Do You Have A YouTube Music Library?

More specifically, do you curate a music library in the streaming era? For the past few years, I’ve lived entirely in YouTube Music’s Home feed and rarely visit the dedicated Library tab. At this point, it doesn’t feel like I have a music collection anymore.

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I lived in the middle of the “thousand songs in your pocket” era that was the iPod where you still had to put some thought into what music you wanted to have and physically take with you. 

That sense of curation or management carried over as a user of Google Play Music’s cloud locker and someone that didn’t subscribe to a streaming service for a few years. When I finally did, I remember living in the app’s “Music library” page. 

My library habits changed around the time Google went all-in with YouTube Music.

YouTube Music lets you “Save to library” to store Playlists, Songs, Albums, and Artists in that dedicated tab. In the early days of YTM, I remember defaulting to that view to find something to listen to. Now, the only time a song is (automatically) added to my Library is when I give it a Like/Thumbs Up. 

At the moment, I use the “Speed dial” — previously “Listen again” — grid of cover art when I just need to have something playing, which results in a recency bias. If I can’t find anything there, I turn to the “Quick picks” carousel that lists a total of 20 songs. Instead of having a music collection, I’m more at the whim of algorithmic suggestions.

Meanwhile, my use of Playlists has entirely changed in the streaming era. My primary playlists in YTM are “Liked Music” and My Mixes. The only ones I really create these days are (single) song radios that generate nice Up Next queues, which I then “Save” as a new playlist. It’s very different from the days of making thematic playlists that are entirely sourced from the songs that are already in my library.

This is far from a grand realization but we’ve gone from “a thousand songs in your pocket” to being able to access every song with a monthly subscription. The upside of the latter approach for a listener is quite obvious. 

But at the other end, no longer having a library I actively curate has somewhat diminished my relationship with artists and albums. Music ends up feeling like any of the countless YouTube videos out there. 

I may be alone in missing library curation, but I do think people that are streaming service converts like myself or those that have only ever known these apps are striving for some deeper connection with their music as seen by the anticipation that comes with yearly (or seasonal) recaps, as well as Badges.

(Tip: Tap your profile image in the top-right corner > Your channel to see “Songs on repeat” for 7-day stats.)

Tapping “Save to library” feels very different from ripping a CD or even buying it on iTunes. There was still something resembling physicality to those actions compared to the inherent digital-ness of today’s streaming services. Sometimes limitations serve a purpose.

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