ctrlhq

Now playing

Your music in the notch, with lyrics.

Big artwork, controls, a scrubber and volume for Apple Music and Spotify, plus synced lyrics you can keep under the notch.

Buy ctrlhq · Launch price, regularly $49: $19

14-day money-back guaranteeAlready bought? Download

ctrlhq's Now Playing view with artwork, playback controls, volume and synced lyrics

Skipping a track or checking what's playing shouldn't mean hunting for the Music or Spotify window.

When something plays, the cover and a small visualiser sit beside the notch. Open it for the full player: big artwork, a scrubber, volume and the song's lyrics, highlighted line by line as it plays.

What you get

  • Apple Music and Spotify

    Picks up whatever's playing in either app. No account, nothing to connect.

  • Full controls

    Play, pause, skip, drag to seek and set the player's volume, right from the notch.

  • Synced lyrics

    The current line lights up and the rest scroll along with the song. Click any line to jump to it.

  • Lyrics under the notch

    Turn it on and the current line hangs below the closed notch while the music plays.

  • Opens to the music

    Open the notch while a song plays and it lands on Now Playing, unless you're mid-way through something else.

  • Colours from the cover

    Buttons, the scrubber and the glow take their colour from the album art.

Questions

Where do the lyrics come from?

LRCLIB, a free, open lyrics library. ctrlhq only looks a song up while lyrics are on screen, and sends just the title, artist, album and length.

Why does a song say no lyrics?

LRCLIB doesn't have every song. Popular tracks usually have synced lyrics; some only have plain text, which ctrlhq shows as it is.

Does it need any permissions?

The first time you use the controls, macOS asks to let ctrlhq control Music or Spotify. Track info works without it.

Also in the notch

All features

Now playing, and everything else.

Every feature is in one app, for one price: $19 once, no subscription, and a full refund within 14 days if it isn't for you.

Buy ctrlhq · Launch price, regularly $49: $19

14-day money-back guaranteeAlready bought? Download

macOS 26 Tahoe or later · Apple silicon & Intel