If Nest Audio plays the right song but announces the wrong artist, these checks can help you identify the cause and fix it.
Your Nest Audio may be playing the correct song but still announcing the wrong artist name. For example, it might play a Taylor Swift track and name a different artist instead. In many cases, the issue comes from music service linking, account setup, Voice Match, or firmware.
This problem is often fixed in the Google Home app or in your music service settings rather than in the speaker hardware.
Make sure your Google Home app is updated, your Nest Audio is online, and you know which Google account and music service are linked to the speaker.
Note: Some menu labels may vary slightly by app version, region, or account type.
In This Guide
Key Takeaways at a Glance
Your music service is not properly linked in the Google Home app, so Gemini is guessing the artist from a generic radio stream instead of your actual account.
Free music tiers (YouTube Music free, Spotify free) do not play exact tracks. They play radio, which means artist metadata is often wrong or missing.
Many users can fix this by re-linking the music service and turning on Personal Results. In most cases, a factory reset is not needed.
The issue may appear after a Gemini for Home update if linked services, accounts, or settings need to be refreshed.
Users on Nest Audio who play music through linked services using voice commands like “Hey Google, play [artist name].”
Check the device info screen in the Google Home app to confirm whether your Nest Audio is on the latest available firmware.
If the song itself is being replaced by a radio mix or a different track, the problem may be with the music service plan rather than Nest Audio alone.
Why Does Gemini Home Say the Wrong Artist Name?
Before fixing it, it helps to understand the likely causes. The wrong artist name often comes from a service-linking issue, account mismatch, or missing metadata from the music source.
When you say “Hey Google, play [artist name],” your Nest Audio goes through three things:
- It checks which music service to use (your default music provider like Spotify or YouTube Music).
- It pulls artist and song metadata (the information label that says who made the song).
- It announces that metadata to you using Gemini’s voice.
If step one or step two goes wrong, you hear the wrong artist name even if the music itself is playing correctly. This is usually a music provider or account mismatch, and it is more common than most people realize.
Here are the likely reasons this issue can happen on Nest Audio:
| Cause | What It Means in Simple Words | How Common Is It? |
|---|---|---|
| Music provider not properly linked | Your speaker does not know which Spotify or YouTube Music account to use | Often |
| Free music subscription tier | Free Spotify or YouTube Music plays radio, not the exact song, so the artist info is random | Often |
| Personal Results turned off | Gemini cannot access your personal music library, so it guesses | Sometimes |
| Gemini firmware lag | Your speaker’s software is outdated and the Gemini AI music recognition is not fully working | Sometimes |
| Google Account mismatch | Your phone and speaker are signed in to different Google accounts | Less often |
| Wi-Fi connection issue | Weak internet causes metadata to fail to load, so the speaker shows old or wrong info | Less often |
If this issue started after a Gemini for Home change, refresh the music service link, account settings, and Personal Results first. Behavior can vary by firmware version and account setup.
Symptom Diagnosis Table: What Are You Seeing?
Before jumping into fixes, use this table to figure out exactly what is causing your specific problem. Match your symptom to the likely cause, then skip ahead to the right fix. This can help you narrow the cause faster.
| What You Are Experiencing | Most Likely Cause | Quick Test to Confirm | Go to Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Speaker plays Taylor Swift but announces it as a completely different artist | Default music service is wrong or not linked correctly (music provider mismatch) | Say: “Hey Google, what music service are you using?” | Step 2 |
| The song playing is correct but the artist name shown in the Google Home app is wrong | Music metadata is pulling from a generic source, not your account. Often a free-tier subscription issue. | Open the Home app and check what service is showing under “Now Playing” | Step 2 & 3 |
| This only started happening after the Gemini update in late 2025 | Gemini voice model glitch or Cast firmware not updated to support Gemini fully | Say: “Hey Google, who are you?” It should say a Gemini voice name (plant or color named) | Step 1 & 4 |
| The error only happens sometimes, not every time you play music | Wi-Fi handshake issue causing the speaker to drop metadata during stream | Unplug your Nest Audio for 30 seconds and plug it back in. Play music again. | Step 4 |
| Wrong artist shows up on playlists and albums, not just single songs | Personal Results is turned off, so Gemini has no access to your personalized music library data | Check: Home app > Profile > Personalization | Step 3 |
| Gemini says a song title correctly but announces the wrong artist from a completely different genre | Voice Match is not set up, so your speaker is not recognizing you as the user and pulling wrong profile | Check if Voice Match is trained in: Home app > Profile > Voice Match | Step 3 |
Step-by-Step Fixes (Tested on Nest Audio, April 2026)
Follow these fixes in order. After each step, restart your Nest Audio by unplugging it for 10 seconds and plugging it back in. Then test by asking it to play music. Many users can resolve the issue in the first few steps.
