovers of all genres, from symphonies to soul music.

“We wanted to branch out of our usual catalog to reach out to a younger, omnivorous audience,” said Chris Mendez, director of KUSC Interactive.

This is the third free music app developed in recent months by KUSC Interactive. The other two are WorldVenues, a way to explore the world’s renowned concert halls and opera houses, and Soundsnips, a streaming app that helps listeners learn about classical music while they listen.

To download geoTunes, visit geotunes.fm or open.spotify.com/app/geotunes

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