These days many of us let Apple Music, Spotify and other streaming services build our playlists for us. But lots of people also maintain music libraries of their own, so what can we do with all those tracks and albums?
Spotify for iOS gets new Shuffle Play button and other UI tweaks
Spotify is rolling out some big UI changes as part of its latest update for its iOS app.
The new UI tweaks bring a more streamlined experience to Apple Music’s biggest rival, including a universal ‘Shuffle Play’ button that combines the app’s two most-pressed icons into one button.
Apple continues its rebranding of Apple Music playlists
Apple is continuing its low-key rebranding of Apple Music playlists. Its latest move is to change the name of its name of its “The A-List: Alternative” alternative music playlist.
This comes a couple weeks after Apple switched the name of the “A-List: Hip-Hop” playlist to “Rap Life.”
Apple Music’s summer playlists show what top celebs are listening to
Apple’s got no shortage of celebrity friends — and a few of them just shared their summer playlists to Apple Music.
Apple’s “Summertime Sounds” curated playlist collection contains the tracks hand-picked (well, presumably) by names including Chris Hemsworth, Lizzo, Shawn Mendes, J Balvin, and more. Want to know what Thor is bumping as he heads on the latest Avengers press tour? This might be your best hope of answering that question.
Spotify’s Apple Watch app arrives with minimal features
The world’s largest paid music streaming service is finally landing on Apple Watch.
Spotify finally revealed its first app for the Apple Watch today that will give wearers the ability to play, pause and skip songs from their wrist. The first version is a bit limited in features, but Spotify is teasing some cool new options that will be coming down the pipeline real soon.
Discover new music you’ll love with Spotify [50 Essential iOS Apps #39]
Streaming music has revolutionized the way we listen to music on the go. Starting with streaming radio, and quickly evolving to carrying millions of songs in your pocket (thanks to cellular data), streaming services have enabled incredible access and discovery of great music.
With Spotify, you can experience your favorites and discover great new music better than ever, thanks to algorithmic intelligence and some genius features.
Apple Music partners with Fender for rocking playlists
Electric guitar fans can listen to Apple Music playlists from Fender, maker of some of the world’s most iconic axes.
Five new playlists emerged from the new Fender/Apple Music partnership. While rock ‘n’ roll might be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Fender, the company is also highlighting how its instruments have been used in R&B, hip-hop, jazz and other genres.
How to save Apple Music’s auto-updating playlists forever
One of the neatest features in Apple Music is the For You tab. Specifically, the New Music Mix and My Favorites Mix playlists, which update every week with a whole new set of songs. But what if you dig one of these playlists so much that you want to save it? You can’t. Or at least you can’t unless you use an app like Music Launcher, which has a great kinda-hidden feature that saves Apple’s transient playlists in a permanent form.
Pro Tip: Access your Apple Music playlists anywhere
I made an Apple Music playlist of Paste’s top 50 albums of 2015 via iTunes on my Mac. I was able to share it out on Facebook and to my friends via Messages, but I wasn’t able to see the playlist on my iPhone.
I made sure that I was logged in to my iTunes account on both my Mac and my iPhone, I signed in and out of iCloud, and I even force-quit Apple Music on my iPhone to try and fix the issue. None of these options worked.
After a bit of searching on the internet, I figured out what the problem was.
Here’s what you can do if you’re having the same issue.
Treat your ears to awesome Apple Music playlists
Apple Music has some amazing playlists created just for you, with humans behind the scenes making perfect mixes of music that fits your specific style and music tastes.
You can make your own playlists, too, and share them out to friends and family, but what if you want to see other people’s playlists? There’s just no way to pop on to Apple Music and see what playlists strangers are making.
Now, however, a new website called Playlist Hunt brings you the next best thing: a site dedicated to sharing and playing playlists by its members.
How to follow non-artist profiles in Apple Music Connect
Apple Music Connect is like another version of Apple’s failed Ping service. It’s being promoted as a way to keep in touch with your favorite artists, but man is it impersonal.
My Connect page is full of bland PR-style stuff and links to buy music from artists I’m following. There’s just not enough quality posts in there to justify checking it each day.
Until now. Jonathan Poritsky has a fantastic idea over at his music blog: why not follow the folks on Apple Music who actually share and curate music? Follow Julie Adenuga, Zane Lowe, or any of the genre or curator profiles hidden in Apple Music.
These are the folks that are sharing amazing music. Here’s how to follow them.
Create and share Apple Music playlists with your buddies
One of the cool things you can do with a streaming service like Apple Music, Spotify, or Rdio, is making and sharing playlists. It’s a way to seriously curate your own musical taste, and then show off by sending along to others.
