Can't play a song I own without Apple Music subscription

Chalk up another one. Mine expired today. I just tried to play some stuff that I've had for years but had not downloaded to one of my computers. It was displaying the cloud icon which usually means "Hey - we see that you already have this stuff but you haven't downloaded it to this computer. Simply click on this icon to download YOUR music." I clicked on the cloud icon and got the "your Apple Music membership has expired" message.

Given that this forum is on Apple's website, it's not illogical to assume that perhaps someone from Apple might see this thread and do something about it. However, previous experience demonstrates that this is highly unlikely, leaving us in this position of only getting to complain to each other about a problem but powerless to do anything about it.

In the miraculous event that someone from Apple does read this, please realize that this bug (feature?) of Apple Music is removing music from my computer that I already owned long before Apple Music was a glimmer in Apple's eye. What will you do about this??

after a week of trying sync my phone without success I finally made it possible!!! here is how!! "WARNING - MAKE A BACK UP ON ITUNES, DON'T FORGET IT"

1- get into Setting - General - Reset - Erase All Content and Setting...

2- expect your phone get stuck trying to erase, connect to PC and go into DFU Mode.

3- get into iTunes and "upgrade and restore"

4- set as a new iPhone and Sync.

5- restore from your back up!

<Edited by Host>

I've never subscribed to Apple Music but now, I can't even play music I *just*purchased. I can see the songs, cover, etc. but the actual songs won't play. It's amazing how each iteration of iTunes gets progressively worse.

What I don't understand is that if you have reset/restored your iPhone, uninstalled iTunes and the reinstalled it on your computer AND have not turned on either Apple Music or iCloud Music Library on either device, why you cannot sync your own music that you claim is on your hard drive? I have only heard of people not being able to to the old USB sync in iTunes if they have enabled iCloud Music Library - which does disable that part of iTunes.

I have the newest version of iTunes (12.3.1.13) on my iMac and in the library that I have iCloud Music Library turned OFF, I have no problems making a playlist and syncing it to my iPod Nano (which cannot use Apple Music/iCloud Music Library).

I understand that for various reasons you are not happy with AM, but that should not stop you from turning it OFF and going back to the old way of syncing.

That all sounds logical - apart from in my experience, once you've used AM once many of your tracks are replaced with AM encoded versions that are crippled and greyed out so as not to work unless you have an active AM subscription. Not just downloaded new music from while your sub was active, but your own purchased or ripped music.

silent running wrote:

That all sounds logical - apart from in my experience, once you've used AM once many of your tracks are replaced with AM encoded versions that are crippled and greyed out so as not to work unless you have an active AM subscription. Not just downloaded new music from while your sub was active, but your own purchased or ripped music.

The "replacement" of tracks (1) only occurs on your secondary devices - not the one that your initially did your "matching" from and (2) only applies if you download the tracks to those secondary devices. So if you cancel your subscription, all you have to do is go back to the old USB syncing from iTunes to get your previously purchased/ripped music back on your device. You won't be able to use the iCloud Music Library service to get them there.

It's simple!!! I didn't want to continue using Apple Music Service, to be honest it's trash, I was on 8.4, then jump to 9.1 and problems of sync began, apps and ringtones synced normally, music don't, then flush everything and downgrade to 9.0.2 when it was still signed and still problems, after all that and a week and 48hrs strait trying to figure it out what when wrong, I talk to support by chat, they ask me for my IMEI, after 25 to 30 minutes, the subtle recommendation appeared, erase everything within the iPhone and restore and update to 9.1, and guess what??? everything works like a rocket, apps, ringtones and MUSIC... I don't know you but that sound to dark for me, now I have to be happy with a regular ugly UI LOCK iPhone, same one as everybody have.

AND YES!! I'm not happy with stock iPhone UI design, it's not my first device and not my first time either, there's a lot that needs to be change in IOS infrastructure, from UI design to model design, let's face it, iPhone it's a great device, easy to use, but really poor in some other specs, the "NEXT BIG THING" it shouldn't be a bigger iPhone or just adding some extras to a device, it should be something that really blows costumers minds (in a good way), finally, after all it's my iPhone and I should be allow to do whatever I want with it, if it's good, make it even better, make it mine, otherwise why to expend 800 dollars on it, better get it a borrowed, like school computers, don't you think?.

P.S: I know I express a lot, stuff that you didn't even ask me and I shouldn't even have to say, sorry for that, but its how I feel after all this week.

You're kidding me right? It has taken 11 years and 11,000 songs to amass my library. I just cancelled my subscription and I am freaking out at what will happen by the end of the month.

Good point smcc.inoz. Please post an update on how you go with the ACCC. I might know some lawyers who would be interested...

In the meantime it would be great to get a fix suggestion from the supposed 'Apple Support' people, particularly for those who have never signed onto Apple Music.

Had the same issue, sort of. iTunes radio sub cancelled, and when it ended, I couldnt pick to play any song I hadnt purchased directly from iTunes. it would give that ridiculously obnoxious "subscribe!" pop up and then play a song at random. I had to go and turn off iCloud music(in my iPhone settings) and stop showing itunes radio as well. I re-synced all my music from my computer to my iPhone and it works just as it did before I ever got itunes(or apple?)radio.

what caused it for me was it thought it would erase everything from my phone and use the cloud (without asking), and then remove my access to the cloud library after the subscription ended.

Such a ridiculously bad experience cancelling itunes radio, it felt like apple held my music hostage for a subscription! And the fact that I had to go through all that extra effort to get my library back is insane! I cant imagine how frustrating it would be for someone who doesnt have regular access to their main computer

Hopefully this helps someone, goodluck!

Try going into settings, Music, Honesharing. Turn Honesharing back on. You'll need to sign in with your App,e ID. This should fix it.

If that didn't help, there's one more solution.

You guys might hate this, but there's always the iTunes Library clear. Go to:

Windows - C:\Users\[USERNAME]\Music\

Mac - Open Finder, Menu Bar, click: Go>Home>Music>iTunes

There's a lot of files, but there's a file called iTunes Library.itl or whatever the extension is..

Delete that. (By that, I mean move it to a folder where you can still access it.)

Open iTunes and click Agree and you should see your bought album in there. If not, try and delete the album in Finder in which it contains the song files downloaded. Then follow the last solved answer.

Don't know what I mean? I'll help you.

Click on your name at the top right of iTunes, then click "Purchased". Re-download any content you want from there.

Although if it was downloaded when you deleted the iTunes Library.itl, there's a high chance that it's still there.

Hopefully this helps as well!

I have the same exact issue. I had purchased music on Itunes. Downloaded to PC and sync and will not play.

I think its a problem because the music I had purchased before wasn't purchased under these terms, requiring a subscription. Also my new music bought also doesn't play on my phone when synced.

I can understand if it were DRM free as it was before but it isn't. Back to DRM and no converting the music with an outside app with ffmpeg is hard on me.

Granted I only buy things not lossless somewhere else on Itunes.

This solution worked for me on my Mac: In iTunes, while signed in to your account, click on Account > Purchases (or Family Purchases). When you see the list of music you purchased, painstakingly click the download link at the far right for each song, one at a time, until you are carted off to the madhouse. If you wisely only purchased a handful of songs, you should survive the process without developing carpal tunnel syndrome. If, like me, you have thousands of songs you want to reclaim, run the math to decide if subscribing to Amazon Prime is cheaper than surgery.

Download your past purchases

I'm having the same issue but sadly have no idea on how to fix it.