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On an iPhone, activate Siri and ask it to play a song, artist, album, genre, decade, or mood. With an Apple Music subscription, you can also use Siri to identify what is playing, save music to your library or a playlist, give feedback, and control playback. The exact features available can vary by language and region.

Play music with Siri

Call up Siri using the method enabled on your device, then speak a request. Apple’s iPhone Siri guide includes examples like these:

  • Play a specific song: “Play ‘Choosin’ Texas’ by Ella Langley.”
  • Choose a decade: “Play some ‘80s music.”
  • Choose a mood: “Play some mellow music.”

For best results with a specific track, include both its title and artist. You can also try asking for an album, artist, genre, or music suited to an activity.

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Ask about a song or shape what plays next

Find out what you’re hearing

While music is playing, ask “What’s playing?”, “Who sings this song?”, or “What album is this on?” Apple lists these as Siri requests for music playback.

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Give Siri music preferences

Try “Favorite this song,” “I don’t like this song,” or “Play more music like this” to tell Siri what you think of the current track or ask for similar music.

Add songs and albums to your library or playlists

When a track or album is playing, try a direct request such as:

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  • “Add this to my library.”
  • “Add this song to my Workout playlist.”
  • “Add this album to my Sunday Morning playlist.”

Use the playlist’s name in your request. Apple documents these examples, but results can depend on the item, account, language, and region.

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Control playback by voice

Siri can handle common listening controls. For example, say “Pause music,” “Resume music,” or “Skip ahead three minutes.” Apple’s Siri guide also documents podcast playback and requests to follow shows or adjust playback speed and skip controls.

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What you need and where availability may vary

Apple’s current iPhone guide says Apple Music subscribers can ask Siri to play music from the Apple Music catalog. Apple’s guide to using Siri with music and podcasts specifically names individual, family, and student Apple Music subscriptions. That does not mean every feature or catalog item is available everywhere.

Siri features and commands vary by language, country, and region, and Apple Music availability also differs by country or region. If a request or service is unavailable where you are, check Apple’s availability information for your location. The command examples are starting points, not a guarantee that every wording or catalog result will work identically in every place.

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Identify an unknown song nearby

If you mean “What song is playing near me?” rather than asking Siri to play music, say “Hey Siri, what is this song” or “Hey Siri, identify this song.” Siri uses Shazam Music Recognition; Apple says you do not need to install the Shazam app to identify a song this way.

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On iPhone, you can also open Control Center and tap Music Recognition. Identified songs can appear in Music Recognition history across Apple devices signed in to the same Apple Account. If Shazam is installed, identified songs can also appear in its library. See Apple’s instructions for identifying songs with an Apple device.

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Optional: play music in rooms around your home

For room-based playback, first configure AirPlay-compatible speakers in the Home app. You can then ask Siri to play music in a named room, move playback to another room, adjust that room’s volume, or stop music there. This multiroom setup is optional; you do not need AirPlay speakers for basic Siri and Apple Music playback.

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