Skip to main content

Shazam now lets users play music videos for identified songs and share via iMessage

Shazam App
rzoze19/Shutterstock
Chances are fairly good that you still think of Shazam as that app that identifies songs for you, and yes, it does that, but the app has also been adding other functionality. The app now offers built-in music video playback, but it’s still based on Shazam’s core functionality: discovering and learning more about new music. Moreover, Shazam also now lets users identify and share songs directly within iMessage, because after all, music is a social experience.

Now, even if you’re mid-text, you can figure what song is playing in your favorite coffee shop, simply by touching the Shazam button within iMessage. The results is then displayed in the message field and can be sent to your friends (or yourself).

Recommended Videos

“We are very pleased to bring the new functionality of iMessage to our global audience,” said Fabio Santini, Chief Product Officer, Shazam. “We are always working to improve our user experience with new technology, and we are excited to launch this feature with iOS 10. We think music fans will love how easy it is to share Shazams within a great conversation. ”

Please enable Javascript to view this content

And in introducing the new music video functionality, Santini added, “We continually look for new ways to expand the ways in which our users can discover music. We want to give fans a great reason to spend more time with Shazam by giving them access to a rich and immersive music video experience. In turn, this creates new revenue opportunities for artists and, moreover, powerful ways of gaining exposure for brands.”

Previously, when Shazam would ID a song, the user would be presented with the option to listen to the song via Spotify or Apple Music, or to purchase it via iTunes. Now, if a video is found to be associated with the song, the user will see the video instead, though they will still have to tap it to play, so there is no need to worry about auto-playing the wrong song.

This new video functionality is powered by a new partnership between Shazam and Vadio, a Portland, Oregon-based music video platform. Vadio already has deals in place with labels like Warner Music Group that allow Shazam to play music videos for users without fully committing to streaming like they have to with companies such as Spotify or Apple.

“Introducing Vadio’s immersive music video experience into Shazam enables their audience to better engage with artists,” Vadio co-founder and CEO Bryce Clemmer said. “Shazam is the quintessential destination for music discovery with hundreds of millions of global users. By incorporating high-quality video, Shazam is making it possible for brands and artists to provide new ways for its global audience to discover music.”

Vadio will attempt to find the identified song’s official music video, though if one can’t be found, it will search for other videos, including live performances. It will take a while to see how well this works in practice, but this could be a handy feature for listeners who aren’t interested in purchasing songs or paying for a subscription to a streaming service.

Download for iOS Download for Android

Kris Wouk
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Kris Wouk is a tech writer, gadget reviewer, blogger, and whatever it's called when someone makes videos for the web. In his…
Possible iPhone 17 Air design looks strangely familiar
possible iphone 17 air design looks strangely familiar concept weis studio

The biggest Apple story in 2025 is likely to be the launch of the iPhone 17 Air in the fall. Design leaks about the new phone, which is expected to replace the iPhone Plus in the iPhone 17 series lineup, have gradually emerged. Now, WEIS Studio has released an Instagram video that shows what the phone could look like.

As you can see, the phone's back looks nothing like any iPhone currently on the market. This is because rumors suggest the rear camera system will sit horizontally, not vertically.

Read more
Like T-Mobile? You can pay your phone bill by playing games
T-Mobile REVVL 7 PRO 5G back.

How much time do you spend playing mobile games on your phone? A lot of people use them to pass the time, but Metro by T-Mobile customers could double down and work toward paying off their monthly bill. The carrier has partnered with the Ad It Up app to let users earn points by shopping, playing games, and answering surveys. All those points can be placed toward your next month's bill.

This only works for a few specific carriers, including Cricket and T-Mobile. Anyone can download the app, but will receive an alert that their carrier isn't supported if it's any besides these. The available games include Coin Master, Traffic Puzzle, and Cube Master, but there are others to choose from if none of those fit your tastes. For example, you can play the wildly popular 2048 puzzle game to earn points.

Read more
Galaxy S24 owners could fall a whole Android version behind the Pixel
The vertical app drawer in One UI 7.

The Samsung Galaxy S25 series is the only set of devices currently featuring the long-delayed One UI 7. Unfortunately, other Samsung devices will not receive this update soon. This delay could impact devices currently in the wild and new ones set to launch this year.

According to SAM Mobile, sources say Samsung is delaying the launch of a stable One UI 7.0 update to non-Galaxy S25 series devices. Currently, the expectation is a stable One UI 7.0 update won’t be available until the company launches the all-new Galaxy S25 Edge, which could happen sometime in April. Only then would non-Galaxy S25 devices be eligible to receive a version of One UI 7, probably One UI 7.0.1.

Read more