TikTok has announced a new feature that lets users save songs they discover on the short-form video platform through a music streaming service of their choice.
The “Add to Music App” button is launching for users in the United States and the United Kingdom in partnership with major music streaming services, including Amazon Music, Apple Music, and Spotify.
Known for viral trends that introduce new music to users, TikTok designed the new “Add to Music App” feature to help fans conveniently listen to their newly discovered songs in their preferred music streaming service.
A button that says “Add Song” is on display next to a track name at the bottom of a TikTok video on the For You Page. After a user presses the Add Song button for the first time, they can then choose which music streaming service to save it to. Alternatively, TikTok users can also use the Add to Music App feature from an artist’s Sound Detail Page.
The track will be saved to a default playlist in the chosen streaming service, but users can also either add the track to a new playlist or an existing one. Following the feature’s first use, the selected app will become the default music streaming service for future track saves. Fortunately, users can change this at any time under settings.
Courtesy of TikTok
A limitation of the said feature is that it only allows users to save songs from music apps already installed on their mobile devices.
“TikTok is already the world’s most powerful platform for music discovery and promotion… Add to Music App takes this process a step further, creating a direct link between discovery on TikTok and consumption on a music streaming service, making it easier than ever for music fans to enjoy the full-length song on the music streaming service of their choice, thereby generating even greater value for artists and rightsholders,” TikTok Global Head of Music Business Development Ole Obermann said.
TikTok plans to use music discovery “to directly drive music consumption on music streaming services.” This marks a major industry development, especially considering that the platform has its own streaming service, TikTok Music, at the early stages of launch.
Partner streaming services Amazon Music and Spotify have since expressed their positive reception of TikTok’s latest move.
While the Add to Music App is currently rolling out only to users in the US and UK, with more markets to follow according to TikTok.