MusicKit + MediaPlayer

Search the Apple Music catalog, manage playback with ApplicationMusicPlayer, check subscriptions, and publish Now Playing metadata via MPNowPlayingInfoCenter and MPRemoteCommandCenter. Targets Swift 6.2 / iOS 26+.

Contents

• Setup
• Authorization
• Catalog Search
• Subscription Checks
• Playback with ApplicationMusicPlayer
• Queue Management
• Now Playing Info
• Remote Command Center
• Common Mistakes
• Review Checklist
• References

Setup

Project Configuration

1. Enable the MusicKit capability in Xcode (adds the com.apple.developer.musickit entitlement)
2. Add NSAppleMusicUsageDescription to Info.plist explaining why the app accesses Apple Music
3. For background playback, add the audio background mode to UIBackgroundModes

Imports

import MusicKit       // Catalog, auth, playback
import MediaPlayer    // MPRemoteCommandCenter, MPNowPlayingInfoCenter

Authorization

Request permission before accessing the user's music data or playing Apple Music content. Authorization is a one-time prompt per app install.

func requestMusicAccess() async -> MusicAuthorization.Status {
    let status = await MusicAuthorization.request()
    switch status {
    case .authorized:
        // Full access to MusicKit APIs
        break
    case .denied, .restricted:
        // Show guidance to enable in Settings
        break
    case .notDetermined:
        break
    @unknown default:
        break
    }
    return status
}

// Check current status without prompting
let current = MusicAuthorization.currentStatus

Catalog Search

Use MusicCatalogSearchRequest to search the Apple Music catalog. The user must have an Apple Music subscription for full catalog access.

func searchCatalog(term: String) async throws -> MusicItemCollection<Song> {
    var request = MusicCatalogSearchRequest(term: term, types: [Song.self])
    request.limit = 25

    let response = try await request.response()
    return response.songs
}

Displaying Results

for song in songs {
    print("\(song.title) by \(song.artistName)")
    if let artwork = song.artwork {
        let url = artwork.url(width: 300, height: 300)
        // Load artwork from url
    }
}

Subscription Checks

Check whether the user has an active Apple Music subscription before offering playback features.

func checkSubscription() async throws -> Bool {
    let subscription = try await MusicSubscription.current
    return subscription.canPlayCatalogContent
}

// Observe subscription changes
func observeSubscription() async {
    for await subscription in MusicSubscription.subscriptionUpdates {
        if subscription.canPlayCatalogContent {
            // Enable full playback UI
        } else {
            // Show subscription offer
        }
    }
}

Offering Apple Music

Present the Apple Music subscription offer sheet when the user is not subscribed.

import MusicKit
import SwiftUI

struct MusicOfferView: View {
    @State private var showOffer = false

    var body: some View {
        Button("Subscribe to Apple Music") {
            showOffer = true
        }
        .musicSubscriptionOffer(isPresented: $showOffer)
    }
}

Playback with ApplicationMusicPlayer

ApplicationMusicPlayer plays Apple Music content independently from the Music app. It does not affect the system player's state.

let player = ApplicationMusicPlayer.shared

func playSong(_ song: Song) async throws {
    player.queue = [song]
    try await player.play()
}

func pause() {
    player.pause()
}

func skipToNext() async throws {
    try await player.skipToNextEntry()
}

Observing Playback State

func observePlayback() {
    // player.state is an @Observable property
    let state = player.state
    switch state.playbackStatus {
    case .playing:
        break
    case .paused:
        break
    case .stopped, .interrupted, .seekingForward, .seekingBackward:
        break
    @unknown default:
        break
    }
}

Queue Management

Build and manipulate the playback queue using ApplicationMusicPlayer.Queue.

// Initialize with multiple items
func playAlbum(_ album: Album) async throws {
    player.queue = [album]
    try await player.play()
}

// Append songs to the existing queue
func appendToQueue(_ songs: [Song]) async throws {
    try await player.queue.insert(songs, position: .tail)
}

// Insert song to play next
func playNext(_ song: Song) async throws {
    try await player.queue.insert(song, position: .afterCurrentEntry)
}

Now Playing Info

Update MPNowPlayingInfoCenter so the Lock Screen, Control Center, and CarPlay display current track metadata. This is essential when playing c