MCP Youtube Music MCP Server

Simple MCP Starter Package

Local serverstdio

What is the MCP Youtube Music MCP server?

MCP Youtube Music MCP server is a locally run integration for AI assistants that speak the Model Context Protocol. Simple MCP Starter Package.

What you get

This is a simple MCP server that allows you to search for and play tracks on YouTube Music directly from your AI assistant like Cursor or Claude Desktop.

What the assistant can call

Once MCP Youtube Music is connected, these are the calls the assistant has available:

  • searchTrack — Search for tracks on YouTube Music by name
  • playTrack — Play tracks directly by searching and opening them in your default browser

Setting it up

Setup follows the usual MCP pattern — install or clone the server, register it in your client's configuration file, restart the client. The configuration blocks on this page cover the common clients.

Configuration and credentials

You will need one environment variable: YOUTUBE_API_KEY. The server will not start without them, which is usually why the tools fail to appear on a first run. Keep credentials in your client's env block or a secrets manager rather than in a file you might commit.

Choosing this one

Among the browser automation options, the useful question is rarely "what can it do" but "what does it cost you to run" — permissions, credentials, and how much of your context its toolset consumes. MCP Youtube Music's toolset — searchTrack, playTrack — is a fair guide to whether it matches your workflow. It is maintained by instructa; worth a glance at recent repository activity before you build anything load-bearing on it.

SyncDev reviews every entry in this directory against the project's own documentation before publishing, and revisits them as servers change.

Before you rely on it

  • It runs with your machine's permissions. That is convenient and also the reason to think about what you point it at before you approve a tool call.
  • Missing credentials fail quietly in some clients — if no tools show up, check the environment block first.
  • MCP clients confirm each tool call by default. Leave that on until you have watched what the mcp youtube music mcp server does with a few real requests.

Available tools

ToolWhat it does
searchTrackSearch for tracks on YouTube Music by name.
playTrackPlay tracks directly by searching and opening them in your default browser.

How to install the MCP Youtube Music MCP server

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "youtube-music-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@instructa/mcp-youtube-music"],
      "env": {
        "YOUTUBE_API_KEY": "<INSERT_API_KEY_HERE>"
      }
    }
  }
}

Configuration as documented by the project. Restart the client after saving.

Configuration

VariableDescriptionRequired
YOUTUBE_API_KEYCredential the server authenticates with.Yes

Example prompts to try

  • Use MCP Youtube Music to searchTrack.
  • Use MCP Youtube Music to playTrack.

Frequently asked questions

It connects MCP Youtube Music to MCP-compatible AI assistants such as Claude and Cursor, exposing 2 tools (searchTrack, playTrack) that the assistant can call on your behalf. Instead of copying data back and forth by hand, the assistant works with MCP Youtube Music directly.