Where did my Google Play Music library go?
Google Play Music was a music and podcast streaming service developed by Google. It allowed users to upload up to 50,000 songs from their music libraries to the cloud and stream them across devices. Google Play Music officially launched in November 2011 and was available in 63 countries at its peak. On August 4, 2020, Google announced that Google Play Music would be discontinued in October 2020 and replaced by YouTube Music. Google Play Music was officially shut down on December 2, 2020.
Why Google Play Music Closed
In December 2020, Google announced it was shutting down Google Play Music to focus its efforts on YouTube Music. Google wanted to consolidate all of its music services and features into one unified platform under the YouTube brand. This would allow Google to provide a more streamlined music experience across all of its products.
As explained in an article on Music Gateway, Google likely saw YouTube Music as having greater potential for growth and revenue compared to Google Play Music. By shutting down Play Music, Google could direct its resources into improving YouTube Music and expanding its user base. YouTube already had an established platform and audience for streaming music videos, so transitioning this to an audio-focused music streaming service made strategic sense.
Overall, Google wanted to simplify its music offerings and bring everything under its most popular brand, YouTube. This consolidation allowed Google to focus its development and marketing efforts around one music service rather than spreading them across multiple platforms.
What Happened to Google Play Music Libraries
When Google announced they were shutting down Google Play Music in August 2020, they provided users with ample time to transfer their music libraries over to YouTube Music before the service shut down completely.
Google launched an official Google Play Music to YouTube Music transfer tool that allowed users to move their entire Play Music library of songs, albums, playlists, and recommendations seamlessly to YouTube Music. This transfer tool enabled users to migrate years of curated playlists and listening history to ensure no music or data was lost in the transition.
According to a Google support thread (https://support.google.com/youtubemusic/thread/140951819/my-music-is-lost-after-play-music-shut-down?hl=en), the ability to transfer Google Play Music libraries over to YouTube Music using Google’s official tool was available for over a year before they shut down Play Music completely in December 2020.
YouTube Music Library Transfer
Google provides a tool to help transfer your Google Play Music library over to YouTube Music. This makes it easy to move your entire music collection from one service to the other. Here are the steps to use the Google transfer tool:
1. Go to music.youtube.com/transfer and make sure you are logged into the Google account associated with your Google Play Music library.
2. Click on the “Transfer” button. This will begin the process of copying your Google Play Music library over to YouTube Music.
3. The transfer tool will copy over your playlists, albums, songs, preferences and recommendations. It does not transfer over uploads or purchases – you will need to manually reupload any tracks you uploaded to Google Play Music.
4. The transfer process can take some time depending on the size of your Google Play Music library. You can continue using Google Play Music during the transfer.
5. Once completed, you will receive an email confirmation. You can now access your copied Google Play Music library in YouTube Music.
Manually Uploading to YouTube Music
If you did not transfer your Google Play Music library to YouTube Music, you can still manually upload your music files to YouTube Music. This allows you to upload your existing music library to YouTube Music without relying on the automatic transfer process.
To manually upload music to YouTube Music, first go to music.youtube.com and log into your YouTube or Google account. On the YouTube Music homepage, click on your profile picture in the top right corner and select “Upload music”. You can then drag and drop music files from your computer directly onto the YouTube Music website to begin uploading them.
Alternatively, you can click the “Select files” button and browse your computer files to choose your music files to upload. YouTube Music allows you to upload up to 100,000 songs for free. The upload process may take some time depending on your internet connection speed and the size of your music library.
Once uploaded, your music will appear in the “Uploads” section of the “Library” tab in YouTube Music. You can then access and listen to your uploaded music alongside music available directly through YouTube Music.
Downloading Google Play Music Files
When Google Play Music shut down, Google did not provide an easy way for users to download their previously purchased music libraries. However, there are a few methods you can try to download your purchased Google Play Music files before they are gone forever:
Use Google Takeout
The easiest way is to use Google Takeout to export your Google Play Music data. Simply go to takeout.google.com, deselect all services except Google Play Music, then click “All Play Music data included” and download your archive. This will contain your purchased music files.
Use the Music Manager App
You can also download files using the Google Play Music Manager desktop app for Mac and PC. Install it, login to your Google account, go to the “Download” tab, and select “Download purchased and uploaded songs.” This will allow you to download DRM-free MP3s of your purchased music.
Connect with Third Party Apps
Some third party apps like TuneMyMusic allow you to connect your Google Play Music account and export your library. This can be an option if the above methods do not work.
