Google have continued to push YouTube Music as the go to place for all music streaming. As of the end of last year Google Play Music has officially closed. What does this mean for you and your music?

Google launched YouTube Music towards the end of 2015. Offering music streaming with personalized genres, playlists and recommendations, as well as music videos with the backing of YouTube’s huge catalogue. YouTube Music Premium or YouTube Premium members get access to ad-free, background listening and offline playback for music and videos on YouTube Music and YouTube. As Google continued to invest in new features of YouTube Music, Google Play Music was abandoned and eventually closed on 1st December 2020.

Now Google Play Music has closed, what steps do you need to take as an artist? None! As Google Play Music and YouTube Music share a library, any music distributed to Google Play Music was also automatically distributed to YouTube Music. To make sure your music is being distributed to YouTube Music, check the Manage Stores section of your release and ensure YouTube Music is selected. Head to music.youtube.com to search for your releases.

Why should you distribute your music to YouTube Music? With 30 million paying subscribers, this is potentially millions of new listeners that can access your music and send revenue your way. RouteNote can help you upload your music to YouTube Music and many other music stores and streaming services for free.