Amazon is rolling out Alexa Plus within the Amazon Music app, blending conversational AI with music discovery and personalization. Starting today, users in the Alexa Plus Early Access beta can test the new integration on both iOS and Android, gaining access to generative features that make searching for — and understanding — music far more intuitive.

The new integration allows listeners across all Amazon Music subscription tiers to make more complex or creative music requests. Alexa Plus can find songs even when you can’t remember the title — using lyrics, movie or show appearances, or related context to locate them — and can provide deeper insights such as chart positions, festival lineups, and even the meaning behind song lyrics. The AI assistant also crafts highly personalized recommendations by era, mood, artist, or instrument, letting users fine-tune results by excluding what they don’t want to hear.

The update lets listeners ask complex, open-ended questions or specific requests. For example, users can say, “Play that song from the show Stranger Things,” or “Find ’90s pop music like Madonna but skip the boy bands.”

According to Amazon, Alexa Plus uses generative AI to “connect the dots” — interpreting vague or incomplete requests to deliver accurate musical results. That means listeners don’t need exact song titles or artists to find what they’re looking for.

“Customers can dive deeper into genres, uncover artist influences and discographies, trace sample origins from their favorite tracks, and even ask, ‘what’s this song about?’” the company said in its announcement. “Even when your requests aren’t specific, Alexa Plus connects the dots to deliver the right music.”

By merging generative AI with the familiarity of Alexa, Amazon is positioning its music service as both a streaming platform and a conversational music companion — one that understands context, emotion, and even curiosity.

While Amazon is expanding Alexa Plus to make music discovery more conversational, Spotify is charting its own AI-driven path. In April 2024, the company introduced AI Playlists, a beta feature that lets Spotify Premium users generate playlists using natural-language prompts — such as “a playlist that makes me feel like the main character” or “chill acoustic songs for late-night drives.”

Beyond playlists, Spotify researchers are also using large language models (LLMs) to deliver what they call “contextualized recommendations through personalized narratives.” This approach blends text, mood, and behavioral data to help the platform anticipate not just what users want to hear, but why.

Together, these moves show how music platforms are converging on a new frontier — one where AI-powered discovery is guided as much by emotional context and user intent as by listening history.

Q: What is Alexa Plus?
A: Alexa Plus is Amazon’s next-generation AI assistant that uses generative and contextual reasoning to handle complex, open-ended requests.

Q: How does it enhance Amazon Music?
A: It lets users find songs by vibe, lyrics, or emotion — not just titles — and can explain song meanings, artist influences, and sample origins.

Q: Who can access Alexa Plus in Music?
A: It’s available to users in the Alexa Plus Early Access beta on iOS and Android, across all Amazon Music subscription tiers.

Q: How does this differ from the regular Alexa?
A: Unlike standard Alexa commands, Alexa Plus understands nuanced language, connects context, and curates playlists through natural conversation.

The expansion of Alexa Plus marks a shift from voice commands to conversational discovery — turning music listening into a more human, intuitive experience.

For users, it means playlists that truly match their mood without micromanaging search filters. For Amazon, it’s another step in redefining Alexa’s role from a utility voice assistant to a generative AI platform capable of creative, contextual thinking.

In an increasingly crowded streaming market, Alexa Plus could become the differentiator — not by playing what users ask for, but by understanding what they mean.

Editor’s Note: This article was created by Alicia Shapiro, CMO of AiNews.com, with writing, image, and idea-generation support from ChatGPT, an AI assistant used for research and drafting. However, the final perspective and editorial choices are solely Alicia Shapiro’s. Special thanks to ChatGPT for assistance with research and editorial support in crafting this article.