Modern Xiaomi smartphones, including the popular Redmi 9, are equipped with powerful multimedia capabilities that allow you to enjoy your favorite music in high quality. However, users often face a situation where the built-in algorithm of the player begins to change the sequence of tracks on its own, ignoring a given list. This is annoying, especially if you are used to listening to albums copyright or prepared a special playlist for the trip.
The problem of chaotic switching of compositions can be hidden in different settings of the application itself, system limitations of the MIUI shell, or even in the features of a particular audio file. It is important to understand that the standard interface does not always offer an obvious button to disable this function, hiding it in the depth of the menu or replacing the standard gesture control.
Owners of Android devices need to consider that media player behavior may vary depending on the operating system version and regional firmware. We will look at solutions for both the regular Music app and third-party services, which are often pre-installed on global versions of smartphones. Follow the instructions consistently to eliminate unwanted mixing.
The reasons for the random order on Redmi 9
Before you start taking active action to reconfigure, it's worth understanding the nature of the problem. Often users look for the "Mix" button to turn it off without noticing that the "All Tracks" playback mode is activated instead of "Albums" or "Folders." The MIUI system can, by default, prioritize the global list of all songs, ignoring the local folder structure.
Another common reason is app data caching. If you haven't cleared the cache of a player or music service in a long time, indexing errors may have accumulated in the database, causing the order of the files to be misunderstood by the program, in which case even explicitly turning off the shuffle function does not work, since the application relies on an outdated or corrupted list.
⚠️ Before resetting any app settings, make sure your playlists are cloud-synchronized or stored in memory so you don’t lose your listening history.
Also worth mentioning is the impact of third-party widgets and Bluetooth headsets. Some control devices can send signals that are interpreted by the system as a command to change playback mode. In addition, updates to the Google Play Music app itself or Xiaomi's regular player can return old default settings that need to be adjusted again.
Setting up a full-time Music app on Xiaomi
The standard application, which typically has an icon with a note on an orange or purple background, has its own set of sorting rules. To control the playback order, you need to open the player interface and carefully examine the control panel. In most versions of the MIUI shell, the mode switch button is at the bottom of the screen, next to the progress bar slider.
Click on an icon that looks like two crossed triangles or two crossed arrows. This is the Shuffle button. If it's illuminated or bright, it means that random play is active. You need to tap it until it turns gray or the active state indication disappears. Some versions of the firmware require a long press to access the additional sorting menu.
If a simple button doesn't work, try changing the playback source. Instead of the All Tracks tab, go to the Folders or Albums section. By running music directly from the folder, you force the system to order the file system, which often ignores the global mixing settings, which is especially true for Redmi 9 owners who store music in a structured way.
☑️ Checking player settings
Importantly, in the new Mi Music updates, the interface can hide additional options behind a three-point menu, and you can find Play Mode where you can find the options in order, repeat one, and randomly. Select the option in order to capture the sequence of files.
Managing Playback in Google Play Music
Global versions of Xiaomi Redmi 9 often pre-installed Google Play Music, which has its own logic, which is complicated by the fact that Google algorithms often impose smart mixing based on your preferences. To disable this feature, you need to go to the playback screen of a particular track.
At the bottom of the screen, under the album cover, you'll see a panel with control buttons. Look for an icon that resembles two crossed arrows. Unlike other players, you may need to double tap: the first one includes stirring mode for the current list, and the second one for the entire library. Make sure the indicator is gray, which means deactivation of the function.
It's also worth checking the settings of the playlist itself. If you've created the list manually, go to edit it. Sometimes the "Mix at Launch" option is in the properties of a particular list, not in the general settings of the application, and changing this setting will allow you to run the compositions strictly in the order in which you added them.
⚠️ Attention: Google Play Music is gradually ending support and some features may not work properly.
To fine-tune it, you can use the hidden menu. Press the app icon on your desktop and select Settings. In the menu that opens, look for the Play section and make sure that the box opposite to Automated Mixing is removed, which should completely eliminate the problem of chaotic track switching in this service.
What to do if the button is not pressed?
Using third-party players as an alternative
If Xiaomi’s regular tools and Google’s services don’t work, the most effective solution is to install a dedicated audio player. Third-party developers often provide more flexible playback queue management tools that are free of the limitations of standard shells. Apps like PowerAmp, AIMP or Musicolet allow you to customize queue behavior in detail.
The advantage of third-party solutions is that there's a separate, always visible queue control button. You can not only disable stirring, but you can also manually drag and drop tracks, swap them and save complex playback scenarios. This is especially convenient for Redmi 9 users who use their smartphone as their primary source of music.
When you install a new player, the system may request permission to access files. Be sure to grant these rights, otherwise the application will not be able to properly sort your media library. After scanning the library, go to the playback settings (usually indicated by a gear) and find "Track Order" or "Queue mode".
| Annex | Interface type | Difficulty setting up | Support for formats |
|---|---|---|---|
| PowerAmp | Advanced. | Tall. | All (FLAC, WAV, MP3) |
| Musicolet | Minimalist | Low. | Standard. |
| AIMP | Classical. | Medium | All popular. |
| VLC Player | Universal. | Low. | All without exception. |
The use of alternative software also allows you to bypass the limitations of background work, which sometimes aggressively implements MIUI to save battery power. Third-party players often have their own optimization mechanisms, which ensures stable play without sudden stops or jumps on random tracks.
💡
Install the player widget on the desktop, which allows you to change the order of playback without opening the application itself, which saves time and battery.
System settings and optimization of MIUI
MIUI shell is known for its aggressive resource management policy, which can affect the performance of media players. To eliminate system conflicts, leading to random shuffling, you need to check the battery settings for the application you are using. Go to Settings → Battery and performance (or simply Battery).
Find your music app (whether it’s regular or third-party) on the list and change the mode to “No Limits,” which will prevent the system from strangling background player processes that can be responsible for reading the playback queue correctly. Often, it is the lack of resources that causes the application’s logic to malfunction.
Also worth checking permissions. Go to Settings → Apps → All apps, select your player and click on Permissions. Make sure that file and media access is allowed. If access is restricted, the application may not see the folder structure and enable random order as a playback strategy.
⚠️ Warning: Don't turn off battery optimization for all apps at once, this will lead to a quick discharge of the smartphone.
In some cases, cleaning the data of the application itself helps, because this system module controls the behavior of other programs. However, this action should be done with caution, as it can reset other system settings to factory values.
💡
Properly configuring the power saving in MIUI often solves problems with chaotic application behavior more effectively than reinstalling the application itself.
Frequent questions and problems when setting up
Even after completing all the instructions, users may encounter nuances that require a personalized approach, such as music being played randomly only when connected via Bluetooth in a car, indicating a conflict of A2DP profiles, and the solution often lies in the settings of the car's head unit itself, not the phone.
Another common question concerns files downloaded from different sources: If tracks have different ID3 tags or bitrates on one album, the player can perceive them as disparate files and include mixing, in which case editing tags through a file manager or a specialized tag editor will help.
Remember that Redmi 9 is a low-cost processor, and with many background tasks running at the same time, it may not be able to handle heavy music without delay. Close unnecessary applications before launching music to ensure that the player is stable and that the tracks are in order.