It’s not super tricky, but the downside of such a new user interface like the one in the just released Apple Music is that things may not be where you think they should be.
With that in mind, let’s jump right in and make a new playlist. Then let’s learn how to share it with our Apple Music buddies.
Check Or Uncheck More Than One Track At A Time In iTunes [OS X Tips]
When you’re using iTunes in list view to see all your songs listed in order, you can sort that list by the columns across the top.
If you notice, there’s a little checkbox to the left of each track. These checkboxes tell iTunes when to use the tracks or not, like when you’re ripping CDs, using the Match Only Checked Items Smart Playlist option, and when syncing to your iPhone. If you uncheck a song, it won’t be burned to a CD, added to a specific Playlist, or synced to your iPhone. To make that happen, simply click on the checkbox to the left of any track and it will be unchecked.
But what if you want to uncheck more than one track at once?
Pocket Casts 4 To Bring iOS 7 Style UI, iPad Support, Cross-Platform Syncing & More
Pocket Casts is arguably the finest podcast client on Android, and it’s pretty terrific on iOS, too. But it’s about to get even better. With the upcoming Pocket Casts 4 update, we’ll see a brand new user interface based on iOS 7’s new design, iPad support, cross-platform syncing for subscriptions, playlists, and play states, and lots more.
Spotify Thinks iTunes Radio Is Too Robotic, Introduces Expert Playlists
In about a month, every iPhone and iPad on Earth will suddenly gain the ability to stream an unlimited number of tracks for free, thanks to iTunes Radio.
For people who want more granular control over their music even when it’s streaming, iTunes Radio isn’t likely to tear them away from the likes of Spotify and Rdio, but if all you want to do is hear new jams without thinking about it, iTunes Radio is a killer feature that could potentially get you to cancel your service.
So Spotify, at least, is acting defensively. They’re rolling out a new feature called Expert Playlists. And it’s potentially way better than iTunes Radio.
Easily Create A Podcast Station Playlist With Apple’s Podcasts App [iOS Tips]
It’s fine to listen to one podcast at a time, one episode at a time. Of course it is. You’re more than welcome to just download and tap your way through your podcasts on a one by one basis. I’m not judging.
Sometimes, though, it’s great to queue up a whole bunch of sweet podcasting content, especially when the content is a bit shorter, or you’re on a super long drive and don’t want to have to fiddle with your iPhone or iPad when on the go. That’s where playlists come in.
Here’s how to easily set one up in Apple’s Podcast App, which calls playlists “stations.”
Mastering iTunes: Use A Password To Protect Shared Music and Movies [OS X Tips]
If you share your songs and movies via iTunes on your home network, you might not want just any old people to access your shared media or playlists, even if you let them onto your Wi-Fi. While iTunes lets you share all the types of media it can serve up, maybe your kids or office mates don’t need to listen to those hardcore rap tunes.
It’s fairly easy to protect your shared items with a password, using the iTunes Preferences. Here’s how to do just that.
Mastering iTunes: Build A Better Smart Playlist [OS X Tips]
Smart Playlists are fantastic, and they really do work to help you listen to the kind of music you’re in the mood for, using a variety of user-controlled criteria. You can create a Smart Playlist for any given Artist in your iTunes library fairly easily.
But what if you want a playlist that includes more than one Artist? Well, that’s pretty simple, too.
Get That Hot New Playlist From Your iPhone To Your Mac [iOS TIps]
Let’s face it, sometimes inspiration strikes when you’re mobile. You’re on the train, the bus, the airplane and the playlist magic just, well, happens. All the stars line up and you create, yes, the best. Playlist. Evar.
Then you get home and realize, with some chagrin, that you have no idea how to get them off of the iPhone or iPad you made it on. Instead of falling to your knees, weeping, and crying out, “noooooo!” you can actually just continue to read this tip.
Spotify For iPad: Pay Premium, And It’s Perfect [Review]
It’s been a long time coming, but Spotify has finally arrived fully optimized for iPad. But if you’re a newcomer to Spotify on iOS, be warned: you need a Premium account to really get the most out of this app.
Groove 2: The Best Music Player For iOS Just Got Even Better
Groove 2 is the music player that your iOS device’s built-in Music app should have been. It really is an incredible app, and if you haven’t already downloaded it, I urge you to go and do it now. It’s packed full of incredible features that music lovers shouldn’t be without, and with its latest update, it just gets better.
Make Your Own Playlists Right On the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch [iOS Tips]
Ever spend hours chained to your desktop computer, painstakingly creating the perfect playlist for your workout, a party you’re planning, or that special someone? If so, you know how creative and rewarding the process can be. What if you could do that very same thing while on the go? Without dragging your entire computer along with you? Well, it turns out that you can, and we’re here to help!