How to Build a Self-Hosted Music Platform with Navidrome, Lidarr, and Docker

Spotify continues to dominate global music streaming, but many technically savvy users are turning to self-hosted music stacks as a more ethical and flexible alternative. The traditional streaming model is criticized for its low artist royalties, lack of privacy, and issues with content moderation. By leveraging open-source tools like Navidrome, Lidarr, and Docker, hobbyists and sysadmins can create a personal music platform that offers better control over audio quality, ownership, and privacy. The setup consists of several key components: Navidrome as the music server, Lidarr for library management, sabnzbd for automated downloads, and other tools like lrcget and Last.fm for enhanced functionality. The self-hosted stack eliminates the need for subscriptions, provides lossless audio formats, and ensures full ownership of the music library. Additionally, automation tools simplify the management of large collections. While the setup isn’t for everyone, particularly casual listeners, it offers a more customizable and independent approach to enjoying music while supporting artists directly through platforms like Bandcamp. The article also highlights security considerations and how to deploy the stack using Docker for easy management and scalability.