Ever wonder who wrote that song? MusicSmart reveals every credit instantly. It’s like IMDb for music. Critically acclaimed by MacStories, 9to5Mac, MacMagazine, and more.
MusicSmart aggregates music knowledge from various sources into a powerful and easy-to-use app. With features such as Smart Sections and Roles/Instruments Insights, you can gain a deeper understanding of the music creation process and the responsibilities of each role.
Navigate the catalog from within the main app or share music from Apple Music or Spotify to read the details about any song. Shazam is also available, so you can access liner notes and learn more about songs playing around you.
Here are some of the credits you can find with MusicSmart:
• Description: Information about the recording process, the backstory behind the song, artists, etc.
• Songwriting and Composition: Composer, Arranger, Producer, and more.
• Performance and Recording: Vocals, Performer, Programmer, Engineers, Editor, and more.
• Marketing and Distribution: A&R, Publishers, Distributors, and more.
• Business: Labels, Copyright, and more.
• Visuals: Director, Cinematographer, Designer, Visualizer, and more.
• Locations: Recorded At, Mixed At, Mastered At, and more.
• Instruments: Drums, Shakers, Strings, Guitars, Keyboards, and more.
Download MusicSmart today for free to unlock a wealth of knowledge about your favorite music, all in one convenient location!
Note: No Apple Music or Spotify subscription is required to use MusicSmart. MusicSmart relies on multiple online sources and databases to find liner notes and credits. The number of details available may vary for each song.
Privacy Policy: https://marcosatanaka.com/privacy/music-smart.html
Terms of Use: https://marcosatanaka.com/terms/music-smart.html
This app fills a giant hole that I'd have expected more music organizing apps to do - have fun and interesting information about songs and artists. The seach process is quick and easy. One piece of information missing that I'd have liked to see is the album(s) the track appears on, but this is minor. The only thing I hoped this app would be able to do is integrate with the Music app to automatically display info for the song that's playing. Maybe that's too much to ask, but it still enhances and makes the music streaming experience more enjoyable.
Developer Response
Thanks for the review!The Mac doesn't have the same APIs available on iOS/iPadOS for third-party developers to access the user music library. That's why MusicSmart on the Mac only allows users to search for a specific song manually.To make it easier to see liner notes of a song from the Music app without manually searching, I created this shortcut that you can use from the Services menu. Please check out this thread to download it and to see how it works:https://twitter.com/mactanaka/status/1515355083264995337
A helpful utility, with two caveats
ArcadiaStudios
I’ve only occasionally dipped into this app for detailed information regarding my music, so I haven’t fully explored all the nooks and crannies. At this point, I can recommend the app, but I have to mention two frustrations. #1 may be outside the developer’s control, but it’s still annoying: Not all albums featuring MusicSmart data include the same categories of data or even much data at all; some feature extensive lists of performers/producers/engineers, etc., while others simply present songwriter credits. I’m sure this is based on what’s available, but I’d like to see both greater detail and greater consistency.#2 is more frustrating for me: Before you can read liner notes or view MusicSmart data for an album, that album must be in your library. I realize it doesn’t require much effort to add a title via Apple Music, but it’s a hurdle that feels unnecessary. If I’m shopping for physical music, I’d be able to read the liner notes on the back of an LP or, perhaps, maybe even on a CD; why can’t I access information regardless of whether a title is in my personal library or not? That information could help me decide whether to stream, add in Apple Music, or purchase new music.
Developer Response
Thanks for the review! Regarding #1, you're right, the amount of details depends on the third-party data sources MusicSmart uses, so it may vary depending on the album or song.And regarding #2, it is possible to see liner notes without adding the album to your lbrary. To do this, open MusicSmart and tap the Search button in the top-right of the navigation bar. Then, type the name of the album or artist to search for liner notes.
Promising start but serious music aficionados will be disappointed
recordcollector 2120
This is a concept that’s been a long time coming. But serious aficionados and collectors will find it disappointing. You’ll find plenty of info on newer releases and for pop recordings, but what shows up on even very well known classic albums is often erroneous or bare bones. First, in spite of what some of the online reviews say, I didn’t find any original liner notes for any of the albums I checked on. And many, many famous albums that have sold millions of copies show up with generic or worse album art (Apple Music itself is much more likely to have correct album art). BB King’s Live at the Regal shows up with a generic “Electric Blues 101” album artwork; no musician lineups or songwriting credits on Pet Sounds or any Beatle albums. How is this even possible? Somehow, though, MusicSmart reveals accurate age, birth city and middle names for even the most obscure artists - not 100%, but for a high proportion of albums in your Apple Music collection. Search is an annoyingly missing feature. And, again, songwriting credits, which must be legally registered with every song still under copyright, are somehow missing. All that said, I give the app 2 stars because there is the potential, if the developers can ever link it up with a decent database, to provide all this info and more within the structure of the app. And the depth of info provided for a lot of newer popular albums is kind of amazing (sample sources for newer big selling hip hop albums is a really cool feature). Looking forward to the developers getting this one right in future updates, or if it finally inspires Apple to finally embed full liner note, album art and artist info within Music, that would be worth the $1.99 too.
Developer Response
Thank you for this detailed review and for sharing some of the albums MusicSmart could not find the details of. There is no 1:1 connection between the databases available and Apple Music, which is why sometimes it may not find the right details. But it's important for me to know which albums have had these problems, so that I can analyze and improve the algorithm.The ability to search through your music library is also coming soon! The first version was more focused on the action extension from the Music app, so I'll now improve the navigation in the main app as well.
Outstanding voiceover, accessibility, and documentation
Kansas City Reg
Well, the App Store ate my original review. But there’s nothing else like this on the App Store. One of the tips in Help said that if you’re listening to the song, you can find a podcast where that song or artist is mentioned. Continuous play works by after you hit now playing it will automatically pull up all information available as you’re listening. You can customize what information is shown about an album under sections in the app settings. And all of these features are free. I just feel that real efforts have been made to make this app accessible and easy to use. Music Harbor is also a fantastic app. I agree with the person that bemoaned the loss of the original information from the vinyl album covers. But if it hasn’t been digitized in catalog, there’s nothing that can be done to ever get that back.
Developer Response
Thank you so much for your review!
You can now select which region MusicSmart uses to display Trending tracks and Top Albums on the Home screen. Customize in Settings > Region.
Version 2.2.7
The developer, Loop Apps LTDA, indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy .
Data Not Linked to You
The following data may be collected but it is not linked to your identity:
Purchases
Identifiers
Usage Data
Privacy practices may vary, for example, based on the features you use or your age. Learn More
The developer indicated that this app supports the following accessibility features. Learn More
