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skills/dpearson2699/swift-ios-skills/skills-musickit

musickit

1
dpearson2699/swift-ios-skills·Multimedia Process·Audit passed·Snapshot 90d7bd32d102
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0

Summary

Integrate Apple Music playback, catalog search, and Now Playing metadata using MusicKit and MediaPlayer. Use when adding music search, Apple Music subscription flows, queue management, playback controls, remote command handling, or Now Playing info to iOS apps.

SKILL.md

MusicKit

Search the Apple Music catalog, manage playback with ApplicationMusicPlayer, check subscriptions, and publish Now Playing metadata via MPNowPlayingInfoCenter and MPRemoteCommandCenter.

Contents

  • Setup
  • Workflow
  • Authorization
  • Catalog Search
  • Subscription Checks
  • Playback with ApplicationMusicPlayer
  • Queue Management
  • Now Playing Info
  • Remote Command Center
  • Common Mistakes
  • Review Checklist
  • References

Workflow

  1. Verify the MusicKit App Service, bundle identifier, purpose string, and background-audio mode before debugging code.
  2. Request authorization, then model every non-authorized state explicitly.
  3. Search or load catalog content and check MusicSubscription.current before queueing playback.
  4. Choose ApplicationMusicPlayer for app-scoped playback; wire Now Playing and remote commands only when the app owns those surfaces.
  5. Test authorized, denied, unsubscribed, offline, queue failure, interruption, and track-change states. Fix the smallest failing layer, restore the fixture, and rerun the same state matrix.

Setup

Project Configuration

  1. Enable the MusicKit App Service for the app's explicit bundle ID in the Apple Developer portal so MusicKit can generate developer tokens automatically.
  • Add NSAppleMusicUsageDescription to Info.plist explaining why the app accesses the user's media library.
  • For background playback, add the audio background mode to UIBackgroundModes.
  • Imports

    import MusicKit       // Catalog, auth, playback
    import MediaPlayer    // MPRemoteCommandCenter, MPNowPlayingInfoCenter
    

    Authorization

    Request permission before accessing the user's music data or playing Apple Music content. request() presents Apple's consent dialog when necessary; use currentStatus to read the current setting without prompting.

    func requestMusicAccess() async -> MusicAuthorization.Status {
        let status = await MusicAuthorization.request()
        switch status {
        case .authorized:
            // Full access to MusicKit APIs
            break
        case .denied, .restricted:
            // Show guidance to enable in Settings
            break
        case .notDetermined:
            break
        @unknown default:
            break
        }
        return status
    }
    
    // Check current status without prompting
    let current = MusicAuthorization.currentStatus
    

    Catalog Search

    Use MusicCatalogSearchRequest to search the Apple Music catalog. Catalog lookup can fetch Apple Music resources, but playback of subscription catalog content must still be gated on MusicSubscription.current.canPlayCatalogContent.

    func searchCatalog(term: String) async throws -> MusicItemCollection<Song> {
        var request = MusicCatalogSearchRequest(term: term, types: [Song.self])
        request.limit = 25
    
        let response = try await request.response()
        return response.songs
    }
    

    Displaying Results

    for song in songs {
        print("\(song.title) by \(song.artistName)")
        if let artwork = song.artwork {
            let url = artwork.url(width: 300, height: 300)
            // Load artwork from url
        }
    }
    

    Subscription Checks

    Check whether the user has an active Apple Music subscription before offering playback features.

    func checkSubscription() async throws -> Bool {
        let subscription = try await MusicSubscription.current
        return subscription.canPlayCatalogContent
    }
    
    // Observe subscription changes
    func observeSubscription() async {
        for await subscription in MusicSubscription.subscriptionUpdates {
            if subscription.canPlayCatalogContent {
                // Enable full playback UI
            } else {
                // Show subscription offer
            }
        }
    }
    

    Offering Apple Music

    Present the Apple Music subscription offer sheet when the user is not subscribed. Check canBecomeSubscriber first, and pass MusicSubscriptionOffer.Options or onLoadCompletion when the sheet needs contextual metadata or load-error handling.

    import MusicKit
    import SwiftUI
    
    struct MusicOfferView: View {
        @State private var showOffer = false
    
        var body: some View {
            Button("Subscribe to Apple Music") {
                Task {
                    let subscription = try? await MusicSubscription.current
                    showOffer = subscription?.canBecomeSubscriber == true
                }
            }
            .musicSubscriptionOffer(
                isPresented: $showOffer,
                options: .default,
                onLoadCompletion: { error in
                    if let error {
                        // Surface loading errors in app UI or diagnostics.
                        print(error)
                    }
                }
            )
        }
    }
    

    Playback with ApplicationMusicPlayer

    ApplicationMusicPlayer plays Apple Music content independently from the Music app. It does not affect the system player's state.

    let player = ApplicationMusicPlayer.shared
    
    func playSong(_ song: Song) async throws {
        player.queue = [song]
        try await player.play()
    }
    
    func pause() {
        player.pause()
    }
    
    func skipToNext() async throws {
        try await player.skipToNextEntry()
    }
    

    Observing Playback State

    func observePlayback() {
        // player.state is an @Observable property
        let state = player.state
        switch state.playbackStatus {
        case .playing:
            break
        case .paused:
            break
        case .stopped, .interrupted, .seekingForward, .seekingBackward:
            break
        @unknown default:
            break
        }
    }
    

    Queue Management

    Build and manipulate the playback queue using ApplicationMusicPlayer.Queue.

