TikTok strikes partnership with Spotify and Amazon Music to link app directly to music streaming services

TikTok has launched a new feature called “Add to Music App” that lets its users save songs they discover via TikTok on the streaming services where they listen to their music.

According to an announcement from TikTok on Tuesday (November 14), the Add to Music App feature is launching “in partnership with the major music streaming services, including Amazon Music and Spotify“.

MBW has confirmed that this feature is also available for Apple Music users. On Amazon Music, this feature is available for Prime members and Amazon Music Unlimited customers.

‘Add to Music App’ will initially be rolled out over the coming weeks for users in the US and UK with testing in more markets to follow.

TikTok claims in its announcement to be “known for being one of the world’s best places to discover both new and catalog music, constantly creating viral trends which drive music listening on streaming services”.

TikTok’s Global Head of Music Business Development Ole Obermann said on Tuesday that the new cross-platform music saving feature creates “a direct link between discovery on TikTok and consumption on a music streaming service”.

He added that it makes 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”.

ByteDance-owned TikTok’s partnership and integration with music streaming services that are not owned by ByteDance is a notable development for the company, which now operates its own premium streaming service in multiple markets.

That service, TikTok Music, became available to the public in Australia, Singapore and Mexico (without Universal’s catalog) last month following the service’s initial launch in Brazil and Indonesia back in July.

The TikTok Music app includes what the company says is “a wide range” of “social music streaming features” that connect the music streaming app with the main TikTok short-form video app.

Amongst those features are the ability to ‘Sync With TikTok’ which lets you sync your TikTok and TikTok Music accounts.

It also lets you play ‘TikTok Hits’ by streaming the full versions of viral TikTok songs. There is also a ‘Music Discovery With TikTok’ feature, which TikTok says “lets you record your music discovery journey in TikTok and explore the songs in TikTok Music”.

Meanwhile, for users of the main TikTok app in the US and the UK, where TikTok Music is not available, the new Add to Music App feature can now be used as a direct link to other streaming services including Spotify and Amazon Music.

“TikTok is already the world’s most powerful platform for music discovery and promotion, which helps artists connect with our global community to drive engagement with their music. Add to Music App takes this process a step further.”

Ole Obermann, TikTok

The new tool will now appear as a button that says ‘Add Song’ next to a track name at the bottom of a TikTok video in the For You Feed.

The first time a user presses the Add Song button, they can choose to save it to their preferred music streaming service.

The track will then be saved to a default playlist in a user’s chosen music streaming service installed on their device, but users can also choose to add the track to a new playlist or an existing playlist that they have created.

Following the first use of the Add to Music App feature, the music app selected will then become the default music streaming service for future track saves, although users can select to change the default music streaming service at any time under settings.

Users can also use the Add to Music App feature from an artist’s Sound Detail Page.

“At Amazon Music, we’re looking to make it easier to convert those moments into enduring fandom.”

Karolina Joynathsing, Amazon Music

Karolina Joynathsing, Director of Business Development for Amazon Music, said: “Some of the best parts of being a music lover are those serendipitous moments when you discover a new song or artist that you connect with instantly.

“At Amazon Music, we’re looking to make it easier to convert those moments into enduring fandom.

“That’s why we worked together with TikTok on the Add to Music App feature, which makes it easier for fans to listen to the music they love and for artists to build fandom.”

“No matter where you are, or the moment you’re in, we want to create less work to get to the audio you love.”

Sten Garmark, Spotify

Sten Garmark, Vice President, Global Head of Consumer Experience at Spotify, said:  “No matter where you are, or the moment you’re in, we want to create less work to get to the audio you love.

“That means being everywhere our users are and creating seamless ways to save songs to Spotify to enjoy when and how they choose to listen.

“As the world’s largest audio streaming subscription service, our mission is to bring artists and fans together, so you can listen to more of what you love, across any platform or device. Essentially, you won’t need to find audio to suit the moment. It will find you.”

Ole Obermann, TikTok’s Global Head of Music Business Development, said: “TikTok is already the world’s most powerful platform for music discovery and promotion, which helps artists connect with our global community to drive engagement with their music.

“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.”Music Business Worldwide