YouTube Music has been testing a redesign of the Now Playing screen since November of 2024. It’s not yet rolled out, and still in flux with YouTube Music now moving the thumbs up and down buttons.
Compared to the current design from 2023, the control line with play/pause, next/last, shuffle, and repeat appear underneath the song name and artist. The timeline remains in the middle, but is now blockier to match the main YouTube app. The carousel with various actions is the last line, with the Song/Video switcher moving down there as well. YTM first introduced that change in February.
The latest Now Playing design sees YouTube Music move the thumbs up/down from the carousel. Instead of a joint pill, they become two circular buttons to the right of the song name/artist.
Current vs. redesign
To me, this visually looks cluttered and not symmetrical enough. However, one upside is that the carousel can show more with Comments, Save, Video, Share, and Download able to appear without swiping (depending on your screen).
This Now Playing redesign has been heavily A/B tested in recent months. There are reports of people losing it every so often.
Meanwhile, YouTube Music recently rolled out a shortcut on album and playlist pages that let you swipe right on a song to Play next. Swiping left lets you add to playlist.
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