Spotify listeners can finally read the lyrics for their favorite tracks in real-time, but the feature is only coming to select regions for now, and the U.S. isn’t one of them.
TechCrunch reports that Spotify will offer real-time lyrics starting today for users in 26 markets, including countries in Latin America and Southeast Asia.
Among the countries on the list: Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Mexico, Peru, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, India, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, El Salvador, Uruguay, Vietnam, Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong.
To see the lyrics, TechCrunch says you can simply press the “Lyrics” button on the “Now Playing” screen. As the track plays, the current lyric will be highlighted.
Apple Music, Amazon Music, and YouTube Music already offer in-app lyrics, although YouTube Music’s in-app lyrics don’t scroll in real time (or at least, not yet).
Spotify has been quietly testing real-time lyrics since late last year, which explains why users may have noticed lyrics in the app from time to time.
Unfortunately, the U.S. isn’t included in Spotify’s initial rollout of real-time lyrics, with TechCrunch noting that “complexities around lyrics and licensing” are to blame for the slow rollout.
And while Spotify users in Canada were able to follow along with song lyrics during a recent round of tests, they’ll lose that functionality following today’s official lyrics launch, TechCrunch adds.
When we asked Spotify when real-time lyrics might arrive in other regions, including the U.S., the company didn’t offer an ETA.
“We are always looking for new ways to improve the product experience and often have different features available in different markets based on various factors such as local licensing and competitive landscape,” a Spotify spokesperson said.