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Jason Cipriani/CNET
Accessing your music from any screen on your iOS device is possible with Apple’s Control Center, but its use is limited to playback controls. After iOS 8 launched with extensions, developers have come up with clever ways to take advantage of the added functionality. Music Center is an app built solely to put your music library in Notification Center. And it does just that. It has its shortcomings, such as in-app purchases to unlock all of its features.
Inspired by our coverage of Music Center, developer Emmanuel Ware decided to make his own app and release it for free. Thus Music Zone Widget was born and released unto the world.
After downloading the app, you’ll need to add it to the Today panel in Notification Center. You can do that by following the instructions here. Once it’s activated, you only need to swipe down from the top of your device’s screen to access your music library. The default layout is a pattern of five circles, each one leading to a different section of your catalog.
Once you begin playing music, you can continue to browse through your library and start playing a different song. Using the dedicated app, you can add music to the On Deck section, which is more or less a dedicated playlist for the widget.
