Google Play Music censoring

WuBoy · January 11th, 2013, 11:57 AM

So I uploaded my music catalog to Google Music. It's cool and convenient. I just have one problem. It seems that a lot of the songs I've uploaded have been censored. Not all of them, but a significant amount. Does anyone know why this might be the case and how I can undo it?

hstroph · January 11th, 2013, 12:32 PM

What precisely is meant by "censored"? Unavailable for playing? Titles obscured by random characters?

WuBoy · January 14th, 2013, 01:57 PM

The actual music is censored. Like songs with explicit language when I uploaded them have all the profanity blanked out after being uploaded.

hstroph · January 14th, 2013, 03:43 PM

I'm not familiar with your stated device, but on a Nexus 4 my similar problems were solved with:

Settings -> Language & input -> Voice Search ; uncheck "Block offensive words"

Hopefully you can find such a setting in your Android version, assuming that it gets synch'd with the cloud storage. Perhaps it's only enforced on download and playback? Do other devices also censor the playback? If so, then you might want to re-upload the music after making the settings change suggested above.

tcat007 · January 14th, 2013, 04:03 PM

Google started this in December. They match your song to the "clean" version in the cloud (they actually match to all songs that they have on file). Many articles on it with a search. This saves them server space and makes uploading faster.

kicknoid · January 14th, 2013, 04:20 PM

Apparently Google Music is "matching" your naughty version with a "clean" public radio version.
Don't sweat it. A lot of people are publicly complaining and Google listens.
Google's motto is "don't be evil"
You listening to naughty words are evil. Google censoring what you listen toois a lot more evil.
;>
They will fix it.

Double44 · January 15th, 2013, 06:53 AM

I never knew that, and I'm actually surprised they can get away with it. They sell explicit music, makes me wonder if those are treated the same? I haven't bought or uploaded anything with cuss words in them to notice, but that's still really good to know.

zuben el genub · January 15th, 2013, 08:31 AM

I'd like to know what they would do with George Carlin's "Seven Words" or the Rolling Stones' Star*Star. There ain't no clean version!

mikedt · January 15th, 2013, 08:57 AM

I'd like to know what Google Music does for things like Ivor Biggun or Macc Lads songs, or my Derek and Clive MP3 collection, there are definitely no clean "radio edit" versions. And does it know that Wupa Gangnam Style has very explicit lyrics? Most people don't understand Korean, and don't actually realise what it's about.