Hello everyone using AWA. This is Producer K.
2019 is almost over. What was your year? And what kind of music did you listen?
AWA has opened its annual special site "GET YOUR TRENDS 2019." You can automatically analyze the music you have listened in the past year and browse your own ranking. At the end of the year, please look back on your 2019 with music.
By the way, this article introduces 9 of the most useful AWA features that have been updated 80+ times in the past year.
"AWA 2.0" Major Update (Jan 25)
The first update in 2019 was a major update. 4 years after the service started, we have redesigned all the features and systems so far create an “optimal environment where you can enjoy your favorite music without thinking.“
By the way, the number of distribution songs is currently 60 million. We have delivered more than 10 million new songs to you in 2019. AWA will continue to make every effort to deliver as many songs of artists from all over the world as possible to you.
With this update, "Tag" feature and "Mix playlist just for you" feature are newly added.
Tag
Enjoy even more music-finding freedom!
You can freely tag your playlists.
You can express your thoughts with tags, such as familiar words and original words, not fixed words or fixed phrases. Your sensibilities can be linked to playlists with any keyword to search for music.
Mix playlist just for you
AWA creates playlists just for you.
AWA analyzes your past listening habits to deliver you a playlist of recommended tunes you haven’t heard lately. The more you use AWA, the more this playlist will update, helping you to discover new music on a daily basis.
* This feature is being rolled out sequentially to a portion of users.
Real-Time Trend Ranking "THE HOT 100" (Feb 18)
“THE HOT 100” that displays the ranking of songs with a rapidly rising number of plays among all songs in real time.
It is still in our minds that the songs of "Arashi" and "L'Arc-en-Ciel" dominated the ranking immediately after distribution. By following this ranking, you can instantly see the songs that have become a hot topic in the world.
Check this ranking first when you open the AWA app!
"Photo to Music" (Apr 3)
“#Photo2Music” feature provided on Twitter last year can now be easily used with the app.
By simply taking your favorite photo or selecting it, this feature will instantly analyze the elements of the photo and display music that is perfect for it based on AWA's own music data such as playlists and tags.
This feature offers the possibility of searching for the ideal music based on things that are difficult to communicate with words, such as the imagery or mood of a photo. Please take this opportunity to encounter new music based on your favorite photos or candid shots.
"ARTIST Plan" (Apr 15)
We have started offering a new plan called "ARTIST Plan" that allows you to listen to songs of one artist for ¥270/month.
Even now, in Japan, listening behavior has been rooted in listening to specific artists repeatedly. Against this background, the ARTIST Plan has been launched as a new plan for enjoying music streaming services at a low price.
Under the "ARTIST Plan", multiple artists can be selected. One set of artists costs ¥270/month, two sets cost ¥540/month, and three sets cost ¥810/month. If you choose 4 or more artists, we recommend the “STANDARD Plan (¥980/month)”, which allows you to listen to all the songs of all artists distributed on AWA.
"Widget for Android" (Aug 13)
Without requiring you to startup AWA, the new "Player" Android widget now enables you to play or mark songs as a favorite on your device's Home screen. The "Quick Access Play" widget enables you to easily play your playlist or favorite songs. The three new widgets thereby make it easier to enjoy music. AWA now works with a total of four Android widgets.
"Supports Siri for iOS" (Sep 20)
It has now become possible to voice-operate AWA via Siri.
You can play songs by specifying the artist name, song name, or album name - for example, "hey Siri, play the artist Official HIGE DANdism on AWA" or "hey Siri, play Sayonara Erejii on AWA". You can also voice-operate to play music which you have downloaded onto your smartphone, music you have added as favorites, or playlists you have created on “AWA” ,so you can enjoy music in comfort even at times when your hands are busy, such as when you're driving or cooking.
"AWA for Apple Watch" (Oct 2)
“AWA” can now be used on “Apple Watch” as it is supported by the latest OS “watchOS 6” launched by Apple. Users can now enjoy music in a convenient and comfortable manner.
It is now possible to enjoy music with just your “Apple Watch” when you are running or training without your smartphone.
"Lyrics Full Screen Display" (Nov 6)
Redesigned UI for player screen. A new feature has been added to display lyrics in full screen.
When you tap the lyrics, you can also play from that position.
Please use this feature which is most suitable for practice of karaoke.
"GET YOUR TRENDS 2019" (Dec 5)
"GET YOUR TRENDS 2019" introduced at the beginning.
The result of the automatic analysis can be added to your “MY PLAYLISTS” as a playlist.
Why don't you leave your memories of 2019 in a playlist?
We looks forward to enjoying music with you in 2020 as well
How much did you know about the features released in 2019?
If you have any features that you don't know yet, please use them.
AWA will continue to expand its features and improve services to make your music experience more comfortable and enjoyable, and to enrich your life with music.
Lastly, here are some of the most popular and useful features released in the past.
Thank you for using AWA in 2019. Have a happy new year!
Past Release Features
"AWA for Desktop" (Apr 1, 2016)
"AWA for Android Wear" (Jun 29, 2016)
"AWA for Android TV" (Sep 15, 2016)
"Music Identification" (Jul 5, 2017)
"Equalizer" (Nov 15, 2017)
"Supports Google Assistant / Google Home" (Dec 18, 2018)