Music on Your iPhone

The Ways To Listen

There is more than one way to enjoy music on your phone, and none of them is wrong. Here is the lay of the land so you can choose what suits you.

Not necessarily. If you only want a handful of songs you already own, or you are happy with radio, you can enjoy music for free. Apple Music is for folks who want the whole jukebox at their fingertips. We will cover the free ways on page 16.

• Apple Music (a subscription): for a monthly fee, play almost any song ever recorded, whenever you like. This guide mostly uses this.
• Music you already own: songs you bought over the years, or CDs loaded onto your phone, play free forever.
• Free options: radio stations and apps like YouTube let you listen at no cost, usually with a few advertisements.

The Music App, Up Close

The Music app looks busy at first, but it has only a few main areas, all lined up along the bottom of the screen.

Once music is playing, a small bar appears near the bottom showing the song. Tap that bar to open the big Now Playing screen, where all the controls live. We will use that screen a lot.

• Home: suggestions and music picked for you.
• New: newly released songs and albums to discover.
• Radio: live and made-for-you stations you can simply turn on.
• Library: your own collection — the music you have saved.
• Search: the magnifying glass, for finding any specific song or artist.

Searching For A Song Or Artist

When a particular song or singer comes to mind, Search is the quickest way to summon it. You need only remember a few words.

That is fine. Type a piece of the title or the singer's name, and the app fills in the rest as you go. You can even hum-search by describing it — but a name or a few words of the title is the surest way.

• Tap Search (the magnifying glass) at the bottom.
• Tap the search box and type a song title, a singer, or a band.
• Tap Search on the keyboard.
• Tap a result to see it — a song, an album, or everything by that artist.

Playing And Controlling Music

Once you have found a song, playing it is a single tap. The controls are simple and forgiving.

• Tap a song to start it playing.
• Tap the bar at the bottom to open the big Now Playing screen.
• Tap pause to stop, and the same button to start again.
• Tap the arrows to skip to the next song or back to the last one.
• Drag the little dot along the line to jump forward or back within a song.

Your Library And Favorites

Your Library is your own collection — the songs and albums you have saved so they are always close at hand, no searching required.

Tap the star or heart on a song to mark it a favorite. This tells the app what you love, so its suggestions get better over time, and it gathers your favorites in one easy place.

• Find a song, album, or artist you like.
• Tap the plus (+) or Add button to save it to your Library.
• Now find it any time under Library at the bottom, sorted by songs, albums, or artists.

Making Your Own Playlist

A playlist is simply your own list of songs, in any order you like — a mix tape for the digital age. Make one for a road trip, for supper, or for dancing in the kitchen.

Come across a song that belongs on the list? Tap the three dots beside the song, choose Add to a Playlist, and pick your list. It grows with you over time.

• Tap Library, then Playlists, then New Playlist.
• Give it a name, like 'Sunday Morning' or 'Songs We Love.'
• Tap Add Music and search for songs to include.
• Tap each song to add it, then tap Done.

Singing Along With On-Screen Words

One of the real delights of the Music app: it can show you the words as the song plays, highlighting each line right on cue. Wonderful for singing along or finally learning that mystery lyric.

Not every song offers lyrics, and instrumental music has none at all. If the lyrics button is missing or greyed out, the words simply are not available for that particular track.

• Play a song and tap the bar at the bottom to open Now Playing.
• Tap the lyrics button — it looks like a small speech bubble with quotation marks.
• The words appear and light up line by line as the song plays.
• Tap any line to jump the song straight to that part.

Downloading Songs For Offline Listening

Normally music streams over the internet as it plays. If you will be somewhere without a signal — a long drive, an airplane — you can download songs ahead of time to play with no connection at all.

Downloaded music uses a little storage space on your phone, but songs are small — you can keep plenty. If space ever runs low, you can remove downloads you no longer need without losing them from your Library.

• First, add the song, album, or playlist to your Library with the plus button.
• Then tap the download icon — a small cloud with a downward arrow.
• When it finishes, the song lives on your phone and plays even with no internet.

Asking Siri To Play Music

The easiest way of all needs no tapping. Just ask out loud, and Siri — your phone's built-in helper — plays it for you. This is a favorite of many folks I visit.

• Say 'Hey Siri' (or hold the side button) to wake Siri.
• Then say plainly what you want, such as 'play Patsy Cline' or 'play some jazz.'
• Siri finds it and starts playing.

Playing Music In The Car

Your favorite songs can ride along with you. Depending on your car, there are two easy ways to hear your phone's music through the car speakers.

