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YouTube Music is testing a new style of Artist pages

By Sarah Chen
2 min read
Google Music
Google Music
In this article (4)

YouTube Music is one of the major competitors to Spotify. As a music streaming service, it has a wide range of features and even wider selection of artists. But what about the app’s design? Well, huge chunks of it have remained the same for a long time.

But this is Google we’re talking about. We can see the company’s strive for innovation through products like its Android phones, such as the Pixel 7a and Pixel Fold. So how does that translate into refreshing YouTube Music? Well, with a test.

Said test impacts the Artist pages in the app, which up until now was pretty straightforward and conventional. With this change, though, users who navigate to an artist’s page will be able to see a new section labeled “Discography” which includes new filters too.

While users will be able to browse the given discography at leisure, they can also utilize the new filtering options to single out Albums or Singles specifically. As someone who appreciates a full album playlist more than some random selection of songs, I personally welcome this change with open arms!

That being said, there was a short appearance of another visual mode too: Top Releases. This, of course, features the given artist’s most successful hits, but for some reason the feature was rolled back a few days after release. That being said: some users are still seeing it, which is… interesting?

That might be because the page launched too early and wasn’t exactly finished, but it also may be due to some other, more dubious reason. Regardless, we’re sure that it will make an appearance again if — and when — the Big G thinks that it is ready.

This change does limit the content offering on the first page of the artist pane, but in return it is also much easier to navigate. We still don’t know how wide the roll out of this revamp is, so you might want to check for any pending app updates today.

Questions & Answers

Q.

What new features are being tested on YouTube Music's Artist pages?

A.

The new test introduces a 'Discography' section, which includes filters for users to specifically browse Albums or Singles. This aims to make navigation easier for finding an artist's full works.

Q.

Was any other new visual mode part of the test?

A.

Yes, a 'Top Releases' visual mode also briefly appeared, featuring an artist's most successful hits. However, it was rolled back a few days after its initial release, though some users still see it.

Q.

Why might the 'Top Releases' feature have been rolled back?

A.

It is suggested that the 'Top Releases' page might have launched too early and was not finished. Another, more 'dubious' reason is also mentioned as a possibility for its temporary disappearance.

Reader pulse

YouTube Music's design test:

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