In addition to tech, tricking and photography, music is one of my greatest passions. On the one hand, music runs in the background every day, on the other hand, I also enjoy listening to an album and "experiencing" the music.
That is why a music streaming service is permanently one of my monthly costs. I started with Google Play Music years ago. Then this service was hired and users were migrated to YouTube Music. In the meantime I switched to Spotify and Apple Music.
Today I'm back on YouTube Music and will no longer change. For a simple reason: this phenomenal algorithm.
YouTube Music and the Google algorithm
I didn't get any other music streaming service as good music recommendations as on YouTube Music.
- With most services you can activate an auto-play function (by default it is usually already), which automatically plays further songs that you could like when a playlist comes to an end.
- The songs that the Google algorithm finds for me almost always fit perfectly on my taste or the mood of the previous songs.
Because YouTube Music not only knows my preferences in the music app, but also that of YouTube, i.e. the video streaming platform, more information is available for such recommendations.
- The algorithm on YouTube Music is almost magical.For some reason, the app always knows exactly what I want to hear and what I could like. I guess that has to do with the experience of the company with search algorithms. Or is it magic?
- I am above all a big fan of personal Supermix playlists.There are not only songs in these lists, of which the service knows that I hear them up and down, but also those that Google believes that I could like - and they almost always do that.
- Another function that loved ones have learned are the "samples".These are short music video clips in the style of TikTok and YouTube shorts. I am not a big fan of these short clips, but on YouTube Music you are extremely useful to discover new music. If I hear something that I like, I save the song directly in a playlist or give it a thumbs up.
I have already discovered many of my favorite artists today on YouTube Music. You can also find remixes, covers and songs by small indie artists who upload their music on YouTube.
Even after several years at Spotify, I have never met as many new interpreters as at Google's music streaming service. In addition to the larger selection of podcasts, I personally see no reason for myself to switch to Spotify again.
For Apple Music, the better playback quality in Lossless format speaks. I am not really audiophile, but I really value good quality.
Ultimately, I preferred to choose the better algorithm. Discovering more artists is more important for me and the music quality on YouTube Music is good enough for my hearing.
YouTube Music: My tips for better music recommendations
Of course, the service cannot just read your thoughts - even if it sometimes seems to me. That's why I have a few tips for you so that you get better recommendations on the service.
- Give your thumb up and thumbs down.This lets the algorithm know which musical taste you have and which songs should be less or no longer recommended.
- Saves songs, albums and playlists in your media library.These are practically a permanent memory of YouTube Music, which music you really like.
- Subscribe to artists on YouTube.Your YouTube and your YouTube Music account are connected. Artists who like to hear on YouTube are also recommended to you on the music streaming service.
- Deletes unwanted music from your course.Sometimes I click on a song out of pure curiosity on YouTube. And it is not uncommon for me to look at the music videos as a whole and only then decide whether the song is something for me or not. If I didn't like it, I delete him from the course so that this or similar songs are not recommended to me.
- Select more favorite artists.At the first facility of YouTube Music, the service asks you for five favorite artists. However, you can add more in the settings at any time. Tap your profile picture at the top right and then on »Settings«. Now tap on recommendations and then to "improve music recommendations".
With these tips, you ensure that you find YouTube Music the music that you really like.
For my part, I will never be able to cancel the service again - unless I am getting on physical music, as my colleague Marinus did. You can read more about this in his article:
Which music streaming service do you prefer to use? Feel free to tell us what is important for you in such a service and which features you place the greatest value on. Or do you prefer to listen to music via CD, records or even tapes? Please write us your opinion on this topic in the comments below!
