Xbox One Tip: Enjoy Background Music

Xbox One owners have been able to play music in the background while they play games since last August. But with the Creators Update, this capability is even simpler to use.

Note: This article replaces Xbox One S Tip: Enjoy Background Music, and it documents changes to this behavior that arrived in the Creators Update.

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To get started, start music playback in your favorite app: I’m using Microsoft Groove in this example.

Then, use the Guide to switch to the game you wish to play (or some other app). Music will continue playing, in the background, while you do so, adding to whatever audio and soundtrack is available in the game.

To control playback, tap the Xbox button on your controller to display the Guide. As you can see, music controls are available right there in the Guide, where they were hidden in a Multitasking interface in previous versions of the Xbox experience.

The controls work as expected—Reverse, Fast Forward, and Play/Pause obvious enough—but if you select the album, you will return to the music app.

The volume slider is particularly useful: This changes the music volume only, so you can make sure it’s the right volume compared to the in-game audio and music.

 

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Conversation 6 comments

  • Dragonwyntir

    01 April, 2017 - 2:12 pm

    <p>Really hoping for the SDK level support of custom soundtracks that we had with the 360 vs. the clumsy sort of "ah just play over everything who cares" of the XB1. Having the in-game music paused automagically to make way for your music was truly The Future, and pausing of your music for cinematics was something I didn't even know I wanted until they took it away. As it stands now, I'm reminded of playing PC games in my bedroom as a kid while manually muting the music in-game so I could jam out to prog rock instead.</p><p><br></p><p>I kinda always assumed that the SHAPE engine was advanced enough to handle the music threading at least as well as the 360. Here's hoping it is fixed up one day.</p>

  • JudaZuk

    03 April, 2017 - 1:14 am
  • tyroon

    05 May, 2017 - 1:04 pm

    <p>Simply <a href="http://techiosshout.net/deezer-plus-plus-ios-iphone-ipad/&quot; target="_blank">Download Deezer++</a> iPA to get all latest music for free right from your Xbox devices. You can download this app on your Android and iOS devices too.</p>

  • Dav Butterfield

    15 October, 2017 - 5:50 am

    <p>Thank you for sharing information how to listen the background music. Because for me, as for many other people, music takes up most of life! My preferences change, depending on what I feel or what I do. I can listen to it not only during games, but also during work. Monotone music helps me concentrate on the task. I spend a lot of time honing my writing skills. In addition to the basic work, I want to work as a freelance writer for the company <a href="https://writemyessayonline.com/write-my-dissertation.html&quot; target="_blank">writemyessayonline.com</a>. I think writing various essays, thesises, term papers will bring a good extra income for me. A little bit moved away from the topic. For me, favorite music makes the work more enjoyable, which means that I can complete my task much faster. One of the simple rules is to compose a playlist of already known and favorite songs, because when listening to unfamiliar songs our brain can be distracted by memorizing and recognizing new sounds. As a result, you will pay more attention to music, and not to work.</p>

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    20 November, 2017 - 5:44 am

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  • MikeBoyer45

    06 October, 2021 - 6:11 am

    <p>hi</p>

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