Spotify offers music as the artist intends it to be heard, so it can sometimes include explicit content. Look out for the EXPLICIT tag on any releases.
- Spotify Turn Off Explicit
- Can I Block Explicit Lyrics On Spotify Free Version
- Songs With Explicit Lyrics
- Spotify Explicit Settings
Note: Our explicit content tags are applied based on information we receive from rights-holders. We can’t guarantee all explicit content is marked as such.
Spotify is a digital music service that gives you access to millions of songs. Spotify is all the music you’ll ever need. Listening is everything - Spotify. Much like Spotify, listeners can choose to either stream songs or save them for listening offline. With its Offline Music tab on mobile devices, Tidal makes it easy to view only the songs you’ve.
Filtering explicit content
You can choose to allow or prevent explicit content playing on your account. If you manage a Premium Family plan, you can also allow or prevent explicit content playing for other members of the plan.
Filter out content labelled as explicit with these steps:
Mobile and tablet
- Tap Home .
- Tap Settings .
- Tap Explicit Content.
- Switch Allow Explicit Content off (gray).
- Tracks marked as explicit now appear grayed out. It’s not possible to play them and they are skipped over by the player.
Desktop
- Click the arrow in the top-right corner and select Settings.
- Under Explicit Content, switch Allow playback of explicit-rated content off (gray).
Note: Explicit content settings don’t apply if you use Spotify Connect to play to another device.
Remember: Content we identify as explicit is based on information we receive from rights-holders, so it’s possible some explicit content will still play even if you’ve blocked explicit-rated content. If you spot a song that needs an explicit tag, let us know by tapping next to the song and select Report Explicit Content.
For: Premium Family plan managers.
To block content labelled as explicit for a plan member:
- Go to your account page.
- Select Premium Family in the menu on the left.
- Click on the member you’d like to stop hearing explicit content.
- Switch Allow explicit content off (gray).
Remember: Content we identify as explicit is based on information we receive from rights-holders, so it’s possible some explicit content will still play even if you’ve blocked it. If you spot a song that needs an explicit tag, let us know by tapping next to the song and select Report Explicit Content.
Finding clean versions
You can check for clean versions of songs marked as explicit. Pick your device to learn how:
Note: Some explicit content may not have a clean version available.
- On an album page, scroll down to the bottom of the track listings.
- Find more releases of the same album in the bottom-right.
Note: If you don’t see this option, there are no other versions of the album currently available on Spotify. - Choose a version of the album that doesn’t have the EXPLICIT label.
You can also enter the title of the song into the search bar to find any versions that aren’t marked as explicit.
Enter the title of the song into the search bar to find any versions that aren’t marked as explicit.
Note: Some explicit content may not have a clean version available.
Streaming has changed how we listen to music. Where once you had to store your music library as files on your computer, phone or MP3 player after buying songs online or ripping your CD collection, nowadays online streaming services give you instant access to millions of songs, so you can listen to new music or enjoy some old favourites - wherever your mood takes you.
With more than 75 million subscribers around the world, Spotify is the undisputed king of music streaming services. It’s compatible with Amazon’s Alexa personal assistant, so if you have a compatible device, you can stream a song just by asking for it, and play songs, compile playlists, search for artists or find a public playlist - all using just your voice.
It only takes these simple steps to open up a whole world of hands-free music streaming.
Note: You’ll need a Spotify Premium account to control Spotify with Alexa: if you only have the free Spotify account, voice control is not available. We’ll explain the difference between the types of account in step 2.
Step 1: Set up your Amazon Echo speaker
For this you’ll need the Alexa app, which you can download for both iOS devices and Android devices. Setting it up is pretty straightforward – for your complete step-by-step guide, from getting it out of the box to mastering all its tips and tricks, check out our guide to setting up Amazon Echo.
Step 2: Download Spotify
The Spotify app is free to download for iOS and Android devices – you can find it on the Apple App Store or in Google Play. The basic version is free to use, but it’s a limited service – you can only skip so many songs at a time, for example, and you can’t pick which song plays when on a playlist. You’ll also have to listen to adverts between songs – these can’t be skipped.
If you pay £9.99 a month, you’ll get no adverts, unlimited skips, the ability to listen offline and to pick which song plays when. You’ll also get higher quality audio. This is known as Spotify Premium.
Premium is cheaper for students. There’s also Premium for Family, which gives access to up to six people living at the same address. This costs £14.99 a month.
Whichever option you choose, the Spotify app is free to download, so you don’t have to worry about being charged anything. But as we said earlier, you'll need Spotify Premium in order to control it using Alexa.
Step 3: Log into Spotify
Now it’s time to log into Spotify. Just enter your email address/username and password when prompted.
Not used Spotify before? No problem. You can sign up in just a few seconds.
Step 4: Link your Spotify account
Within the Alexa app, go to Settings (the cog icon in the bottom right corner of the screen) > Music & Media> Spotify. Tap the link to Link account on Spotify.com and you’ll be prompted to log into Spotify.
It will then alert you that Alexa will be able to receive this Spotify account data – this includes the proviso that your information may be transferred outside the EEA. If you’re OK with that, tap Okay.
Your Spotify account is now linked with your Amazon Echo speaker.
Step 5: Make Spotify your default music service
It’s all well and good having Spotify linked to your Echo speaker, but it’s a pain having to request Alexa to open the programme each time you want to play a song.
Thankfully there is a way around that – make it your default music service. That way, you can just say “Alexa, play pop” and it’ll start blasting out the hits of the day directly from Spotify.
To make Spotify your default music service, go to Settings> Music & Media within the Alexa app, then tap Choose Default Music Services. By default, your default music service is Amazon Music. Just tap the Spotify box to change it to Spotify, then tap Done.
Step 6: Start controlling
Spotify Turn Off Explicit
Now it’s time to start using Spotify hands-free on your Echo speaker. You have a ton of voice commands at your disposal: most of them are pretty obvious but some are a little more niche.
The basics include “Play”, “Pause”, “Shuffle” (and “Stop shuffle”) and “Resume”, all of which are self-explanatory.
You can also be more general with your requests, for example “Play some music”, “Play what’s hot in Brazil” and “Play songs similar to the sixties.”
You can be more specific, too. These controls include “Play [song/album/artist]”, “Play [name emotion] music”, “Play [radio station name]”, “Play [playlist name]”. You can create playlists, add songs/albums/artists to an already existing playlist, and block songs with explicit lyrics, all by asking. You can also request information by asking questions like “Who’s the lead singer for [band name]?”
Can I Block Explicit Lyrics On Spotify Free Version
Which devices support Alexa control for Spotify?
A range of Alexa-compatible devices support hands-free Spotify control. These are: the Amazon Echo, Echo Show, Echo Dot, Echo Spot, Amazon Tap (which isn’t currently available in the UK), Fire TV Cube (again, not yet available in the UK) and Sonos One smart speaker.
Songs With Explicit Lyrics
All of these have Alexa built-in, so you can control your Spotify just by speaking. To get set up on any of these devices, just follow the steps above.
What if I don’t want to control Spotify by speaking?
Spotify Explicit Settings
No problem. You can connect to your Echo speaker over Bluetooth and use the Spotify app on your phone to control it remotely.