Considering Android 12 is one of the most significant updates the OS has ever seen, you shouldn't expect Android 13 to be a reinvention for the second time in a row. Even so, the update does bring its fair share of changes to the table, including a handful of new features, UI tweaks, and a more polished version of Material You. One of the most noticeable improvements in Android 13 is a new squiggly media player, which requires apps to target API level 33 to use the new design. YouTube Music has done just that now, making your musical experience with it a bit better.

Update 5.16 is making its way out to users via the Play Store, and if you're running it on Android 13, you should spot an updated media player, as reported by 9to5Google. With this update, the media controls in your notification tray and on your lock screen now sport a squiggly animation for the dot as it makes its way across the track. This progress bar sits between a pair of back and forward buttons, with repeat and shuffle on the right corner. You'll spot a play/pause button above the shuffle button housed in a hard-to-miss, rounded-square button that changes colors to match the current album art.

Left: Android 13's redesigned media player with API level 33. Middle: Android 13 without API level 33. Right: Android 12's media player.

Sadly, those like and dislike buttons YTM's media notification earlier featured have been done away with, so users who relied on them to improve suggestions will have to access them from the app now.

With this new update, YouTube Music joins Chrome in being fully compatible with the new media controls. Previously, YouTube Music — like any other music app not updated to API level 33 — sported a half-baked version of this new player that, while featuring the squiggly music bar, pushed all media controls into the corner of the display. Spotify and YouTube have yet to receive similar updates, though with a few weeks left before Android 13 hits a stable build, there's still plenty of time.