TalysAlankil
Level 1 (9 points)
iTunes

Q: Duplicate artist

Whenever I add new music to my iTunes library (and for the past few months, that's been every single time), if I already had music from the same artist, iTunes creates a duplicate entry in the Artists column instead of merging them properly. With older versions of iTunes I could just select everything, change the album artist field then change it back and it would usually merge (though it would mess up my synchronizations, which is annoying in and of itself), but since the most recent iTunes upgrade (12.4.0.119) that doesn't even work anymore, instead iTunes keeps two separate entries and seems to randomly assign some tracks to one and some to the other.

 

Does anyone know a fix for this/could Apple please sort this out, it's been at least half a year since this bug first showed up?

MacBook Pro with Retina display, OS X El Capitan (10.11)

Posted on May 22, 2016 4:12 AM

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TalysAlankil

Q: Duplicate artist

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  • Helpful answers

  • by joe_7399,

    joe_7399 joe_7399 May 23, 2016 2:47 PM in response to TalysAlankil
    Community Specialists
    May 23, 2016 2:47 PM in response to TalysAlankil

    Hi TalysAlankil, 

     

    Thank you for using the Apple Support Communities!

     

    I understand that when importing music to your iTunes library, you are seeing the albums split and multiple artists with the same name. We know that these type of situations can be frustrating, but we’re here to help. 

     

    For information on how to correct this behavior, please read over and work through the steps from the following article. 

     

    If you see unexpected groups of songs when you browse an album - Apple Support

     

    Cheers!

  • by Rysz,

    Rysz Rysz May 23, 2016 2:50 PM in response to TalysAlankil
    Level 7 (20,279 points)
    iTunes
    May 23, 2016 2:50 PM in response to TalysAlankil

    This user tip should be of help Fix split Album or Artist listings in iTunes

  • by TalysAlankil,

    TalysAlankil TalysAlankil May 24, 2016 7:15 AM in response to Rysz
    Level 1 (9 points)
    iTunes
    May 24, 2016 7:15 AM in response to Rysz

    As mentioned in my OP, I used to do that, but it's not working for me.

     

    Also, my issue isn't that albums are split—albums are all nicely kept together. My issue is that albums by the same artists are listed as separate artists.

  • by Dr_Joecool,

    Dr_Joecool Dr_Joecool May 24, 2016 11:25 AM in response to TalysAlankil
    Level 1 (8 points)
    iTunes
    May 24, 2016 11:25 AM in response to TalysAlankil

    Hi TalysAlankil,

     

    I've noticed this with 12.4.0.119 too. To say it is annoying is an understatement!

     

    I've attached a screenshot for ease (speaks a thousand words!).

     

    Capture.PNG

     

    I've been using iTunes for ages and normally this is an easy fix because of a typo or added character somewhere! Having only come across this in the 12.4.0.119 update I blame Apple!

     

    In testing the example above, it was initially sorted as one artist but while trying to resolve this problem for another artist I removed the artist name from the Artist and Album Artist textbox and OK'ed with empty textboxes. I then went back into all three albums (all songs selected at once) and re-added the artist's name into the aforementioned textboxes. Doing this created the pictured problem. However, I cannot for the life of me work out how to bring all the artist's songs together again!

     

    Answers on a postcard please!

  • by Nicolas2478,

    Nicolas2478 Nicolas2478 May 29, 2016 11:10 AM in response to Dr_Joecool
    Level 1 (8 points)
    iTunes
    May 29, 2016 11:10 AM in response to Dr_Joecool

    Hi,

     

    This issue appeared for me with iTunes 12.2 and it's really annoying... (still waiting for Apple to correct this bug)


    I have found a solution to bring all the songs from the same artist together :

       1) Be sure to get all the metadatas right for the artist in "get info" (artist name, album name, genre etc...)

       2) Then, go in "songs view" instead of "artists view" and rank the songs by artist name (by clicking on the artist column at the top).

       3) Select all the songs from the same artist and delete them : when iTunes asks, select "move to trash".

       4) Then go in the trash bin, copy the songs you just deleted and paste them in a folder on your desktop.

       5) In iTunes, select "File --> add to library" and select all the songs from the folder on your desktop.

       6) Now all the songs from the same artist should be together in "artists view".

     

    I hope that helps !

  • by Rysz,

    Rysz Rysz May 29, 2016 11:14 AM in response to TalysAlankil
    Level 7 (20,279 points)
    iTunes
    May 29, 2016 11:14 AM in response to TalysAlankil

    There are two methods described in the user tip and they apply to more than just the album field. Please read again.

  • by Dr_Joecool,

    Dr_Joecool Dr_Joecool Jun 6, 2016 10:57 AM in response to Nicolas2478
    Level 1 (8 points)
    iTunes
    Jun 6, 2016 10:57 AM in response to Nicolas2478

    You know what? That's only gone and worked!

     

    I had tried re-adding all songs before, but only by drag and dropping. Either way, I can live with this as a solution until Apple pull their finger out!

     

    Nicolas2478 - Thank you very much!