Instagram Notes Expands with Music and Translation Features

Instagram has announced new updates for its Notes feature, which was made public in December 2022. The latest additions include support for music integration and translations, allowing users to further express themselves through music and easily translate Notes.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg shared the news through his Instagram Broadcast Channel, unveiling the expanded capabilities of Instagram Notes. Previously limited to short text and emojis, Notes now enables users to incorporate a 30-second clip of a song, accompanied by a caption. This update adds a creative element to users’ profiles.

The addition of music to Notes provides users with an avenue to share their moods, feelings, and musical preferences. By attaching a brief song clip, individuals can express themselves in a personalised way. Alongside the shared clip, users can also include a caption to convey their thoughts and emotions more explicitly.

Integrating a song into a Note is a straightforward process. Users can access the music feature by clicking the “plus” button located near their profile photo on the Direct Message (DM) page. Below the note composition area, a music note icon can be found. Upon clicking this icon, users will be directed to a page similar to the one used for adding songs to Instagram Stories. Here, they can search for their desired song, select a 30-second clip, add optional text, and then post the Music Note.

In addition to the introduction of music, Instagram Notes now includes a translation feature. Users can easily translate a Note by tapping on it. By simply selecting the “See translation” link displayed below a Note written in a different language, users can instantly view the translation in their own preferred language. This new functionality aligns with Instagram’s existing support for translations in other areas of the app, such as post descriptions, comments, and Reels. It aims to facilitate seamless communication and understanding among users, even when language barriers exist.

During testing before its official launch, Notes was positively received by users, providing a lighthearted way to initiate conversations with friends. Similar to Twitter’s “what’s happening?” prompt, Instagram Notes encourages users to “Share a thought…” and compose a Note with up to 60 characters of text or emoji. These Notes then appear at the top of friends’ inboxes for 24 hours, while replies to Notes are received through DMs (Direct Messages).

The new features of Instagram Notes will be gradually rolled out today to users worldwide. However, as large-scale updates can take time to reach all users, some individuals may not immediately see the changes reflected in their app.