Local songs cannot be added to playlists or played from the Liked Songs

[Rndmann]

Plan

Free

Device

Samsung Galaxy M51

Operating System

Android 12

Spotify Version

9.0.26.632

My Question or Issue

When I opened my playlists, I noticed that certain songs were immediately removed from them. After a brief inspection, I realized that these songs were local songs. When I attempted to re-add them, I received the notification, "song added to 'name of playlist,'" but the songs do not actually appear in the playlists. I know they are still on the lists, though, because when I checked Spotify on my browser, I could see the songs there, even though they were greyed out.

However, local songs are still present in my liked songs, but even though they are still there, they can no longer be played from that list. The only way to play them is directly from the local songs file.

I have tried restarting my device, logging back in, clearing the cache, and even doing a clean reinstall, but the issue persists.

Additionally, I want to mention that I have Spotify installed on only one device (previously, I was using Spotify only from the browser). This means I can't just go to another device to disable smart shuffle, and since I only have the free plan, the only option I had all this time was smart shuffle, and have not encountered this problem until recently. Therefore, something like https://community.spotify.com/t5/Your-Library/Disappearing-Local-Files-in-playlist/m-p/6825329 won't help at all.

[Ivelina]

Hey @Rndmann,

Thanks for posting this thread and for the clarification! It's also great that you've shared what troubleshooting steps you've already tested with.

It's worth mentioning that with the free version of Spotify on mobile, it's not possible to pick-and-play the local files, but they should be played in Shuffle mode when you've added them to a playlist.

Since you don't see certain local files and they don't appear in playlists, could you check and make sure that the option Show unplayable songs is enabled in Settings > Content and display? 

Lastly, let us know if on desktop you see the green checkmark next to the songs in the local files folder (indicating they're added to a playlist) and if they have the correct playlist selected when you tap them.

Appreciate the cooperation and we'll be on the lookout for your response.

[Rndmann]

In the free version of Spotify on mobile, I can tap and play any song I want, but I'm limited to doing this a certain number of times each day. After that, as you said, I can only listen to songs in shuffle mode of playlists.

Yes, I have already enabled the option for unplayable songs. As proof, I can see a few Spotify songs (non-local songs) in my list as greyed out because they have been removed.

I should mention again that I do not see any of my local songs in my playlists on my mobile device; they have completely disappeared. However, they still appear in my liked songs and local songs, but I can't play them from the liked songs playlist; I can only play them from the local songs.

I don’t have any songs on my desktop, so there are no local song files when I open Spotify in my desktop browser (my desktop doesn’t have the app). As I mentioned in previous post, songs on my mobile device appear greyed out in playlists on my desktop, so I know that the songs are there but not displayed on my mobile device. They do not have checkmarks next to them, and when I click the add button, it does not have any effect on either my desktop or my mobile device.

[Eni]

Hey there @Rndmann, 

Thanks for getting back to us. 

Could you let us know if this started happening after a specific event such as an update either of Spotify or the OS of your phone? Additionally, are you using an SD card in your phone? 

On another note, would you mind checking if the same happens with a different account on your device? You can create one for testing purposes to try with. Then, make sure to follow these steps.

Keep us posted on how it goes. 

[Rndmann]

I'm not entirely sure. It definitely wasn't related to an OS update, as I haven't had one for quite some time. However, about three weeks ago, I had this problem with local files: https://community.spotify.com/t5/Ongoing-Issues/Android-App-crashing-when-loading-playlists/idi-p/67...

I suspect that a bug fix update related to that issue may have caused this new problem, although that's just a guess. I don't have an SD card in my phone.

I tried using another account, and the same thing happened again; there was no difference.

[Yordan]

Hey there, @Rndmann,

Thanks for testing 👍

Smart Shuffle is the default playback experience in the mobile app for free users in some regions, with yours being one of them by the sound of it. The thing is, Smart Shuffle temporarily hides any local files in the playlist as long as it's toggled on, but if you can't turn it off without upgrading to Premium, then the only way to access your local files would be through the Local Files folder in Your Library.

We fully understand that this is not ideal, and while unable to provide an ETA for a fix at the moment, rest assured we’re regularly looking for opportunities to enhance the user experience for everyone, so your feedback on this is greatly appreciated.

In the meantime, make sure you're always running the latest version of Spotify so you don't miss out on any updates.
 

The Community is here if something else comes up.

Take care 💚

[Rndmann]

I already mentioned this in my first post: I have always been on the free plan, which means I always had Smart Shuffle. However, for the sake of the argument, let's say I am misremembering about Smart Shuffle. But I didn't experience this problem until several days ago. The logical conclusion of this is shuffle settings in my region suddenly changing around that time. Is this what you are suggesting?

Edit: I discovered that when I create a new playlist and add only local songs, everything works perfectly; all songs are displayed and can be played without issue. However, once I add a non-local song to that playlist, all the local songs disappear.