YouTube Music has launched Samples, a TikTok-like service, to appeal to Generation Z

Gregor Dodson, director of product management, explains why Samples — is the newest and most important video feature of the music streaming app.

YouTube Music has just announced Samples — a new in-app feature where users can scroll through short music videos of their favorite artists and discover new songs. Welcome to the short music video war. Yes, Silicon Valley is still fixated on generative artificial intelligence, but don’t forget one of its other favorite trends: releasing features vaguely reminiscent of TikTok.

Silicon Valley is still fixated on generative artificial intelligence, but don’t forget one of its other favorite trends: releasing features vaguely reminiscent of TikTok.

YouTube Music already lets users switch between video and audio versions of songs. In the case of Samples, the plan is to use algorithmically selected video clips to expand listeners’ horizons without straying far from their original favorite songs. Earlier this year, rival music app Spotify also began emphasizing video in its music discovery process.

Samples will use algorithmically selected video clips to expand listeners’ horizons without straying far from their original favorite songs.

«Internally, we’ve been talking about this for a long time, even before TikTok, —Dodson says. «How can we better utilize our video corpus to allow you to tune into a particular wave very quickly? »By scrolling through clips, listeners can easily add songs to their playlists and create radio stations based on them.

At the same time, listeners can easily add songs to their playlists and create radio stations based on them.

Users turn to TikTok not only for entertainment, but also to find information and interesting artists. «It’s important for music lovers to discover new music» — he says. «But if you observe their behavior, they very rarely listen to new music». Dodson wants Samples to be a useful part of the discovery process for a younger generation of listeners.

Samples is an important part of the process of discovering new things.

Google’s new YouTube Music tab —s not the company’s first attempt to use elements of TikTik to appeal to Generation Z. In 2021, the YouTube Shorts tab was introduced in the United States. At the time of its introduction «Shorts» resembled TikTok quite a bit, and updates to the feature brought it even more in line with the concept. Last year, Google even changed some aspects of search so that results became more like a social media feed.

So far, it’s not like it’s a social media feed.

Some of YouTube Music’s previous updates initially launched only in the U.S., such as in-app podcasts, but the «Samples» tab is getting a wider rollout. «We’re launching it all over the world» — Dodson says. «So, if you’re a French pop fan in the U.S., we’ll give you French pop because we have a great experience with it from our French users». Polo and Pan fans, this is your moment!”

For fans of Polo and Pan, this is your moment!

Despite the growing number of similarities between the services, YouTube Music’s connection to YouTube remains the service’s main differentiating factor. Because I’ve watched Troye Sivan’s music video «Rush» on my living room TV too many times, the YouTube Music app knows I’ll probably want to listen to that song again when I’m working out at the gym.

The YouTube Music app is a great way for me to connect with YouTube Music.

The music subscription app can be purchased separately or bundled with YouTube Premium, which also includes access to YouTube proper without ads. For an in-depth discussion of which streaming option is best, check out WIRED’s roundup of the best music streaming apps, including Spotify, Tidal, Apple Music, and YouTube Music.

See WIRED’s roundup of the best music streaming apps, including Spotify, Tidal, Apple Music, and YouTube Music.

For YouTube Music and other streaming services, the ability to attract and retain a loyal Generation Z audience is critical to growth. Spotify, which currently holds a large share of the market, cited the increasing number of young listeners as a major factor in the app’s dominance during its recent earnings report.

According to Spotify, the company’s ability to attract and retain young listeners is critical to the app’s dominance.