From iOS 26, iPados 26, MacOS 26 and HomePodos 26 you can use new possibilities and options in the music app for iPhone, iPad and Mac. The most important new features are to fix music and automix.
Of course, the entire music app has been visually renewed with the new ‘Liquid Glass’ design, where the interface looks more minimalist, more transparent and dynamic, making it better to match the rest of the system. This ensures a fresh, modern and uniform user experience.
Pin music and fix it in your library
You can pin albums, artists and playlists so that your favorite music always appears at the top of the library. This ensures faster access to often listened content.
- Open the music app
- Navigate to the album or playlist that you want to fix
- Tap or click on the three dots
- Choose in the context menu for ‘Create [onderdeel] firm
The chosen music is fixed at the top of the library tab. On the Mac you can find these parts in the navigation column with ‘pin’.
Via the same steps you can also release music that you have placed at the top of the Library Tabblad. Choose ‘Make [onderdeel] loose ‘.
Place playlists in folders
On the Mac it was already possible to create a folder for playlists via the Menuperak â–¸ Archive â–¸ New â–¸ Playlist folder. Thanks to these folders you can collect multiple playlists from the same category, so that you keep a better overview. From iOS 26 and iPados 26 you can also create these folders on an iPhone or iPad.
- Open the music app
- Go to the ‘Library’ tab
- Open ‘playlists’
- Tap the plus button
- Choose ‘new folder’
- Give the folder a name
- Tap ‘Create’.
You can then add playlists to your folders. The easiest way can be done by opening a playlist in your library, then tap the three dots and choose ‘Move to’. Choose the desired folder and move the playlist, repeat this for all parts. On a Mac you can easily drag the playlists to the desired folder.
Automix or Crossfade for smooth transitions
This new AI-controlled function automatically mixes numbers together without breaks or abrupt transitions. Automix goes beyond the traditional Crossfade and adjusts transitions to rhythm and style, which is especially pleasant with playlists and listening non-stops.
- Open settings
- Navigate to ‘Apps’ and open ‘music’
- Tap ‘Number transitions’
- Enable the option of the same name
- Select ‘Automotix’
On a Mac you can enable this via music â–¸ Menu bar â–¸ Music â–¸ Settings â–¸ Play â–¸ Select the ‘Number transitions’ option. At ‘Transition style’, click on ‘Automix’.
Songs merge seamlessly at the perfect moment based on an analysis of the key and the pace, just like a DJ. A Subscription to Apple Music is required for Automix.
Crossfade for HomePod
Automix is currently only available on the iPhone, iPad and Mac, but from HomePodos 26 you can also set Crossfade for HomePod. To do this, go to home â–¸ tab ‘house’ â–¸ Three dots â–¸ Home settings â–¸ Tap your name â–¸ Apple Music. Then switch on Crossfade and determine the number of seconds before the transition.
Animated album covers on access screen
The access screen now shows album covers animations while playing music. You can activate this by tapping the cover while playing music. The clock becomes more subtle and smaller to focus on the albumartwork. Animated album covers were already available in the music app itself.
Other innovations
- Live translations Lyrics: While listening, Apple Music shows directly translations of lyrics in foreign languages (such as Korean or Spanish) to English, including phonetic statements. This way you can better understand what is being sung and sing along, even if you don’t speak the language. Dutch is not yet supported for this.
- Apple Music Sing: Your iPhone can act as a wireless microphone linked to an Apple TV with TVOS 26. This allows you to do Karaoke with direct display of your voice via television. Multiple users can also participate, add numbers and send live emojis for social experience.
- Apple Music Replay built in: The personal listening statistics and music overviews of Apple Music Replay are now directly integrated into the Music app, without having to visit a separate website.