homepod won't play playlists

I had the same issue. Turns out I had an unusual problem where Siri on HomePod couldn't find my playlists. The fix was to reset the HomePod. I deleted the HomePod from the Home app. Then I had to unplug the HomePod, wait 5 seconds then plug it back in, then press and hold the top til I got a reset message. Then I set the HomePod up like it was new. Now Siri can play my playlists.

This worked for me (without having to reset my HomePod):

In the Home app, go to the Details page for your HomePod. Tap on your email address, where it says Account. Sign Out, then sign back in.

My HomePod was not connecting to my HomeKit properly, so I reset it. After resetting, my HomePod kept saying that it couldn’t find my playlist I wanted to play (was working and playing that same playlist before resetting). Not wanting to go through the whole reset process, I tried signing out and back in of my account on my HomePod, through the Home app. After, both HomeKit and Playlists were working properly again! Hope this helps!!!

Hey all, so I was having same problem with Siri on HomePod not recognizing playlists wether they have 1 name or 2. I have Apple Music and iCloud music library is on. As some of you posted here, I erased HomePod from Home app, disconnected it, waited about 10 seconds then plugged it back in. Held down the top until it turned red and a sound rang to reset. Then I setup as new and now it recognizes all playlists. Thanks everyone!

See the Manage Music & Podcasts section of Change settings for HomePod - Apple Support. Try signing out of your Apple ID there, then sign back in again.

If that doesn't work make sure that iCloud Music Library is enabled on the device that you use to configure the HomePod, then set up the HomePod again from scratch: Reset HomePod - Apple Support.

tt2

So here is a fair reply to my second attempt to fix this situation. First off, thank you everyone for your previous input.

I followed tt2's recommendation and signed out of my apple ID account and signed back in. I then created a new playlist and titled it "Anita." I then went for a walk and asked Siri on my iPhone 7 to play a playlist....Anita. It worked on my iPhone.

I returned home and asked the HomePod "Hey Siri, play a playlist......Anita." And it worked.

Now that this appears to be functioning, I am pleased with the look, sound and design of the homepod. So long as it plays my apple music (as it's intended) I won't have any complaints.

Thanks again all!

I had to remove the HomePod and rerun setup. Then it takes a few hours to sync but there is nothing telling you that. After that all my playlists seem to work.

You need Apple Music or iTunes Match to be able to get Siri on the HomePod to play your own playlists and anything other than Tunes purchases. If you don't have either then you can AirPlay what you want from an iOS device or a Mac.

tt2

John0001 wrote:

...

I just need iTunes Music Purchases to work. If i ask to play a specific song, it works, just not a playlist.

Apple don't sell playlists, they sell songs and albums. To be able to use Siri on HomePod to call up a playlist by name you must have an active iCloud Music Library, which in turn is a feature of Apple Music and/or iTunes Match.

tt2

To be able to use Siri on HomePod to call up a playlist by name you must have an active iCloud Music Library, which in turn is a feature of Apple Music and/or iTunes Match. If you don't want to use either of those services then you can use AirPay from an iOS device, Mac, or iTunes.

tt2

I recently enabled Apple Music and tried to merge the existing content on my iPhone with an existing iTunes Match library. It was a mess. I deleted all of the new additions so I could start over and am now nearly through selectively adding media and it is going much better. I don't want to risk merging the whole of my regular library into the service, but more importantly I don't have an all you can eat cell service so I want everything that is in my iCloud library downloaded to the device so I can play without using data. For HomePod use I can access anything else at random without adding it to my iCloud Music Library.

Back to the requirement for iCloud Music to play playlists using Siri on HomePod. It may not say so explicitly in Use Siri to play music or podcasts on your HomePod - Apple Support but if you only have purchased content in your iTunes library then all that the iTunes Store knows about your library is what you've previously purchased, and that is then all that Siri on the HomePod can know. You need iCloud Music Library to upload playlist information and non-store purchases to your account. That same page also fails to make it clear that iTunes for Windows can be used to AirPlay to HomePod, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that it can.

tt2

Do you have a subscription to iTunes Match? If you don't have iTunes Match or Apple Music then Siri can only be used to pull up your purchased music or podcasts. Anything else would need to come via AirPlay.

tt2

If you haven't already tried it...

On your iOS device try going into Home > HomePod > Details > Music & Podcasts > Account > Sign Out, then sign in again.

tt2

I got it to work now. I reset the Homepod, and I went to the iMac and set up homesharing and all other settings I thought would be important and it now works. Guess it is just my lack of familiarity with iTunes that was the problem. This discussion helped though thanks for sharing your thoughts!

Yes, monthly based on subscription choice. $4.99 to $19.99 (I think) USD.

As for the playlists, when you add them in iTunes, please select all the songs and right click and "add songs to apple music library" and wait until they're uploaded and matched. Most songs created, even playlists from Apple do not always match correctly. This additional step solved my version of the same problem.