YouTube Music on Android TV gets library & uploads access, UI tweaks, background play coming

Abner Li | Oct 12 2020 - 8:29 am PT

Back in July, YouTube Music came to Android TV via the main YouTube app and a homescreen shortcut. The YouTube Music experience on big screen platforms, including Google TV, is getting an upgrade today that makes it more on par with the web and mobile clients.

In addition to offering rows of carousels with suggested tunes, there is now a “Your Music Library” section. From here, you can access: Recent Activity, Playlists, Albums, Liked Songs, Subscriptions, Uploaded songs, and more. It appears below the main “Listen Again” section.

Google also touts “updated visuals to showcase album and playlist artwork in their best form, making it easy to find the music you love.” These two features are available for all smart TVs — regardless of OS — that feature a YouTube client.

Meanwhile, Android TV and Google TV now let you access songs that you’ve uploaded, and not just official or user-uploaded works.

There’s also a new playback UI that includes song and artist name, as well as a progress bar. The last update today is the ability to add YouTube Music to the Android TV homescreen. It’s meant to “help you find your next song” by suggesting “recommended playlists.” Each is accompanied by a cover image, description, and basic details.

Looking forward, YouTube Music for Android TV is adding background play so that audio will continue playing after you exit the app. An overdue addition, this will happen “in the coming months” for paying Premium subscribers.

Additionally, as part of the broader transition, “YouTube Music will soon replace Google Play Music on TVs.” No other details were provided today: