Why does my Amazon Prime music keep shuffling?

Amazon Prime Music is a music streaming service included with an Amazon Prime subscription. It allows Prime members to stream a catalog of over 2 million songs without any ads. One feature of Prime Music is shuffle mode, which randomly mixes up the songs in a playlist or album while listening.

There are several common reasons why Prime Music may continue shuffling tracks unexpectedly. This can occur due to the default shuffle setting being enabled, reaching the end of a playback queue, music licensing restrictions, internet connectivity issues, multiple account users, device limitations, outdated app versions, and corrupted download caches. If troubleshooting does not resolve the issue, contacting Amazon customer support is recommended.

Default Shuffle Setting

Prime Music has shuffle enabled by default for playlists and albums. This means that when you start playing a playlist or album, the songs will not play in their listed order but rather in a random shuffled order. According to the Amazon Music Tips website, “Amazon Music has the shuffle mode turned ON by default” (source).

To turn off shuffling and play songs in order, simply tap the “Shuffle” button at the bottom of the screen when a playlist or album is playing. The shuffle icon is two crossed arrows. When shuffle is enabled, the icon is highlighted in white. Tap it to disable shuffle mode and the highlighting will disappear. Now your songs will play in the proper track order (source).

This shuffle setting applies to the Amazon Music apps across platforms including iOS, Android, and Amazon Fire devices. So whether you want ordered playback on your phone, tablet, or Fire TV, just look for the Shuffle button in the player interface.

Reach End of Queue

When you reach the end of a playlist or album, Amazon Prime Music automatically shuffles to the next available song or album ¹. This is an intentional feature of the service, not a glitch or error. The purpose is to provide continuous playback once you’ve listened to all of the selected songs or albums in your queue.

Prime Music does this to avoid stopping suddenly when you reach the end of a playlist or album. The shuffle allows it to keep playing related or recommended songs seamlessly. This prevents you from needing to manually select a new playlist or album once the current one ends.

If you don’t want songs to shuffle when your queue ends, you can turn this feature off in the settings. But for most Prime Music listeners, the automatic shuffle provides a better overall listening experience.

Music Rights Restrictions

Many songs on Prime Music are subject to licensing agreements that limit the number of plays allowed without an additional fee. Amazon introduced shuffle mode listening in part to comply with these music rights restrictions.

According to a Variety article, Amazon switched to shuffle mode to “limit unlimited on-demand playback of songs,” likely due to costly licensing deals.

By shuffling playback, Prime Music ensures no individual song is overplayed. This allows Amazon to provide a larger catalog of major label songs without accruing unsustainable royalty fees.

Internet Connectivity Issues

Streaming interruptions due to poor connectivity can cause Amazon Music to start shuffling tracks instead of continuing to play the songs in your queue or playlist order. If the music app encounters buffering or experiences low bandwidth, it may switch into a shuffle mode to keep playing without interruption. This usually only lasts temporarily until connectivity improves.

There are a few steps you can try to troubleshoot internet connectivity issues:

• Restart your wifi router and modem to reset the connection.
• Try moving closer to the wifi router if using wireless internet.
• Switch from wifi to mobile data or vice versa to see if connectivity improves.
• Check for issues with your ISP if problems persist across devices.
• Update your Amazon Music app, as newer versions may have connectivity improvements.

Improving connectivity will typically solve shuffle issues caused by streaming interruptions or bandwidth problems. If Amazon Music continues shuffling after taking these troubleshooting steps, another cause is likely at play.

Multiple Listeners on One Account

Shuffling may occur when multiple people are listening on the same Amazon Prime Music account. Amazon’s algorithms track each listener’s music preferences and listening habits separately. When multiple listeners with varied tastes use the same account, this can cause Amazon Prime Music to shuffle more frequently as it tries to cater to different listeners.

For example, if one person tends to listen to country music while another prefers classic rock, Amazon may shuffle between these genres more often when both are using the shared account. The algorithms aim to provide variety and cater to individual interests, but with collective listening, this can make the playback order seem more random.

To avoid shuffling when multiple people use the same Prime Music account, you can set up distinct Amazon Household profiles for each listener. This allows Amazon to learn musical preferences per profile rather than collectively.

Sources:

https://www.amazonforum.com/s/question/0D54P00006zSwaaSAC/shuffle-multiple-stations?language=en_US


https://www.techhive.com/article/1367742/amazon-prime-members-can-shuffle-all-amazon-music-tracks.html

Device Limitations

Some devices have limited cached music storage, which can impact shuffling behavior on Amazon Prime Music. For example, according to Amazon’s help page, iPhones and iPads can only store up to 100 songs for offline playback. Android devices are limited to storing 250 songs.

With restricted cache storage, shuffling tracks helps circulate the available music library. When you reach the end of a shuffled queue, the service defaults back to the top of the queue and reshuffles. This allows you to continue listening seamlessly despite the device’s storage constraints.

So on devices with limited offline song storage like mobile phones, shuffling helps make the most of the available cached music. The shuffle function rearranges the playback order to provide more variety within the confined storage space.

Outdated App Version

Older versions of the Amazon Music app can contain bugs that cause music to shuffle unexpectedly. Amazon frequently releases updates to fix issues and improve performance. Using an outdated version of the app may be the reason your Prime music keeps shuffling.

To resolve this, check for and install any available updates for the Amazon Music app on your device. You can find the latest app version in your device’s app store. Keeping the app updated ensures you have the latest features and fixes.

According to Amazon’s website, updating to the latest version of the Prime Music app should resolve any shuffling issues caused by outdated versions. It’s recommended to install app updates as soon as they become available to have the best experience listening to music.

Corrupt Download Cache

Corrupted cache files may trigger shuffling in the Amazon Music app. The app downloads and stores music tracks in a cache for quicker access, but this cache can become corrupted over time, leading to music playback issues. Clearing the cache forces the app to re-download fresh copies of your music tracks.

To clear the cache in the Amazon Music app on your iPhone or Android device:

1. Open the Amazon Music app.
2. Tap the Settings icon in the upper right corner.
3. Select “Settings” from the menu.
4. Scroll down and tap “Clear Cache.”
5. Confirm that you want to clear the cache by tapping “OK.”

After clearing the cache, you may need to restart the Amazon Music app. This forces the app to rebuild its cache with fresh downloads of your music. Try playing a song or playlist again to see if shuffling has stopped occurring unexpectedly.

Clearing the cache can free up storage space on your device taken up by corrupt files. It’s a good troubleshooting step if you notice Amazon Music shuffling despite having plenty of songs in a playlist or album. Rebuilding the cache from scratch may resolve skipping and shuffling behavior.

When to Contact Customer Support

If shuffling persists after trying the troubleshooting steps listed above, it’s time to contact Amazon’s customer support for additional help. The Amazon Music support team can further diagnose the issue and provide solutions.

You can reach Amazon Music customer service in a few ways:

• Call 1-888-280-4331 toll-free in the US.
• Initiate a chat session on Amazon’s contact page.
• Email Amazon Music support at [email protected].

Common resolutions provided by customer service include removing and redownloading the app, deleting and readding your Amazon Music library, checking for software updates, switching devices, and more. The support team can walk through advanced troubleshooting to identify the root cause.

Contacting customer service is recommended if you’ve tried the basics like force quitting the app, restarting your device, ensuring you’re connected to the internet, and you still experience constant shuffling against your preferences in Amazon Music.