Spotify controls in Google Maps frozen

[Rick_Blaine99]

Plan

Premium

Country

The Netherlands 

Device

Oppo Find X3 Pro

Operating System

Android 13

App version 8.8.96.364

Since about 3 months, the Spotify controls in Google Maps navigation sometimes freeze. They seem to be stuck on the last song or podcast it remembers, while Spotify is playing something else in the background. When pressing the Spotify button, it gives a message like "it seems there are no Spotify recommendations at this moment". 

I tried several options, like removing and re-installing Maps and/or Spotify apps, and deleting Spotify cache or data. 

The latter option seems to work for a while, but after a week or so the controls freeze again and I have to delete Spotify data again. 

Can you please look into this as it's very annoying. Thanks. 

My Question or Issue

[ocping]

Same issue here, controls just randomly broke a few days ago; Pixel 6a.

[Maria]

Hey there @Rick_Blaine99 & @ocping,

Thanks for reaching out on the Community!

Could you check if there is an update available for your device's operating system? You should be able to see it in the device's settings.

If there's no updates available, could you send us a picture or video showing how things look from your end, so that we can have a closer look? If the files are too large to attach here in the Community, you can send them to us via Google Drive or as unlisted YouTube videos.

@ocping - should the issue persist, it would be great if you also could let us know if you've tried any troubleshooting from your side, as well as what Spotify version you're currently using.

Keep us posted on how it goes.

[Rick_Blaine99]

Hello Maria, thank you for your reply. 

My system and all apps are up to date, don't worry, I check for updates multiple times a day and install them immediately ☺️

Please see attached screen recording. I am playing music on Spotify and navigating in Maps. As you can see near the end, the Spotify controls show a previous podcast I was playing before and they don't respond to any touches. 

I hope this is clear. To be honest, clearing the data of Spotify has only worked for a day or so this time, before the controls locked again. Maybe it has to do with the large number of episodes in this podcast? About 330 episodes.

Best regards, 

Frank 

[Rick_Blaine99]

Hi Maria, I forgot but here is also a screenshot to show what happens when you press the Browse Spotify button from within Maps, in case the controls are stuck. 

[ocping]

Welp, the issue went away yesterday... probably had an update that fixed the issue for me.

[Rick_Blaine99]

Problem still appears here. 

[Rick_Blaine99]

Haven't seen the problem for a week or so. Got a new phone yesterday (Pixel 8 pro) so not using the Oppo anymore now. Will keep an eye out if it will happen on my new phone too or not.

[Rick_Blaine99]

Well, unfortunately, after a couple of days use, the same problem has occured on my Pixel 8 pro. 

Is there a solution for this in sight?

[AlejaR]

Hey @Rick_Blaine99,

Thanks for your replies.

We really appreciate you keeping us in the loop. In this case, we'd suggest removing Google from your account's Apps section here and connecting it again to Spotify by following the steps in this article. Give it a try and let us know if you notice any difference.

If this behavior persists, we'd like to gather some additional info. Would you mind sending us the current Spotify version you're running on your new device? 

On another note, did you notice if this is happening when playing some specific podcast/playlist? or does it happen no matter what content you choose to play? It'd be awesome if you could check. If this is happening when playing some specific content, please send us the link to it.

Keep us in the loop!

[Rick_Blaine99]

Hello AlejaR,

I disconnected Google from Spotify and reconnected as in your description. Controls in Maps function again now, I will keep monitoring. Haven't discovered a pattern yet, it seems to work for a while and then blocks again. I am on version 8.9.4.304 now on my Pixel 8 pro.

[Rick_Blaine99]

Well, just got into my car and the controls are blocked again when I start Google Maps. Listening to this podcast 

[MihailY]

Hey @Rick_Blaine99 ,

Thanks for your reply.

Are the controls always stuck on this podcast? If possible, go again through the steps that solved the issue temporarily and see if it reappears if you're not playing this podcast. This will help us narrow down the possible cause.

Cheers,

[Rick_Blaine99]

Hello MihailY,

I have played other stuff too (music) but mostly am listening to the backlog of this podcast. But I will try to not kisten to it and only listen to music for a couple of days 😁

[Rick_Blaine99]

Hello,

I have tried to replicate the issue when playing music but it didnt happen. After that I started playing some episodes from the podcast I mentioned, and the issue happened again. I was only abole to resolve it by clearing all storage from the Spotify app. Btw it looked like there was an update for Spotify this week, which I installed before the issue happened again. I'm now on 8.9.6 458 it seems.

I hope you can check this issue which seems to be related to this podcast.

[Eni]

Hey @Rick_Blaine99, 

Thanks for your reply.

Would you mind checking if the same happens with another podcast? This will help us know if the issue is isolated to that specific podcast or all podcasts in general. 

On another note, could you check if the issue persist while connected to a different network? 

We'll be on the lookout for your reply. 

[Rick_Blaine99]

Hello,

I listen to this Podcast through my Wifi or through 4G/5G when on the move. I don't have access to any other networks. 

To be honest I'm not really feeling like listening to random podcasts for hours. Like I said, the issue started pretty recently, it happened on 2 different phones, and it seems to happen only with this so3cifi podcast. I have binged other podcasts in the past, like 6 Months ago, and never had this issue. I really hope you can investigate why this podcast is causing this issue, as I'm sure other users will have the problem too, maybe with other podcasts as well. I am willing to send any log files if possible.

[Eni]

Hi @Rick_Blaine99, 

Thanks for getting back to us. 

We understand you don't want to listen to a random podcast but it would help us understand if the issue is related to that specific podcast or not as it's not happening with music.

On another note, could you ask a friend or a relative to log in to their account on your device and check if they can replicate this behavior? 

Keep us posted on how it goes. 

[Rick_Blaine99]

Hello Eni,

I understand your question, but you have to understand that the issue only appears after listening to several episodes of said podcast and not after 5 minutes. So having someone else logging into my phone (which is brand new and expensive!) and have them listen to hours of podcasts or them letting me use their account for hours is not really a viable option. We already established that it doesnt happen when playing music or other podcasts so as far as I'm concerned it's now up to you to further investigate and fix the issue. The bug is quite annoying but I'm not spending any more time on it.

[MihailY]

Hey @Rick_Blaine99,

No worries, we fully understand your point. We've noted your report, however, we can't give you an ETA for a fix since we were unable to reproduce the issue on our end (we've tried using the same podcast).

In the meantime, we'd recommend keeping your app up to date.

Cheers,