How to get the music feature on instagram
How To Add Music To An Instagram Story
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Daniel Horowitz
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January 19, 2022
When Instagram added the Stories feature in 2016, it was designed as a way to compete with Snapchat, which was absolutely exploding in popularity at the time. Like Snapchat, Stories provides users with a way to make a limited-time (24-hour) post for other users to view before it disappears forever. And when it launched, Instagram users flocked to the feature and it quickly became one of the biggest features on the platform.
Since then, Instagram has added many additional features, including the ability to add songs to your Instagram stories.
This allows people to make their content more engaging to appeal to their followers and help them to gain new ones.
Here's how you can utilize the Instagram music feature and add all of your favorite tracks to your next Instagram Story.
Best ways to put music on your Instagram Story
There are several ways to add music to your Instagram Story, and they all give you different options for music choices. You can include certain songs from Instagram itself as well as popular music services such as the Spotify app, Soundcloud, Apple Music, and Shazam.
All Instagram stories last up to 15 seconds per individual Story, so it's important to find a track – or section of a track – that fits into that time window. Let’s take a look at the options you can use to find a song that fits your Story.
Add music from Instagram
Adding music from Instagram itself is the most straightforward option. Here’s how to do it:
- Open the Instagram app and click on the plus icon at the top of the screen. This will bring you to the "add to Story" screen where you can create your Instagram Story.
- Once you create your Story (video, photo, GIF, etc.), you can select from Instagram's music library.
- To add a track to your Story, click on the Sticker button and then tap on the Music sticker.
This will open up the Instagram music library, where you can then browse through thousands of songs.
Keep in mind that not all songs are available in every country due to copyright restrictions. Business accounts are also more limited in song selection.
When you begin to browse, you'll see a "for you" section. This is determined by Instagram's algorithm and the accounts you follow, who you interact with, and your own posting history.
If you want to explore beyond these tunes, you can tap on the browse button at the top of the screen. This will allow you to search through Instagram's music catalog. You can also manually type in the name of a song or artist if you are looking for something specific.
When selecting songs, you have the option to use a segment of the song that lasts from 5 to 15 seconds. You’ll pick the length using a slider within the app. Then, click on the "Done" button and you have successfully added the selected song to your Instagram Story.
Add music from Spotify
If you can't find what you're looking for on Instagram, the next best place to search is Spotify.
Spotify is one of the most popular music streaming apps, and chances are it has exactly what you need. To integrate it with Instagram, you need a Spotify Premium account, which costs $9.99 per month for individual plans.
To add a track from Spotify, follow these steps:
- Open the Spotify app
- Click on the song that you want to add
- Click on the ellipses in the top right corner of the screen
- Scroll down and click share in the menu
- Select Instagram stories
Spotify will then automatically open the Instagram app for you. It will update your Story with the selected track and also add the cover art of the song or album.
When you use this method, the song will not play directly on Instagram. After you post your Story, the app will create a link in the top left corner that says "Play on Spotify." Your followers must click on the picture of the album or song so they can open Spotify to listen to the audio.
Add music from SoundCloud
SoundCloud is primarily used by up-and-coming artists, and Instagram stories is a great place to showcase this type of music. That’s particularly true if you’re into music production or songwriting and looking for a way to share your own tunes.
You can post SoundCloud songs on Instagram stories by following these steps:
- Open the SoundCloud app
- Select the song you want to share
- Click on the share icon and select "Share to Instagram stories."
This will then open up the Instagram app, which will automatically add the album or song artwork as the image for your Story. You can also add a sticker with the SoundCloud logo and song title on it. This allows users to click through to your desired SoundCloud page to listen to the song. You can also add hashtags, GIFs, and text to the image to help other users discover it.
Add music from Apple Music
Sharing music from Apple Music to your Instagram Story is a great way to share your favorite songs with your friends and followers.
Like other third-party integrations with Instagram Stories, you can’t share the music’s actual audio directly in the Instagram app. The good news here, though, is that Apple Music has more than 90 million songs, so you shouldn’t have any issue finding the song you want to share.
The process is simple:
- Open the Apple Music app and click on the ellipses in the top right corner.
- You now have the option to "Share."
- Once you select “Share,” scroll down through the various apps and select Instagram.
This will import the album or song artwork with a link in the top left corner of your Instagram Story to "Play on Apple Music." If users click on the link, it will open the Apple Music app where they can listen to the track.
Add music from Shazam
Have you ever heard a song in public, on a television show, or at a party and you couldn’t quite put your finger on what it is? There’s an app for that, and it’s called Shazam. The app has actually been around for more than 20 years, but it’s grown a lot since Apple bought it in 2017.
It’s now native to all iPhones and is even integrated with Siri.
