You can make a difference in the Apple Support Community!

When you sign up with your Apple Account, you can provide valuable feedback to other community members by upvoting helpful replies and User Tips.

📰 Newsroom Update

Billie Eilish is Apple Music’s Artist of the Year for 2024. Learn more >

Looks like no one’s replied in a while. To start the conversation again, simply ask a new question.

changed lyrics not syncing

I have an iPhone 4 running iOS 5.0.1, an iMac running iTunes 10.5.3.

I have previously synced my iPhone with iTunes, and some of the songs have lyrics.

If I need to make a change to the lyrics for some reason, (mostly because they don't format properly when viewed on the iPhone, or they have the wrong lyrics listed), once changed and I then re-sync the iPhone, the new lyrics do not come across.

I have even deleted the playlist from the sync list, run the sync again, made sure there was no music on my iPhone. That seems to be working the way it should.

Then when I select my music again in the sync list, and re-sync my iPhone, the old lyrics still appear on the iPhone. The new lyrics are no-where to be found. Everything is still proper on the iMac in iTunes, but not on the phone.

I even deleted the lyrics on iTunes, synced my iPhone, and the lyrics were still on the iPhone they should have been gone.


Just wondering if anyone else has had this issue and found a way to fix it?


It looks like once the wrong lyrics have been synced over to your phone you can not fix the issue. I do not want to restore my iPhones firmware just to fix this issue, which looks like it should be a simple operation.


Thanks.

iTunes-OTHER, iOS 5.0.1

Posted on Feb 15, 2012 11:27 AM

Reply
33 replies

Nov 2, 2013 8:24 PM in response to CJfromAB

Hey. I got the same problem too.

This one worked on me:


1) Go to iTunes, right click song and "Get info"

2) On the lyrics tab, delete the existing lyrics and then a leave a single space. Click OK.

3) Sync your phone. (When you check on your phone, there should be a blank lyrics.)

4) Now go back to the song, add the "CORRECT" lyrics. Click OK.

5) Re-sync your phone.


Then TA-DAH!! You have now your correct updated lyrics.

Please tell me if it worked on you! 🙂

Aug 19, 2017 2:40 PM in response to CJfromAB

As far as I've been able to tell, unlike editing the track name, artwork, or other metadata, changing the lyrics in iTunes doesn't mark the file as changed-and-therefore-needing-to-be-resynced. According to Finder, however, the file's Date Modified is updates, so iTunes does hard-save the lyrics into the file metadata, it just doesn't sync it.


Workaround: Change the track name, or any of the other fields on that first "Details" page, and iTunes will sync your new lyrics with that change.


iTunes version 12.6.2, macOS 10.12.6

Feb 15, 2012 11:34 AM in response to CJfromAB

Deleting the songs from the iPhone, to force iTunes to copy the newer track version, should have done the trick...


In case there's an issue with the iPhone, try a simple Reset, then sync again:

Press and hold both the Sleep/Wake button and the Home button for at least ten seconds, until the Apple logo appears (ignore the Slide to Power Off option that shows up first).


If that does not help, you can try a Restore (it's not very complicate, just remember to say Yes when it prompts you to make, then restore from backup):

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1414

Feb 15, 2012 2:31 PM in response to Rysz

Thanks for the suggestions Rysz.


I deleted the songs, tried to re-sync and that did not work.

I did a reset on the iphone, but that did not work either.

The Album artwork syncs properly, but forwhatever reason, the lyrics don't.

I haven't taken the step of restoring my iPhone yet, as that seems a little drastic for changing the lyrics.

The way the lyrics are remembered from the first time they are synced, it seems to me like the lyrics are not deleted on the iPhone when they should be, and if the song re-appears on the phone the link is re-activated and it ignores any new text in the lyrics field.


Oh well, I guess I will have to wait for iOS 5.0.2 or 5.0.3 or 6.0 before this is working properly...

May 1, 2012 7:56 AM in response to CJfromAB

i have the same problem too.


My workaround:

- Write your Lyrics into the song

- Delete the Song from the iTunes Library (right-click -> delete -> move to trash

- Open the Trash folder and move the song to the desktop (that's only because it's quicker to find there later and that you don't accidently delete your song comletely)

- Sync the iPhone/iPod Touch (Song should now be deletet in iTunes and on your iDevice)

- Go to "Add to music library" and select the deleted song from the desktop

- Sync your iPhone/iPod Touch again


Song should now be displayed with the right lyrics on your iPhone/iPod Touch.



But please do also report your bug on:

www.apple.com/feedback/


The more people reporting that bug directly to Apple, the faster they will work on a solution (hopefully).

May 1, 2012 9:07 AM in response to robs89

Another workaround which i doscovered now:


- Add the lyrics to your song

- Change some other Information (add a letter to or so on, you redo it later) like Artist, Album-Name,...

- Sync it with your iDevice

- Lyrics should now be ok on your iDevice

- Change back the Information from step 2

- Sync it again with your iDevice


Everything should be fine now.

May 17, 2012 12:56 PM in response to robs89

This is a frustrating problem for me too. It wasn't syncing any lyrics the last couple months - not quite sure when I realized it. I took robs89 advice and typed a letter into the comment box on the info tab and synced music and my lyrics were back for that particular song. I know you can scroll through your library by clicking next but UGH! To do this for every song is riduculous. Hope Apple fixes it.

changed lyrics not syncing

Welcome to Apple Support Community
A forum where Apple customers help each other with their products. Get started with your Apple Account.