Before starting, make sure your Google Home app is updated to version 4.1 or newer. You can check this in your phone’s app store. Older versions of the app do not show all Gemini settings.
Check Whether Gemini for Home Is Active
Start here so you know which settings apply to your device. If Gemini for Home is not active yet, some options in the Google Home app may look different.
- Open the Google Home app on your phone.
- Tap your Profile icon at the top right.
- Go to Home Settings and look for “Gemini for Home voice assistant.”
- If you do not see it, the Gemini rollout might not have reached your account yet. Check for updates in the app.
If Gemini is active, it may introduce itself with a plant- or color-based name. AI rollouts like this can sometimes cause unexpected hardware performance bugs; for example, some users recently had to fix Gemini Nano disabling 4K 120fps on the Pixel 10 Pro after an update. If it says “I am Google Assistant,” your device has not been upgraded yet, and the Gemini-specific steps below may not apply to you yet.
This issue can happen when music service linking, account settings, or device setup do not line up correctly. Once you confirm Gemini is active, the rest of the fixes will make much more sense.
Re-Link Your Default Music Service
This is often the first setting to check. Your music service may have disconnected, or the wrong account may be linked. Follow the steps below:
- Open the Google Home app.
- Tap your Profile icon → Home Settings → Music.
- You will see a list of music services like YouTube Music, Spotify, Apple Music, and Pandora.
- Unlink your current default service by tapping it and selecting “Unlink.”
- Wait about 30 seconds, then link it again by tapping it and signing in with your account credentials.
- Once linked, tap “Set as Default” to make sure Gemini uses this service for all future music requests.
Saying the service name out loud in your command forces Gemini to use that exact service, reducing the chance of a mismatch.
If you use a free Spotify or YouTube Music tier, playback may be less precise and can return radio-style results. That can affect artist matching. Premium plans are more reliable for exact-track playback.
Match Your Google Account and Turn On Personal Results
Check that the same Google account is being used on your phone and your Nest Audio setup. If the accounts do not match, music preferences and personalization can be pulled from the wrong profile.
- Open the Google Home app → Tap your Profile icon.
- Check which Google account is shown at the top. This should be the same account your Nest Audio was set up with.
- If it is different, tap the account name and switch to the correct one.
- Now go to Profile → Home Settings → Personalization.
- Make sure ‘Personal Results’ is turned ON. While this is necessary for Nest Audio to access your library, if you’re concerned about AI tracking on your other devices, you should also check how to manage Gemini for Mac Safari private tabs to keep your browsing data separate.
- Also go to Profile → Voice Match and make sure your voice is trained. If it is not, tap “Set up Voice Match” and follow the prompts to say a few phrases.
When Personal Results is on and Voice Match is trained, Personal Results and Voice Match can help Gemini use the right profile and improve music playback consistency. for the songs you actually listen to.
Power Cycle Your Speaker and Check Nest Audio Firmware
Sometimes the fix is simple. Your Nest Audio just needs a proper restart. Here is the correct way to do it:
- Unplug your Nest Audio from the power outlet.
- Wait at least 30 seconds (not just 5 or 10).
- Plug it back in and wait for it to fully restart (it will play a chime when ready).
After the restart, also check your firmware version:
- Open Google Home app → Tap your Nest Audio device.
- Tap the Settings gear icon → Device Info.
- Look for Cast Firmware version and confirm that the speaker is up to date.
- If your firmware is outdated, keep the speaker powered on and connected to Wi-Fi. It will update automatically within 24 hours.
Also restart your home Wi-Fi router by unplugging it for 30 seconds. Weak or unstable Wi-Fi can interrupt playback data and cause the artist name to display incorrectly.
Use More Specific Voice Commands
This step does not require any app changes. It is about how you word your voice commands to Gemini. Vague commands leave room for mistakes.
- Instead of: “Hey Google, play The Weeknd” (too vague, may play radio)
- Say: “Hey Google, play Blinding Lights by The Weeknd on Spotify” (exact, forces correct metadata)
Gemini for Home can also try to identify songs from humming or partial lyrics:
This works especially well if you cannot remember the exact song name. Song recognition may work better when Personal Results is on and your music service is linked correctly.
Reset Music Settings or Factory Reset as a Last Resort
If none of the above steps worked, try a full reset of your music settings first before doing a factory reset:
- Home app → Profile → Home Settings → Music.
- Unlink every music service listed there, one by one.
- Close the app completely, wait 2 minutes, then reopen it.
- Link only the one service you want to use and set it as default.
If the wrong artist error is still happening after all of this, you can do a factory reset of your Nest Audio. Fair warning: this erases all your speaker’s settings and you will need to set it up from scratch.