Shazam’s prevalence makes it easier than ever to use the app and identify a song playing in a grocery store. And if you ever felt the need to share your discovery with your Instagram followers, you can do it directly within the Shazam app.
Once you discover a song, here’s what you need to do:
- Tap on the ellipses in the top right corner of the Shazam app.
- Click on "Share" and then "Instagram stories" to open Instagram.
- This will import the album or song artwork and add a "More on Shazam" link in your Instagram Story.
This is a great way to show your friends how you discovered or rediscovered a new song. You can also add text and other stickers to explain how you found this song and where you were when it happened.
Putting song lyrics on your Instagram Story
When you add a track to your Instagram, you can add more than just the audio or artwork. You can add the lyrics, too.
The lyrics will fit exactly with the section of the song you choose to highlight in your Story, and you can add them over either a photo or video.
To add lyrics to your Story, use the following steps:
- Open the Instagram app.
- Click on the plus sign on your profile pic in the top left corner of the screen to open your Story.
- Add the photo or video you want to feature.
- Select the "Music Sticker" to add music directly from Instagram.
- Search for the song you want to add to your Story.
- Once you select the song, tap on the album artwork that appears.
You now have the option to add lyrics in several different font types. You can also alter the size of the lyrics and where they appear in the Story. Keep in mind that not all music in the Instagram music catalog allows you to add lyrics.
Summary
Sharing music with your friends and followers on social media is one of the greatest ways to connect with people.
And with Instagram Stories, you can broadcast your new favorite tracks while discovering new music through people you follow on Instagram. You can also click through music-related hashtags, which is just another way to find the best new tunes to add to your playlist.
About the Author: Daniel Horowitz is a contributing writer for HP Tech Takes. Daniel is a New York-based author and has written for publications such as USA Today, Digital Trends, Unwinnable Magazine, and many other media outlets.
Disclosure: Our site may get a share of revenue from the sale of the products featured on this page.
How to Add Music to Instagram Stories
- To add music to your Instagram Story, tap the sticker icon and select the music option.
- You can also add music to your Instagram Story from apps like Spotify, SoundCloud, or Shazam.
- If you can't add music to an Instagram Story, you may need to update the app first.
Most Instagram users take advantage of the Stories feature, which allows you to post short disappearing photos and videos with gifs, emojis, and music.
Adding music to your Instagram Story is a simple process once you know where to look. You can even add music directly from other apps like Spotify, SoundCloud, and Shazam.
Here's how to do it all, or troubleshoot if you don't have the option to add music.
How to add music to your Instagram StoryTo add music to an Instagram Story, tap the square smiley face icon in the top-right corner, and select the Music sticker in the pop-up menu. Choose a song by scrolling through the list and customize it by using the buttons that appear at the bottom of your Story.
Here's a full step-by-step breakdown.
1. Open the Instagram app on your iOS or Android device.
2. Swipe right on your feed's home screen to open the Stories feature. Alternatively, tap the plus "+" sign on your profile picture in the top-left corner to create a new Story.
3. Take or select the photo or video you want to post to your Instagram Story.
4. In the menu bar along the top of your screen, tap the square smiley face icon, which looks like a Post-It being peeled away.
Use the Sticker icon to add Music, gifs, emojis, and more to your post. Abigail Abesamis Demarest/Insider5. In the pop-up, tap the Music option.
Then, in the search box that appears, type in a song title or scroll through the listed options.
6. Tap on the song you want to include when it appears on the list. You can tap the play button to preview a song before selecting it.
7. Drag the small bar at the bottom of the screen to adjust the segment of the song you want in your Story.
Quick tip: Tap the number icon to adjust the clip duration. Music snippets can be as short as 5 seconds and as long as 15 seconds.
8.
Tap Done when finished. You can drag the lyrics or song icon to a different location, or pinch the icon outward or inward with your fingers to make it a different size. Then, post your Story as you normally would.
Quick tip: You can select how you want the music to visually appear on your Story — as lyrics in different fonts, the cover art of the album, or a small text box announcing the name of the song.
How to add lyrics to your Instagram StoryOnce you select a song, you can choose to display the lyrics on your Story as the song plays in the background.
1. Select a song following the steps outlined in the previous section.
2. Tap through the text icons above the song slider to preview the different options.
Some lyric styles show all the lyrics at once, while others reveal them one word at a time.
Abigail Abesamis Demarest/Insider 3. When you've found the one you like, tap Done.
Quick tip: Adding in song lyrics can make your Story more accessible, and help users who aren't watching Stories with volume on.
How to add music to your Instagram Story via streaming appsYou can add music to your Instagram story directly from Spotify, SoundCloud, or Shazam. Here's how to do it on each app:
Add music to Instagram Story from Spotify
1. Open the Spotify app on your iOS or Android device, and find the music you want to add to your Instagram Story.
2. Tap the ellipsis icon on a song.
3. In the pop-up menu, scroll down and tap Share.
In this menu, you can also like a song or add it to your queue or playlist. Abigail Abesamis Demarest/Insider4.
