In this post, I’ll walk you through some troubleshooting tips to try if you’re having problems playing Apple Music via Alexa.
If that sounds like what you’re looking for, then let’s head right into it!
So here’s what to do if your Alexa system won’t play Apple Music:
1. Restart Your Echo Device
First off, you want to restart your Echo device to ensure any recent changes made in the Alexa app apply to your Echo device. Perhaps that could cause the issue you’re experiencing.
To restart your Echo device, unplug it from the power source and wait for about 10 to 20 seconds and then plug it back in.
Next, force-quit the Alexa app on your phone and open it again. Try playing Apple Music again to see if it works.
If you’re still having the same issues, continue to the next step.
2. Turn Off Explicit Filtering
If you’re still having issues playing Apple Music with Alexa, try turning off the explicit filtering feature in the Alexa app to see if that solves the problem.
For some reason, some music services do not support explicit filtering and won’t work if the feature is enabled.
Follow the steps below to turn off explicit filtering in the Alexa app:
- Open the Alexa app on your phone and tap the Menu icon (it looks like three horizontal lines) in the top left-hand corner. Next, select Settings.
- Select Music & Podcast and then select Explicit Language Filter.
- Switch the feature off.
If this doesn’t resolve the issue, proceed to the next step.
3. Check and Update Alexa and Apple Music App
Issues like this could happen if you’re not running the current version of the Alexa app and Apple Music app. So the next troubleshooting step you want to try is to check and update both apps on your mobile device.
If you’re using an iOS device, ensure you update to the latest iOS version and check App Store for any updates to the Alexa app. And if you’re using an Android device, check the Google Play Store to see if there are updates for the Amazon Alexa app and Apple Music app.
Next, launch the Alexa app on your phone and check that Apple Music is set as your default music service. See how to set Apple Music as your default music service in the Alexa app:
- Open the Alexa app on your mobile device and tap the three-bar icon (it looks like horizontal lines) in the top left-hand corner.
- Tap Settings and select Music & Podcasts.
- Tap Choose default music services. Next, select Apple Music and then tap Done.
Now try to connect/play Apple music again to see if it works.
Still not working? Continue to the next step.
4. Unlink and Relink Apple Music
So here’s another troubleshooting tip to try if the issue persists. Unlink Apple Music in the Alexa app and link it back. Follow the steps below to unlink Apple Music in the Alexa app:
- Open the Alexa app on your mobile device and tap the three-bar icon (the three lines look like horizontal lines) in the upper left-hand corner.
- Tap Settings and select Music & Podcasts.
- Tap Apple Music from the drop-down and then tap Disable Skills.
Now you’ve unlinked Apple Music from Alexa. And the next thing you want to do is relink Apple Music to Alexa. Here’s how to do that:
- Open the Alexa app on your phone and tap the menu icon in the upper left-hand corner.
- Tap Settings and then tap Music & Podcasts.
- Tap Apple Music in the list and then tap Link account to Alexa.
- Now log in to your Apple Music account with your existing credentials.
Next, try to play music from your playlist to see if it works.
Still didn’t work? Try the next troubleshooting step.
5. Restore Default Settings on Your Echo Device
So this is the last step to resolving the issue with your Alexa system and Apple Music. If the problem persists after trying the above troubleshooting tips, you want to restore default settings on your Echo device (Echo Dot, Echo Plus, Echo Show, etc.) to see if that will fix the issue.
Of course, performing a factory reset on a malfunctioning device usually helps fix some unseen bugs causing the issue.
That said, here’s how to reset your Amazon Echo device in the Alexa app:
- Open the Alexa app on your mobile device and tap the menu icon in the upper left-hand corner.
- Tap Devices in the list and then tap Echo & Alexa. Next, select your Echo device—Echo Dot, Echo Show, Echo Plus, etc.
- Now scroll down and tap Factory Reset. Follow any other instructions on the screen to complete the reset.
Note: This reset method works on all Amazon Echo models. However, you can still reset your Echo device by pressing some buttons on the device.
For example, if you use Echo 3rd gen, you can reset it by pressing and holding down the Volume and Microphone button at the same time. Keep on holding until you see a blinking orange light on your device. This shows your Echo device is reset.
If you’ve successfully reset your Echo device, you want to try connecting/playing Apple Music via the Alexa app again to see if it works.
Note: Restoring default settings on your Echo device will erase all previous custom settings. So be sure you reprogram all settings after the reset—for continuous reliable operation.