    // Initialize with multiple items
    func playAlbum(_ album: Album) async throws {
        player.queue = [album]
        try await player.play()
    }
    
    // Append songs to the existing queue
    func appendToQueue(_ songs: [Song]) async throws {
        try await player.queue.insert(songs, position: .tail)
    }
    
    // Insert song to play next
    func playNext(_ song: Song) async throws {
        try await player.queue.insert(song, position: .afterCurrentEntry)
    }
    

    Now Playing Info

    Update MPNowPlayingInfoCenter so the Lock Screen, Control Center, and CarPlay display current track metadata. This is essential when playing custom audio (non-MusicKit sources). ApplicationMusicPlayer handles this automatically for Apple Music content.

    import MediaPlayer
    
    func updateNowPlaying(title: String, artist: String, duration: TimeInterval, elapsed: TimeInterval) {
        var info = [String: Any]()
        info[MPMediaItemPropertyTitle] = title
        info[MPMediaItemPropertyArtist] = artist
        info[MPMediaItemPropertyPlaybackDuration] = duration
        info[MPNowPlayingInfoPropertyElapsedPlaybackTime] = elapsed
        info[MPNowPlayingInfoPropertyPlaybackRate] = 1.0
        info[MPNowPlayingInfoPropertyMediaType] = MPNowPlayingInfoMediaType.audio.rawValue
    
        MPNowPlayingInfoCenter.default().nowPlayingInfo = info
    }
    
    func clearNowPlaying() {
        MPNowPlayingInfoCenter.default().nowPlayingInfo = nil
    }
    

    Adding Artwork

    func setArtwork(_ image: UIImage) {
        let artwork = MPMediaItemArtwork(boundsSize: image.size) { _ in image }
        var info = MPNowPlayingInfoCenter.default().nowPlayingInfo ?? [:]
        info[MPMediaItemPropertyArtwork] = artwork
        MPNowPlayingInfoCenter.default().nowPlayingInfo = info
    }
    

    Remote Command Center

    Register handlers for MPRemoteCommandCenter to respond to Lock Screen controls, AirPods tap gestures, and CarPlay buttons.

    func setupRemoteCommands() {
        let center = MPRemoteCommandCenter.shared()
    
        center.playCommand.addTarget { _ in
            resumePlayback()
            return .success
        }
    
        center.pauseCommand.addTarget { _ in
            pausePlayback()
            return .success
        }
    
        center.nextTrackCommand.addTarget { _ in
            skipToNext()
            return .success
        }
    
        center.previousTrackCommand.addTarget { _ in
            skipToPrevious()
            return .success
        }
    
        // Disable commands you do not support
        center.seekForwardCommand.isEnabled = false
        center.seekBackwardCommand.isEnabled = false
    }
    

    Scrubbing Support

    func enableScrubbing() {
        let center = MPRemoteCommandCenter.shared()
        center.changePlaybackPositionCommand.addTarget { event in
            guard let positionEvent = event as? MPChangePlaybackPositionCommandEvent else {
                return .commandFailed
            }
            seek(to: positionEvent.positionTime)
            return .success
        }
    }
    

    Common Mistakes

    MistakeFix
    Debugging authorization before configuring the App Service and purpose stringVerify service, bundle ID, and NSAppleMusicUsageDescription first.
    Queueing catalog content without a subscription gateCheck canPlayCatalogContent; offer subscription only when canBecomeSubscriber.
    Using SystemMusicPlayer for app-owned playbackUse ApplicationMusicPlayer; the system player changes the Music app's global queue.
    Publishing Now Playing metadata onceRefresh it on track, duration, rate, and elapsed-time changes.
    Registering unsupported remote commandsDisable them; supported handlers must perform the action and return .success.

    Review Checklist

    • MusicKit App Service enabled for the app's explicit bundle ID
    • NSAppleMusicUsageDescription added to Info.plist
    • MusicAuthorization.request() called before any MusicKit access
    • Subscription checked before attempting catalog playback
    • canBecomeSubscriber checked before presenting a subscription offer
    • hasCloudLibraryEnabled checked before library writes
    • ApplicationMusicPlayer used (not SystemMusicPlayer) for app-scoped playback
    • Background audio mode enabled if music plays in background
    • Now Playing info updated on every track change (for custom audio)
    • Remote command handlers return .success for supported commands
    • Unsupported remote commands disabled with isEnabled = false
    • Artwork provided in Now Playing info for Lock Screen display
    • Elapsed playback time updated periodically for scrubber accuracy
    • Subscription offer presented when user lacks Apple Music subscription

    References

    • Extended patterns (SwiftUI integration, genre browsing, playlist management): references/musickit-patterns.md
    • MusicKit framework
    • Using automatic developer token generation for Apple Music API
    • MusicAuthorization
    • ApplicationMusicPlayer
    • MusicCatalogSearchRequest
    • MusicSubscription
    • canPlayCatalogContent
    • canBecomeSubscriber
    • hasCloudLibraryEnabled
    • MusicCatalogChartsRequest initializer
    • musicSubscriptionOffer(isPresented:options:onLoadCompletion:)
    • MPRemoteCommandCenter
    • MPNowPlayingInfoCenter
    • NSAppleMusicUsageDescription

    Related skills

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