YouTube Music has a feature that no streaming service can match

Although I stream most of my music on Spotify, I renew my YouTube Music subscription every month. There is still a feature that I can’t get anywhere else.

YouTube allows me to listen to live performances of my favorite songs

I live in one of those countries that constantly gets passed over when it’s time for “world tours.” This means that, aside from traveling, I have little chance of ever seeing my favorite artists live. The best I can get is concert videos on YouTube and live albums.

The problem with this second option, however, is that most artists don’t care about live albums. You upload the official song, perhaps an acoustic version or a slowed down or sped up version if it’s popular on TikTok. But usually it is.

This is where YouTube Music comes to my rescue. Unlike other music streaming services, it is not limited to what artists upload. Instead, it can turn to YouTube to expand its library.

For example, recently I was in the mood for Billie Eilish and was looking for my favorite song of hers: “Birds of a Feather”.

First I tried Spotify which returned the official version and some covers. Then I tried YouTube Music and it returned the official version and two different live performances that it had taken from YouTube.

My playlists have never been so niche

One of my favorite songs at the moment is “Worth It” by Raye, especially the version she sang on SNL. This version isn’t available on other streaming platforms, but I added it to my playlist on YouTube Music with just a few clicks.

There are tons of other examples of music like this that you can only find on YouTube and YouTube Music. I’ve started collecting them and my playlists are looking more and more niche.

As long as it’s musical, you can add virtually any YouTube video to your YouTube music library. If you have Premium, you can even switch to audio-only to save data.

I have taken advantage of this and so far have collected musical performances from talent shows, award shows, late night TV shows and even Tiny Desk.

How to find new versions of your favorite songs

There are several ways to find new interpretations of your favorite songs on YouTube Music.

The first and easiest way is to simply use the search bar. Once you’ve entered your song, the official version should appear as the top result. Below you can find further appearances in the “More from YouTube” section. Look for the ones with the “Live” tag. For most songs there are usually one or two.

Sometimes the live performances are not tagged correctly so you have to search for them. On the same search page, scroll until you get to the “Videos” section. Tap “More” and browse the offers until you find one that suits you.

Another way to find alternative versions of your song is to open it in the music player and tap the Similar button.

Scroll down to “Other Performances.” Here you can find new versions of the same song.

Finally, if you’re browsing YouTube and come across a live performance that you like, you can open it on YouTube Music by clicking the YouTube Music button at the top of the screen.

YouTube Music leaves me spoiled for choice. I don’t have to settle for the official versions of songs, I can also enjoy all the variations that are available on YouTube. Combined with the pretty cool features, it’s a given that I’ll be renewing my subscription next month too.