You may also like to see how to troubleshoot Alexa and Spotify connection issues and Alexa voice response issues.
Final Thoughts
For the most part, you can resolve this issue by restarting your Echo device, turning off explicit filtering, and unlinking and relinking Apple Music. Also, updating the Alexa app and Apple Music app (if there are new updates) can do the magic.
But if the issue continues, you want to try all other troubleshooting steps—such as checking your network and factory resetting your Echo device.
This should resolve the issue you’re having with Alexa and Apple Music. But if the problem persists, contact Amazon or Apple Music for help.
While Amazon and Apple are competitors in the realm of television streaming services, they collaborate to let you listen to music across brand lines. If you want to play music from the Apple Music subscription app or songs stored on your Apple device, there are ways to do both. We’ll show you the steps you need to take to do so. Even if you don’t have a paid subscription for Apple Music, you could still have a music library from downloaded or uploaded files that you have saved to a music app like iTunes or Apple Music. In this case, Alexa is the perfect app to help you access and listen to your music. Amazon Echo and Echo Dot designed their smart speakers to pair with smartphones via Bluetooth, which Alexa has no problem processing. Step 1: Bring your Apple device close to your Echo. When it’s in proximity, give the command, “Alexa, connect to my iPhone,” or “Alexa, connect to my iPad.” If you have quite a few mobile devices, you can use the specific name of your Apple device instead, but Alexa is generally smart enough to connect with the right device as long as it’s close by. Step 2: Alexa will play a chime and usually say something like, “iPhone connected to Echo,” although she’ll provide the specific names you’ve given devices so you know it worked.Play Apple Music on an Echo using Bluetooth
If Alexa says she can’t find your iPhone or other devices, make sure your Bluetooth is on and able to connect. You may have to disconnect accessories like AirPods to get the connection working right.
Step 3: Head to your iTunes or Apple Music app and start your preferred playlist. Your songs should automatically begin to play on your Echo device. Alexa will usually boost the volume a bit before playing, but you can also adjust it yourself.
Shifting both the Echo volume and your Apple device volume can work, but it’s usually easier to control volume at the source.
Step 4: When you are finished playing music, say, “Alexa, disconnect from iPhone,” or whatever Apple device you may be using. Your Echo will again give a chime to let you know the process has completed.
Play Apple Music on an Echo with a skill
This is a great option if you are a subscriber to Apple Music and you listen to music frequently, or if constantly connecting and disconnecting by Bluetooth isn’t a great option for you. Alexa has a skill just for these occasions, but you need to set it up.
Step 1: Enable the Apple Music skill for Alexa. You can find it by going to the Amazon skill page. Or, alternatively, you can go to the Skills section in your Alexa app and search for it specifically. Do this by going to Alexa Preferences (the lines in the upper-left corner), choosing Settings, and selecting Music & Podcasts. Here, you will see an option that says Link New Services. Choose it, and then select the Apple Music icon. Now select Enable to Use, and sign into your Apple account if necessary (Apple’s own instructions aren’t quite up to date, so make sure to follow ours here instead).
Step 2: Make sure everything is updated. You may notice the Apple Music skill isn’t very highly rated. This is partly because a lot of people don’t know the difference between Apple Music and iTunes, but problems also occur because people don’t know the Alexa app may need a manual update.
When you’ve downloaded the app, you’ll have to sign in to your Amazon account to access Alexa’s options. You’ll typically receive a notification if there’s a new version of the app available, so be sure to keep an eye out for it. When you see an Alexa update, make sure you run it so you’ll get the optimal usage from your device. Devices like an Echo will generally update automatically as long as you have them connected to the internet, so switch on your Echo and make sure it’s connected. Finally, make sure your Apple Music account is current and working correctly.
Step 3: You can now give Alexa specific music commands, like, “Alexa, play Today’s Hits on Apple Music,” or you can ask Alexa to play specific artists and albums. Alternatively, you can choose to expand your list of commands to match your mood, with options like “Sad music” or “Happy music.” No matter what command you say, always add “on Apple Music” at the end, so Alexa knows what platform to use when playing the music.
Step 4: If you want to eliminate the need to say “on Apple Music” for each playlist command, you can set Apple Music as your default player. This way, Alexa knows how to play any music file you request. Head back to Settings in the Alexa app, go to Music & Podcasts, then select Default Services at the top. It’s probably set to Amazon Music by default, so select the Change button, and select Apple Music as your new default. Apple Music will remain connected to Alexa until you manually disable the skill.
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