• Plug your phone into the car with its cable, or connect wirelessly if your car allows.
• The car screen shows large, simple icons — tap Music there.
• Play, pause, and skip right from the car's screen, or just ask Siri.

Playing Music On A Speaker

Music sounds even better filling the room. Your phone can send its music to a wireless speaker so the whole house can enjoy it.

• Play a song and open the Now Playing screen.
• Tap the AirPlay icon — a triangle with rings around it.
• Choose your speaker from the list, and the sound moves to it.

Sharing Music With Family

If several people in the family enjoy music, an Apple Music family plan lets everyone listen on their own devices for one price — often a real savings over each person paying separately.

Family Sharing does not mix everyone's music together. Your library, your playlists, and your suggestions stay your own — you simply share the one subscription that pays for it all.

• One person sets up Family Sharing and an Apple Music family subscription.
• Up to several family members are invited to join the group.
• Each person then has full access to Apple Music with their own account and their own playlists.

Free Ways To Listen

You do not have to pay a monthly fee to enjoy music. Here are good options that cost nothing, in case a subscription is not for you.

The free options usually include a few advertisements, since that is how they pay the musicians. If the ads bother you, a paid plan removes them — but for casual listening, free works beautifully.

• Radio: the Music app has free live stations, and free apps like TuneIn let you hear real radio stations from near and far.
• YouTube: the free YouTube app has nearly any song or performance you can name, with occasional advertisements.
• Music you own: songs you bought in the past, or loaded from your CDs, play free forever in the Music app.

Volume And Hearing Safety

Music should be a pleasure, not a strain on your ears. A few simple habits protect your hearing, especially when using headphones or earbuds.

• Use the volume buttons on the left edge of the phone to turn it up or down.
• Or drag the volume slider on the Now Playing screen.
• Just say 'Hey Siri, turn it down' to lower it hands-free.

Avoiding 'Free Download Any Song' Scam Apps

This is the most important page in the guide. There are apps and websites that promise to let you download any song ever made, for free. Almost all of them are scams, junk, or worse. Please steer clear.

These apps often fill your phone with advertisements, quietly sign you up for charges, or try to steal your details. The music rarely even works. There is no honest way to get every song for free — that is the giveaway.

• Apps named things like 'Free Music Downloader' or 'MP3 Music Unlimited.'
• Promises of 'download any song free' — real music services do not work that way.
• Pop-up ads shouting that you have won a prize or that your phone has a virus.
• Requests for a credit card, or for a password, to unlock 'free' music.

A Few Handy Extras

Once the basics feel comfortable, these small extras make listening even more enjoyable. Try them when you are ready — no rush.

• The queue: on the Now Playing screen, tap the list icon to see what is coming up next, and rearrange it.
• Sleep with music: use the Clock app's timer, set to Stop Playing, so music fades off after you drift to sleep.
• Control from the lock screen: even with the phone locked, you can play, pause, and skip right on the screen.
• Recently played: the Home tab remembers what you listened to, so an old favorite is easy to find again.

When Something Sounds Off

Now and then music will not play or the sound goes quiet. Nearly always it is something small and easy to put right. Here are the first things to check.

• Check the volume with the buttons on the left edge of the phone.
• Check the little switch above them is not set to silent (you would see orange).
• If you paired to a car or speaker earlier, the sound may be going there — check the AirPlay control.

Putting It All Together

You now know enough to fill your days with music. Here is a simple way to bring it all together into an easy habit.

After that, it is simply part of your day — a song with your morning coffee, a playlist for chores, an old favorite whenever the mood strikes.

• Day one: open Music, search for one song you love, and play it.
• Day two: add a few favorites to your Library with the plus button.
• Day three: make one playlist and give it a cheerful name.
• Day four: try asking Siri to play something out loud.
• Day five: connect to your car or a speaker and enjoy it out loud.

What's in the 27-page PDF

• Pages 3-6: The ways to listen, the Music app, and finding and playing a song
• Pages 7-9: Your library, favorites, and making your own playlists
• Pages 10-12: Singing along with lyrics, downloading for offline, and asking Siri to play
• Pages 13-15: Music in the car, on a speaker, and shared with your family
• Pages 16-20: Free ways to listen, hearing safety, avoiding scam apps, handy extras, then the cheat sheet and word list

Why I wrote this

I write these as printable handouts because a guide you can keep in a drawer beats a web page you have to find again. No jargon, no judgment, no rushing. If you'd rather have someone sit beside you and go through it together, that's a flat $99 first visit with the 30-day follow-up included — serving Portage County from Atwater, Ohio. — Bill