Samples is a new feature on YouTube Music that adds a TikTok-style feed but with samples of music videos based on the user’s music taste. At first impression, we weren’t happy as everything is becoming a TikTok feed these days. But upon using the feature a bit, it does have its perks and helps to discover new music. Here’s how you can use the Samples feature on YouTube Music and expand your music library.
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What’s Samples on YouTube Music
Almost all music streaming services generally recommend songs that we may enjoy listening to. But all we get is the name and album art of the song on the home screen. For recommending new music, that isn’t sufficient as album art doesn’t give off the same vibe. That is where YouTube Music Samples comes in. It shows you a 30-second highlight of the songs in a TikTok-style feed.
As you scroll through these highlights, you actually listen to the vibe of the song and can easily find new music that you may end up listening to on a loop.
How to Use Samples on YouTube Music
Using Samples is simple. It has all the needed features right at your fingertips. Simply open YouTube Music and tap on the Samples option in the bottom bar to access it quickly. You will begin seeing vertical video clips of some recommended music.
Swipe vertically to scroll through the sample videos until you find the music that vibes with you. Swipe up for the next sample and swipe down to check the previous one.
If you want to listen to the full song, tap on the Play icon at the bottom right corner. This will start playing the full song on the YouTube Music player. Note that it starts a radio based on the selected song, so you won’t find a single song, but multiple similar songs.
Tap on the Like icon to add the full version of the song to Your Likes playlist.
Alternatively, tap on the Add icon to add the full song to your playlist. It opens a pop-up, where you can select any of your existing playlists or you can create a new playlist if you want.
Tapping on the name and album art at the bottom will either open the artist page or the album of that song.
You can also share the sample with your friends using the Share icon and selecting the app that you want to share the Sample on.
Finally, selecting the Shorts icon will open the YouTube app and will show you all the shorts with that particular music. You can also tap on Use this sound button to make a short with that sample sound yourself.
Tapping on the meatballs icon beside the song name will open the normal song menu where you can start a radio, add to queue, save to library, or even download the song. These are the same menu option you get when you tap on the three-dot menu beside any song on the YouTube Music homepage.
FAQs
1. Samples tab is not available on YouTube Music?
If you are not seeing the Samples tab on YouTube Music, update the app on Google Play or Apple App Store. If you still can’t see the Samples tab, you haven’t got the feature yet. Though Samples have been released globally for all YouTube Music users, it is being done in a phased manner. So wait a little while.
2. Can you play Samples in the background on YouTube Music?
Unlike normal songs, Samples cannot play in the background even if you are a premium subscriber. When you close the app or even when you switch to another tab, Samples will stop playing immediately.
3. What’s the length of the Samples on YouTube Music?
Legally any app can provide 30 seconds or 10% of the song as a sample, whichever is lower. So Samples are 30 seconds or less than that.
4. Do you need YouTube Music Premium to use Samples?
No, Samples are available for both free and paid users and there aren’t any ads either as of now. So whether you are a free user or a premium user, your experience with Samples remains constant.
Sample It
As of now, YouTube Music Samples is only available on the YouTube Music Android and iPhone app. There is no web app support yet. Also, there is no way to disable the feature. Apart from the Samples, YouTube Music has many more features, tips, and tricks under its belt. You can also use third-party apps that can bring functionalities like automatically uploading songs to YouTube Music. Check them out now.