In the Share menu, select Stories. A pop-up may ask your permission to open the Instagram app.
5. Spotify will open the Instagram app and automatically upload the cover art of the song, album, or playlist to a new Instagram Story.
Quick tip: If you want the music to play over the cover art image, you'll need to add music using the square smiley face icon, as described in the steps above.
6. Once you post your Story, a link will appear at the top of the Story that says Play on Spotify.
Anyone who views your Story can click this link to be taken directly to that Spotify page.
Quick tip: This is a great way to share your custom playlists with friends who also have the Spotify app.
Add music to Instagram Story from SoundCloud
1. Open the SoundCloud app on your iOS or Android device.
2. Find the song, album, or playlist you want to add to your Instagram Story and tap the ellipsis icon.
Like Spotify, you can share entire albums and playlists, not just songs. Abigail Abesamis Demarest/Insider3. In the pop-up, select Stories, beneath the Instagram logo.
Quick tip: A pop-up may ask your permission to open the Instagram app; click "Yes" or "Okay".
If you want to share a song via text, copy the link and paste it into a new message. Abigail Abesamis Demarest/Insider4. SoundCloud will open the Instagram app and automatically upload the cover art of the song, album, or playlist to a new Instagram Story.
Quick tip: Like Spotify, if you want the music to play over the cover art image, you'll need to add music using the square smiley face icon, as described above.
5. Once you post your Story, a link will appear at the top of the Story that says Play on SoundCloud.
Anyone who views your Story can click this link to be taken directly to that SoundCloud page.
Add music to Instagram Story from Shazam
1. Open the Shazam app on your iOS or Android device.
2. You can Tap to Shazam to identify a new song, or choose a song from your list of previous Shazams. Once you've identified a song, tap on it so it becomes full-screen.
3. On the song's full-screen page, tap the share icon in the top-right corner. Select Instagram from the list of options. A pop-up may ask your permission to open the Instagram app.
The process for sharing a Shazam song on stories is very similar to Spotify and SoundCloud. Abigail Abesamis Demarest/Insider4.
Shazam will open the Instagram app and automatically upload the cover art of the song to a new Instagram Story.
Quick tip: Like Spotify and SoundCloud, if you want the music to play over the cover art image, you'll need to add music using the square smiley face icon, as described above.
5. Once you post your Story, a link will appear at the top of the Story that says More on Shazam. Anyone who views your Story can click this link to be taken directly to that song on Shazam.
How to add music to an Instagram Story if you don't have the music sticker1. Open a music streaming app, like Spotify or Apple Music, on your device.
2. Start playing the song you want to use.
3. With the song still playing, go back to Instagram and record your Story; the music playing on your phone will be integrated. However, you won't be able to add a dynamic album cover or live lyrics.
Quick tip: If you add music this way, Instagram will check your Story for copyright infringement, and if detected, will remove the sound from your video.
There may be a few reasons why you don't have the music sticker:
- You live in a country where the feature isn't available. Music is enabled on the app in over 90 countries, but due to Instagram's strict adherence to copyright law, it's disabled in some countries.
- Your app is out of date. You may need to simply update Instagram.
- You're trying to share a branded content campaign. Due to copyright laws and Instagram's advertising policies, music and some other features like stickers and emojis aren't allowed in branded content ads.
Jennifer Still
Jennifer is a writer and editor from Brooklyn, New York, who spends her time traveling, drinking iced coffee, and watching way too much TV.
She has bylines in Vanity Fair, Glamour, Decider, Mic, and many more. You can find her on Twitter at @jenniferlstill.
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Abigail Abesamis Demarest
Abigail Abesamis Demarest is a contributing writer for Insider based in New York. She loves a good glazed donut and nerdy deep dives into the science of food and how it's made.
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Music in Stories, short videos and replies with songs: Instagram will launch new features in Russia
- Technologies
- Marina Dulneva Author
- Anastasia Skrynnikova Editorial Forbes
Instagram has announced the launch of new features in Russia. Users will have access to a TikTok-like Reels video service and a music sticker in Stories. With it, you can add music to your stories and answer questions with songs. Russian Facebook users will be able to pin it in the profile header so that it plays when the page is opened nine0019
Starting June 23, Russian Instagram users will begin accessing Reels, a platform for short videos, the company said.
Finished reading here
With Reels, you can shoot and edit videos up to 30 seconds long, apply AR effects to them, and use the green screen effect to change the background. In Reels, you can add music from the app's library or choose from trends or recommendations. Users will also be able to create their own original audio, and if their account is public, other users will be able to use this audio in their videos. nine0005
Videos created with the new feature can be shared as Stories or Posts, limiting the audience if desired.