- Press and hold the volume up and volume down buttons simultaneously during the startup phase of your Nest Audio.
- The speaker will announce that it is resetting.
- Set it up again from the Google Home app as if it were a new device.
Note down any smart home routines you have set up, because they will be lost after a factory reset. Screenshots of your Home app routines are helpful here.
Prevention Tips and What Gemini Updates Mean for You
To reduce the chance of the problem returning, keep your app, account links, and voice settings up to date.
| Prevention Tip | Where to Set It | Why It Helps |
|---|---|---|
| Keep your Google Home app updated | Your phone’s app store | New app versions fix known bugs in Gemini music settings |
| Use a Premium music subscription | Spotify, YouTube Music, or Apple Music account settings | Free tiers use radio mode which does not carry reliable artist metadata |
| Keep Nest Audio plugged in with stable Wi-Fi | Your home router settings | Firmware updates happen automatically only when the speaker is on and connected |
| Re-train Voice Match every few months | Home app → Profile → Voice Match | Voice Match accuracy improves with fresh voice data, helping Gemini pull the right user profile |
| Always name the music service in your voice command | Just say it out loud when asking for music | Forces Gemini to use the correct service instead of defaulting to a cached or wrong provider |
What the 2026 Gemini Updates Changed for Music Playback
Recent Google Home and Gemini updates may change how music playback behaves, so it is worth keeping the app and firmware current. Common improvements usually affect:
- Better artist disambiguation: Gemini can now tell the difference between artists with similar names more accurately, which was a major source of the “incorrect artist name” issue.
- Improved Spotify and YouTube Music metadata syncing: The handshake between Nest Audio and third-party music services was improved, reducing cases where the right song played but wrong artist metadata displayed.
- Personalized music library sync: With Personal Results enabled, Gemini now references your actual listening history to confirm artist identification, rather than relying entirely on generic internet lookups.
For the most stable experience, use a reliable paid music service and keep only one default music provider linked in Google Home.
When to Contact Google Nest Support
If you have completed all six steps in this guide and the wrong artist name problem is still happening, it may be an account-level issue that Google support can review. Here is how to reach them:
- Open the Google Home app → Tap your Profile → Help & Feedback.
- Describe your issue as: “Nest Audio Gemini artist metadata error, wrong artist name announced during playback.”
- You can also check Google’s Nest community forums at support.google.com/googlenest for other users who may have found device-specific solutions.
Also check if there is an active Google service outage affecting Google Home or YouTube Music. A service issue on Google’s side can temporarily cause metadata errors that no amount of local fixing will solve. These usually resolve within a few hours on their own.
When To Escalate
If the issue continues after re-linking music services, checking Personal Results, and confirming firmware, contact Google Nest support with your device name, app version, and exact voice command.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Gemini for Home compatible with all Nest Audio models?
Does using a free Spotify or YouTube Music account cause the incorrect artist error?
How do I check if my Nest Audio is running Gemini or the old Google Assistant?
Why did the wrong artist problem start right after the Gemini update?
How do I fix a Spotify Premium artist mismatch with Gemini Home?
Can my Nest Audio recognize a song if I hum it to Gemini?
Does weak Wi-Fi cause Gemini to say the wrong artist name?
What is the right way to factory reset a Nest Audio for music glitches?
What is the difference between Gemini for Home and old Google Assistant for music?
Will Google fix the remaining incorrect artist issues automatically?
References
These references support the troubleshooting steps and device settings mentioned in this guide. Official support sources are prioritized where available.
- Google Support — Fix issues with music playback on Nest Audio and Google Home speakers: https://support.google.com/googlenest/answer/7211943?hl=en
- Google Support — Gemini for Google Home features and setup: https://support.google.com/googlenest/answer/15962877?hl=en
- Google Support — Nest Audio device troubleshooting and firmware: https://support.google.com/googlenest/answer/15542711?hl=en-IN
- Thurrott — Google Home gets more Gemini updates (2026 model improvements): https://www.thurrott.com/smart-tech/smart-home/google-home/334858/google-home-gets-more-gemini-updates
- Android Police — Google fixes Gemini’s biggest Google Home frustrations: https://www.androidpolice.com/google-fixes-geminis-biggest-google-home-frustrations/
- Pocket-lint — How to fix issues with Google Home and Nest Audio speakers not playing music: https://www.pocket-lint.com/how-to-fix-issues-with-google-home-and-nest-audio-speakers-not-playing-music/
- Reddit — Community discussion on Personal Results issues on Google Home: https://www.reddit.com/r/googlehome/comments/1b9x97m/something_wrong_with_personal_results_on_google/