How to transfer music from Explorer to playlist on Xiaomi Redmi Note 9: 4 proven methods

Transferring your favorite tracks from Explorer to playlist on Xiaomi Redmi Note 9 seems to be a simple task – until you encounter the nuances of the MIUI interface. Xiaomi’s standard Music application works differently than usual players like Spotify or VLC, and the Android 10/11 file system on this model has its own characteristics. As a result, users are often lost: the files are not displayed in the player, the playlists disappear after rebooting, the system suggests creating duplicates instead of porting.

This article covers the problem completely, from the basic way through the context menu to the hidden MIUI 12/13 features that speed up the process by 3 times. We will analyze 4 working methods (including bypassing the restrictions on.flac and.wav files), compare them in speed and reliability, and also show how to avoid typical errors - for example, when the playlist is empty, although the files are in place. All instructions are relevant for the Redmi Note 9 (models M2003J15SC/M2003J15SS) on MIUI firmware 12.5-14.

Preparation: why music may not be displayed in the player

Before you transfer files, make sure they are visible to the system.There are 3 key reasons why tracks don't appear in the Music app on the Redmi Note 9:

• 📁 The files are in the wrong folder. The player scans only Internal. Storage/Music, /Download/Music and folders added manually to Settings → Folders for scanning.
• 🔍 No media indexing. After downloading files through USB or cloud needs to run the scan manually: Settings → Annexes → Music. → Memory. → Media file scanner.
• 🎵 Unsupported format. Standard player. MIUI It does not work with.ape,.dsd, or.flac above. 24 bit/96 kHz (although files are displayed in Explorer).

If you connect your phone to your PC through MTP (File transfer mode, check if the tracks are still in the This is folder PC internal Storage/temp — You have to move them manually. You also have to clear the player's cache. → Annexes → Music. → Clear the cache.

⚠️ Note: If you are using a microSD card, make sure it is formatted as internal memory (Settings) → Otherwise, the player will not see the files on it due to the limitations of Android.

Method 1: Transfer through the Explorer context menu (fastest)

This works if files are already in a folder that the player is scanning (such as Music or Download), it takes less than 10 seconds per track and requires no additional applications.

1. Open Explorer (the folder icon on the home screen).
2. Go to the music folder (for example, Internal Storage → Music).
3. Press your finger on the file to make a context menu appear, or tap on the three dots next to the track.
4. Choose Open with Help → Music.
5. In the player that opens, click on the three dots next to the track title → Add to the playlist → select an existing one or create a new one.

If there is no “Add to the playlist”, it means:

• 🔄 The player has not scanned the file yet (wait 1-2 minutes or restart the application).
• 📱 You have an outdated version of the Music app (update via Play Market or App Store) MIUI).

Files are in the Music or Download | folder

Music Player Updated to Latest Version |

Media indexing enabled in settings|

Cache player cleared (if files have not been previously displayed)-->

Method 2: Create a playlist directly in Explorer (hidden MIUI function)

Few people know, but MIUI 12+ has a built-in feature to create playlists directly from Explorer, without opening the player.

Instructions:

1. In Explorer, select files (click the first track, then tap the rest).
2. Click on the Share icon (arrow up) in the bottom panel.
3. In the list of applications, select Music → Create a playlist.
4. Enter the name of the playlist and click Ready.

The finished playlist will appear in the My Playlists section of the standard Music app, which does not work for files on a memory card if it is connected as a portable storage (only as internal memory).

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If the playlist doesn’t show up, restart the Music app or check the Internal Storage/MIUI/Music/playlist folder – sometimes playlist files are created there in.m3u format, but don’t appear in the interface.

Method 3: Manual editing of playlist files (for advanced ones)

If standard methods don’t work (e.g., the player can’t see.flac files), you can manually edit the playlist file in.m3u format.

Step-by-step:

1. Create a playlist through a player (albeit with one track).
2. Connect your phone to your PC or use Explorer on your phone to find the playlist file along the way: Internal Storage/MIUI/Music/playlist/ Files have extensions.m3u names playlist_15873246.m3u.
3. Open the file in any text editor (e.g. QuickEdit or Notepad++ on PC).
4. Add paths to your tracks in format: /storage/emulated/0/Music/your_song.mp3 The paths should be relative (begin with the /storage/emulated/0/), not absolute (c) /sdcard/).
5. Save the file and restart the player.

⚠️ Note: If you are editing a playlist on a PC, do not change the file encoding.m3u — It should stay. UTF-8. Otherwise, the Cyrillic track names will be displayed by Krakozabras.

Method 4: Use of third-party players (if the standard one is not suitable)

If the built-in Music app doesn't suit (e.g., doesn't support the desired formats or glitch), you can use alternative players with advanced playlist management features.

• 🎧 Poweramp – supports.flac,.ape,.dsd, has built-in equalizer and sync with the clouds.
• 📱 VLC for Android - free, works with any formats, can create playlists from Explorer through Open using.
• 🔊 Musicolet - lightweight player without advertising, with support for folders as playlists (convenient for organizing music on albums).

To bring music to the playlist via Poweramp:

1. Install the player from the Play Market.
2. In the guide, highlight the tracks → Share → Poweramp.
3. In the player, select Add to the playlist or Play later (automatically add to the queue).

On the Redmi Note 9 with MIUI 13, there may be a conflict with the system player when using the Poweramp – both apps will simultaneously scan media files, which slows down the phone. To avoid this, turn off scanning in the standard application: Settings → Apps → Music → Permissions → Disable Storage.

Standard "Music" |

Poweramp|

VLC|

Musicolet|

Other-->

Problem Solving: Playlist is empty or tracks are not played

Even after a successful transfer, failures can occur.-5 causes and solutions:

• 🔄 Player doesn't update playlist → Restart the application or clear its cache in the settings.
• 📛 Files renamed or moved → Playlists in.m3u If you have changed the location of the track, update the paths in the playlist file (see Method 3).
• 🔇 Tracks play without sound → Check if the sound in the player is turned off (the speaker button in the interface) or if the mode is not activated Do not disturb in the notification curtain.
• 📵 Playlist disappears after update MIUI → It's a firmware bug. MIUI 12.5–13. Restore the playlist from backup (folder) /MIUI/Music/playlist/) Or re-create it.
• 🛑 Tracks are grey and not pressed → Files are corrupted or have an incompatible format. Check them on a PC or convert them to.mp3 via Audacity.

If the problem persists, try resetting the player's settings:

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Music → Storage.
2. Click Clear Data (this will remove all playlists, but will resolve most glitches).
3. Reboot the phone.

Additional chips: automation and cloud playlists

If you are tired of manually transferring music, set up automatic addition of tracks to playlists:

• 🤖 Tasker + AutoInput → Create a task that, when you add files to the Music folder, automatically opens them in the player and adds them to the selected playlist. ADB-permitting.
• ☁️ Cloud services → Download music to Yandex Music or Google Play Music (via Music Manager), then sync playlists to your phone.
• 📲 File Manager for Solid Explorer → He's a playlist maker.m3u directly from the interface, with support for network folders (SMB, FTP).

For Spotify or Apple Music fans: On the Redmi Note 9, you can use the SoundAssistant app (from Samsung, but it works on Xiaomi) to combine local tracks and streaming playlists in one interface. Download APK with APKMirror and install manually.

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Redmi Note 9 with MIUI 13 has a hidden feature called “Smart Playlists” that automatically groups tracks by genre, artist or year. To activate it, go to Settings → Additional → Lab → Smart Playlists.

FAQ: Frequent questions about music transfer on Redmi Note 9