Constantly getting "Can't play this song"

[lirnsd]

Plan: Spotify Premium 

Device: Macbook Air 2015, running MacOS Catalina 10.15 

I'm noticing that whenever I try to play something on Spotify, it will run for a couple of seconds with no sound (the play bar just moves) and then I'll see the blue bar at the top of my Desktop app that says "Can't play this song". This won't fix itself, and I have to constantly quit the app and then relaunch it. 

I noticed that this occurs after I pause a song and may do something else (like watch Netflix, or YouTube) and then when I decide to start up Spotify, it will show me that blue bar. 

This happens almost every day, every couple of hours. What is happening, and how can I fix it? It's really annoying, and I love using Spotify. This problem only really started occurring after I downloaded Catalina for Mac - is the problem related to that somehow? 

[Ivan]

Hey there @lirnsd, 

Thanks for reaching out to us about this - we'll be glad to help you out here.
 

There might be various reasons why you get this error message. We suggest you first check this Spotify Answer and try the steps provided.

If this doesn't help, check this help article for more info. Make sure you go through all the steps to cover all possible scenarios. 

Hope this helps. Let us know how it goes. 

[lirnsd]

Hi @Ivan, I attempted the clean re-install of Spotify. While the problem occurs less than before, it still occurs, and each time I still have to quit the app and restart it to be able to play the song. 

Edited: I also tried later on to reset my router and switched to another network before switching back to the one I usually use. It didn't really help the issue. 

[Ivan]

Hey @lirnsd, 

Thanks for keeping us in the loop.
 

It'd also be a good idea to log in to your Spotify account on another device just to check if you observe the same.

If it doesn't occur on a different device, we'd suggest making sure that your original device is up to speed with any software updates available.
 

In case this doesn't help try directly contacting Apple's customer support to check if the issue is Catalina-related as you suggested. You can reach out to them here. 

Hope this helps. Keep us posted. 

[stylusmariner]

When is Spotify going to fix this. It's been going on for at least a couple of years. The message in the blue bar is incorrect. It says it is disconnected, the song plays on the timeline but without any sound. Despite the message, search still works so Spotify must be connected to the internet.

[Ver]

Hey there @stylusmariner,

Thanks for getting in touch with us.

If you can see this error message, we'd suggest you give these steps a go. That way the app can be up-to-date and you can make sure the cache is not causing this issue.

It's also a good idea to try with another device. By doing that we can see if it's a device-related issue. 

If you have any battery optimization or power saving apps, you can deactivate them for Spotify.

Let us know how it goes. If you have questions, we are here for you.

[stylusmariner]

I followed the steps for a clean install of Spotify. I notice that
sometimes Spotify shows a blue bar on top saying it is "offline." However,
I am able to see webpages with Chrome, so I know my laptop is not offline,
only Spotify is offline. Why is that?

[Xenia]

Hey everyone,

Thanks for reaching out about this in the Community! No worries - we're here to help 🙂

We can confirm that our tech teams are aware of this happening and are currently looking into things. If you're still experiencing this issue, we'd suggest you add your +VOTE to this thread and follow the instructions in the Status Update. 

We'll make sure to pass your info on to the right folks to investigate this further!

Keep us posted and don't hesitate to ask if you have any other questions.