The battle for buzzers: how Instagram wants to take over the TikTok audience
In addition, Facebook and Instagram are also launching a new music sticker in Stories.
To add music to your Stories, you will need to follow these steps:
- open the camera in the application, select a photo or video from the gallery, click on the sticker icon and select the Music sticker; nine0008
- find any song from the library, select a fragment, add the name of the artist and the name of the song. If the composition has lyrics, it will automatically appear on the screen;
- click on a sticker to change the text style and animation. The sticker can be moved, rotated and resized.
With the release of the music sticker, Instagram and Facebook users will be able to answer questions in Stories with songs. In addition, Facebook users will be able to add their favorite track to the Hobbies / Interests section and pin it to the profile header - it will be played every time someone decides to visit this user's profile. nine0005
“Reinventing TikTok is unlikely to succeed”: what’s wrong with YouTube and Facebook’s short video services
Instagram began to roll out the Reels feature around the world in an attempt to attract the TikTok audience.
In Russia, the short video format is gaining popularity - VKontakte is already developing its own clone of TikTok - the service is called Clips. In addition, in the fall of 2020, the head of the Ministry of Education, Sergey Kravtsov, announced joint plans with Mail.ru Group to develop an educational network for Russian schoolchildren, similar to TikTok. nine0005
30 most expensive Runet companies. Forbes rating
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overlay videos and photos, how to use music stickers
*Instagram and Facebook social networks belong to Meta, an organization whose activities are recognized as extremist and banned in the territory of the Russian Federation
Sultan Suleimanov
listens to music on Instagram *
Author profile
Users of Instagram and Facebook* from Russia since June 23 have access to music stickers, a feature that allows you to add snippets of songs to Stories.
nine0005
Music stickers on Instagram* appeared back in 2018, but earlier users from Russia weren’t able to use them: they couldn’t be added to their stories and they couldn’t listen to music in others. Now everything has changed, and now we will tell you how to use it.
Step 1
Go to Instagram* and select a photo or videoBefore adding a music sticker, you need to create a post in your story. Go to the Instagram app*, swipe left and either take a photo or video in the app's camera or add it from the gallery. This also works with text stories created by the "Create" button in the side menu of the camera, but not with posts in the feed. nine0005
You can process your post - add filters and other stickers - at this stage, or after adding music.
The button with the image of a note allows you to quickly add a music sticker, but you may not have it on the screen. It's safer to click on the add stickers button and find a sticker there that says "Music"Step 2
Add a music sticker Click on the add stickers button and find the item "Music" there.
A list of recommended tracks will appear, but there is a search bar at the top of the screen - you can use it to find the song you are interested in. Click on the track you want to add to your story. nine0005
Facebook*, which owns Instagram*, does not disclose the size of the music database, but there are definitely popular performers there. For example, Artur Pirozhkov, Elka and the King and the Jester group.
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Judging by the list, Instagram* forms the “For You” tab based on user subscriptions: I see in the list of musicians thatis subscribed to
Step 3
Select song snippetAfter you have selected a song, you will be prompted to set up a sticker. Globally, there are two settings: which fragment will sound in stories and how the sticker itself will look. nine0005
First select a fragment - it can be up to 15 seconds long. To do this, move one of the two sliders at the bottom of the screen left or right.
Next to the sliders there is a button for changing the duration: if 15 seconds is too long, you can trim a fragment of the song.
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The button adjusts the duration of the fragment over time. It does not work for stories with videos: the fragment will last as long as your video. The dotted slider allows you to precisely select a section of the song, and the slider above it is useful for quickly moving through the trackStep 4
Customize the appearance of the stickerIf the Instagram database* contains the lyrics of the song you have chosen, then animated lines will appear on the screen, just like in karaoke. By switching between the buttons at the bottom of the screen, you can customize the font and animation associated with it. The colored round icon at the top of the screen is needed to change the color of the text.
If there is no text in the Instagram database* or you don't want to display karaoke in stories, you can choose one of two static sticker options: they show the album cover, artist name and song title.
nine0005
/guide/insta-maska/
How to make a simple mask for Instagram*
When you're done with the settings, click the Done button.
Click on the rainbow button to change the color of the text. If Instagram* doesn't know the lyrics of your song, only static stickerswill be available to you
Step 5
Place the sticker on the screenYou finally got a music sticker! Now you can move it around the screen, tilt and resize it, just like with regular stickers. Pick the perfect location and post what you've got. nine0005 This is what the story will look like after posting
What if I don't have a music sticker?
As a Facebook representative* explained, music stickers will appear gradually for Russian users. This means that you will probably have to wait a few days or weeks - the exact timing is unknown.
To brighten up the wait, you can:
- Update the Instagram app* to the latest version.
