How to Fix Apple Music Not Playing Downloaded Songs

Quick Tips

• Open Settings > Music > turn off Automatic Downloads toggle > Audio Quality > turn off the Lossless Audio toggle.
• Open Screen Time Settings > Content & Privacy Restrictions > turn the toggle on > Content Restrictions > select Explicit.
• Go to Settings > Music > turn off the Sync Library toggle > wait a while and turn the toggle back on.

Basic Fixes:

• Check the Apple Music server status: If Apple Music is not working properly, you will have issues playing any song, downloaded or otherwise. To check, go to Apple’s System Status page and check the status of Apple Music.
• Ensure your plan is active: If your Apple Music plan has expired, you won’t be able to play downloaded songs on your phone. So, check and ensure your Apple Music subscription is currently active.
• Try downloading the song again: Certain app issues could have caused the song to not download properly the first time. If so, remove the song and download it again. You can also add the downloaded music to Apple Music Library for easy access.

Fix 1: Disable Lossless Audio/Downloads

Certain songs that don’t have lossless audio might not play properly when downloaded on Apple Music. To ensure this is not the case, disable lossless audio and try playing the song again. You can also turn off automatic downloads to ensure songs are not auto-downloaded. Here’s how to do it.

Step 1: Open Settings and tap on Music. Turn off the Automatic Downloads toggle.

Step 2: Then, tap on Audio Quality and turn off the Lossless Audio toggle.

Also Read: Why does Apple Music keep pausing or skipping songs

Fix 2: Turn off Explicit Filter

If the downloaded song contains explicit content, it might not play properly if you have enabled explicit content filtering. In this case, turn off the explicit content restriction on your iPhone and try playing the song again. Here’s how to do it.

Tip: Check out our guide to learn more about managing the explicit filter for Apple Music on other devices.

Step 1: Open Settings and tap on Screen Time. Tap on Content & Privacy Restrictions.

Step 2: Turn the Content & Privacy Restrictions toggle on. Tap on Content Restrictions and select Explicit.

Fix 3: Turn off Dolby Atmos

Songs that don’t have Dolby Atmos available might not play properly on Apple Music once downloaded. To ensure this does not happen, disable Dolby Atmos for Apple Music using the below steps. This will ensure all songs play as they are.

Step 1: Open Settings and tap on Music. Tap on Dolby Atmos and select Off. 

Also Read: How to fix Apple Music low volume issue on iPhone

Fix 4: Re-Enable Sync Library

Apple Music allows you to sync your music library across all devices. However, if there are issues with the initial sync, it might cause certain songs, especially downloaded music, to not play properly. In this case, try syncing the library again using the below steps.

Step 1: Open Settings and tap on Music. Turn off the Sync Library toggle.

Wait a while and turn the toggle back on. Then, restart the Apple Music app and wait for the sync to finish. Then, try playing the relevant downloaded song again.