Overall, Takeout and the Music Manager are the recommended ways for downloading your purchased Google Play Music files before the service shuts down completely. Just be sure to act fast, as the ability to download purchased music likely won’t last forever.
Recovering Deleted Google Play Music
If you had music files purchased or uploaded to your Google Play Music library that you can no longer access after the shutdown, there are a few options you can try to recover your deleted Google Play Music files:
Use file recovery software – Programs like EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard can scan your computer’s hard drive and external drives to find deleted Google Play Music files that may still be recoverable. This method works best if you have not overwritten the disk space used by the deleted files.
Check your Google Takeout data – When Google Play Music shut down, Google allowed users to download an archive of their full Google Play Music libraries. If you requested this data archive, your downloaded Google Takeout folder may still contain your complete collection of music files.
Contact Google Support – While unlikely, you may be able to work with Google Support to recover deleted Google Play Music files associated with your account, especially if you accidentally deleted them shortly before the shutdown. But there are no guarantees.
Overall, prevention is easiest by regularly backing up your Google Play Music library. But with some effort, it may be possible to recover at least some deleted Google Play Music files.
Alternatives to YouTube Music
There are several music streaming services that can serve as good alternatives to YouTube Music, offering some features and benefits that YouTube Music does not.
One popular alternative is Spotify, which has a huge music library, personalized recommendations, and the ability to easily share playlists. Many former Google Play Music users switched to Spotify since it offers similar features. Spotify also has a free ad-supported tier, allowing users to test it out before committing to a paid subscription.
Apple Music is another major competitor, working seamlessly with Apple devices and offering exclusives like new album releases. It provides radio stations, music videos, and access to your existing iTunes library. The interface is intuitive and it integrates with Siri. Apple Music costs the same as a YouTube Music subscription.
For audiophiles, Amazon Music HD and Tidal both offer high-definition lossless audio quality, which music fans may find lacking on YouTube Music’s compressed streaming files. These services can appeal to more discerning listeners with higher-end audio equipment.
There are also many free music streaming apps without subscriptions, like Pandora and SoundCloud, which allow ad-supported listening. While they don’t offer as robust libraries and features as paid services, they provide free alternatives to enjoy music.
Considering aspects like library size, audio quality, price, and device integration can help determine the best alternative streaming service for your musical tastes and listening preferences.
Listening to Google Play Music Elsewhere
Now that Google Play Music has shut down, you may be wondering how you can still listen to your Google Play Music library and playlists. While you can transfer your library to YouTube Music, you may prefer using a different music app. There are a few options for accessing your Google Play Music files in other apps:
Download your Google Play Music files – You can download your entire Google Play Music library to your computer by going to music.google.com/transfer. This will give you MP3 files that you can then upload to another music app. Just make sure to download before December 2022 when access ends. Google Support has instructions for downloading.
Use third-party apps – Apps like TuneMyMusic and FreeYourMusic can transfer your Google Play Music library to other services like Spotify, Apple Music, and Deezer. This makes it easy to move your full library.
Manually upload files – If you download your Google Play Music files, you can manually upload them to another service like Spotify. This takes more time but gives you full control. You’ll need to re-create playlists and library structure.
While nothing can fully replace Google Play Music, with a downloaded library you have options to listen in your music app of choice. Just don’t wait too long to download, as your Google Play Music access won’t last forever.
Conclusion
In this article, we discussed the shutdown of Google Play Music and the transfer of libraries to YouTube Music. When Google Play Music ended, user libraries were automatically transferred to YouTube Music for those with accounts. However, the transfer was not seamless, and many users found missing albums, songs, uploads or playlists.
If items are missing from your YouTube Music library, you have a few options. First, double check if the content is available but categorized differently in YouTube Music. You can also manually upload any missing music from your Google Play Music files. If files were deleted, unfortunately there is no way to fully recover a Google Play Music library, but some songs may be retrieved through download history.
While YouTube Music aims to provide a new home for Google Play Music libraries, some users may prefer different services. Alternatives like Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music and others can import your Google Play Music taste profile to easily transfer favorites. Or you can download your Google Play Music files and listen to them locally.
Overall, the transition can take some work to rebuild your perfect library. But with manual uploads, alternative streaming services, and downloads, you can rediscover and enjoy your favorite music. For further assistance, see YouTube Music’s help pages or reach out to their support team.