Apple music in WatchOS 10, Apple Watch Ultra, greying out non purchased music when playing playlists from phone.

Hi friend, not sure if you've found a fix for this but I had the same problem and I managed to sort it out - I'll detail here just in case you or others are still struggling.

I did a number of things, not sure which one worked, but you could try all if you're having the same problem. Firstly, I updated my MacBook Pro, my iPhone and my Ultra 2 (all three had an update pending). I then set my Ultra 2 back to factor settings, i.e. disconnected it form my iPhone. Then I plugged my iPhone into my Mac, where all of my music is saved, I re-authorised it via the Music app (under Account) and synced/backed-up. Following that I set my Ultra 2 up as a new Watch and added the playlists that I wanted to add. Last time I did this, only the music purchased from Apple downloaded and not music I had installed from CD's. Initially it appeared to be doing the same, i.e. it appeared to only concentrate on music purchased from iTunes, however, after that it then started downloading the rest.

To be honest, I've only just done this today and I haven't checked if they actually play without my iPhone around, however, I'm no longer left with certain tracks greyed out as before so I think it's sorted (I've added three playlists so far). I'm going to test on a run tomorrow... if anything goes wrong I'll update this comment.

I guess there was a bug that's been ironed out by an update, or perhaps updating the watch to the latest software before setting it up as a new watch helped. It was a relief to me either way, as most of my music comes from CD's!

Hello jkhodel,

Thank you for reaching out in Apple Support Communities. If the music that's greyed out on the Apple Watch were downloaded to the Apple Watch Ultra, we suggest to remove it temporarily and then redownload it. From there, let's test and see if you can play your music without an issue. If needed, here's how to perform each step:

Remove music using your Apple Watch

If you’re an Apple Music subscriber, you can remove music directly on Apple Watch, whether it was added automatically or you chose to add it.

1. Open the Music app  on your Apple Watch.

2. From the Listen Now screen, tap , tap Library, scroll down, tap Downloaded, then tap Playlists or Albums.

3. Tap a playlist or album, tap , then tap Remove.

4. Choose an option.

* Remove Downloads: Removes the downloaded playlist or album from your Apple Watch. It remains in your library, so you can download it again or stream it over Wi-Fi or cellular.

* Delete from Library: The music is removed from your Apple Watch and from all other devices that use the same Apple ID.

Note: You can also delete individual songs from your library. Swipe left on a song, tap , tap Delete from Library, then tap Delete. The song is removed from your Apple Watch, from any playlists it’s in, and from all other devices that use the same Apple ID.

These steps are outlined in this article: Remove music from Apple Watch - Apple Support

Then, let's redownload your music back on the Apple Watch Ultra by following these steps:

Add music using your Apple Watch Ultra

If you’re an Apple Music subscriber, you can add music using your Apple Watch Ultra.

Note: Adding music isn’t available in the Apple Music Voice Plan. For more information, see the Apple Support article About Apple Music Voice.

1. Open the Music app  on your Apple Watch Ultra.

2. On the Listen Now screen, navigate to music you want to add.

3. Or, from the Listen Now screen, tap , tap Search, then search for music to add.

4. Tap a playlist or album, tap , then tap Add to Library.

5. A message confirms that the item was added.

6. Note: You can stream music you add to Apple Watch Ultra when you have an internet connection. To play music when you’re not connected to the internet, you must first download it.

7. To download the music to Apple Watch Ultra, tap  again, then tap Download.

Note: Downloading music when your Apple Watch Ultra isn’t connected to power uses more of its charge than normal.

Following these steps may help and is outlined here: Add music to Apple Watch Ultra - Apple Support

Kind regards.

😒😒😒😒😒