Following news announced just two months ago that Apple is discontinuing its original smart speaker, some HomePod owners are reporting issues accessing Apple Music after the recent iOS 14.5 software update. The problem? When using the HomePod's “Hey Siri” function to play a track, the personal assistant seems unable to find songs on Apple Music.
As noted by 9to5Mac, complaints from users on Twitter include one HomePod owner who claims that when asked, their speaker announced it couldn't find Elvis Presley or the Beatles on Apple Music.
@AppleSupport HomePod no longer finds anything on Apple Music, all I get is “I didn’t find XXXX on Apple Music” for anything I ask for.May 5, 2021
@AppleSupport What’s happening with #HomePod not being able to find music on #AppleMusic?“Hey Siri, play Elvis Presley”“I didn’t find Elvis Presley on Apple Music”“Hey Siri, play the Beatles”“ I didn’t find the Beatles on Apple Music”What the⁉️May 5, 2021
This issue comes just over a week after Apple launched its iOS 14.5 software update, which boasted “bug fixes.” On Monday 3rd May, the Cupertino giant released a further update, iOS 14.5.1 which promised “bug fixes and performance improvement".
Currently, Apple's Twitter support account has not issued a definitive solution to the problem, although some users were able to factory reset their HomePod to resume playback as normal. We tried to replicate the problem before and after the latest updates but didn't come across any issues.
If your HomePod is affected, a temporary workaround is to AirPlay songs from your iPhone to your smart speaker – of course, this isn't as easy as saying “Hey Siri,” but it's a way to play music for now...
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