How to stop music playing on iPhone 7 Plus

Go to settings, Cellular, look for music, turn off use cellular data for Music. See if that works.

Tried your suggestion, but it didn't work. As soon as it connected to my Plantronics headset, Music kicked in.

Can you clarify WHAT MUSIC??  Is this a song in the Music library?  Is it always the same song? Or the last played song?

That's where it is tricky. Yes, it is a song in the Music library. The Music app is not open, but when I swipe up from the bottom to see the small control window, music is playing. Apple helped me determine that, if I open the Music app, the song listed in the gray band near the bottom that is either paused or playing is the same song listed in the control window. So, the Music app is operating even though it is closed at the time my phone connects to a particular Bluetooth audio device. And, the music will play even though the Music app remains closed. The Apple rep was pretty intrigued by this. She thought she had found the solution by turning of the "hand off" feature, but that did not actually work.

Did you try going under settings then go to Music and turning off Cellular data from there?

Yes, that's where I switched it off.

Does the problem occur with different Bluetooth devices or just a specific one?  If its just one device Is it a headset, speaker or what?

It occurs with all Bluetooth audio devices; both headsets and my car system. It does not occur when connecting to my computer.

OK .. can you quickly tell me if you've
1. Powered down and up your iPhone .. does the issue happen 100% of the time with all these audio bluetooth devices?
2. Have you deleted all the Bluetooth devices from the Bluetooth settings on the phone and then just pair 1 device and test?
3. Is the iOS on the phone the very latest release?  Has this issue with bluetooth devices and audio affected the iPhone since you started using it?
4. Have you done a full factory reset on the  iPhone (after backing up  of course) then tested the bluetooth on the default device before restoring the backup?  Does it occur on the factory reset iPhone too?

1. Yes
2. No
3. Yes
4. No

When I have a chance, I'll try #2, but I expect #4 will be the only chance at a solution.

Thanks, I'll try these soon.

#2 is the quicker test .. after deleting all the bluetooth paired devices .. restart the phone and toggle bluetooth on and off and ensure it isn't automatically pairing with anything before re-pairing with one device

Will do.

I eliminated all of my Bluetooth paired devices, then paired my iPhone back to my car. I switched off my car, then back on again, and my phone reconnected without starting any music.  Next, I opened Spotify and played a song. I repeated the steps shutting off the car, then back on again. This time, when the phone reconnected, it began playing music. Spotify was not open, but the music was the song that was previously playing. So, the issue is not with the app (i.e., Music vs. Spotify). How either of these apps are running despite not being open is a mystery to me.

Before resetting my phone  (the next step), I'm going to test this with another iPhone. If it happens with another phone, resetting mine probably won't resolve the issue.

When you say that Spotify wasn't running .. did you definitely Force Quit it?  How did you quit Spotify app?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bGeV7ZYzavM

When I double-clicked the Home button, Spotify was not running. Apple support saw this and found it interesting.

I have bluetooth headphones and I can confirm that even with NO apps running .. when I connect my bluetooth headphones and press the PLAY button it will activate the Music app play feature and play whatever music I was last listening to whether that was the Apple Music or Spotify.

The BIG difference is that I have to press the PLAY button on my headphones .. when I connect them they don't start playing automatically.

It’s a small but significant difference.  It points towards some small bug/flaw in the bluetooth on your iPhone.

I agree. I'll test a separate phone and let you know what happens.

The one other thing to look at is the version of Bluetooth these devices support .. are the newer v4 Bluetooth or older v2 or v1?

It might be worth checking that as it is the only other variable I can think of

I assume my new Plantronics Voyager 5200 is using the latest Bluetooth version, but I can't find a reference to it anywhere.

The auto play is initiated from the Bluetooth headset, not the iOS. Try to install the app below to see what settings you can change for your Bluetooth headset.

Plantronics Hub™
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/plantronics-hub/id464172515?mt=8

@cmmcginn - you'll have noticed that there are thousands of posts online about this issue .. affecting users of different phones (it even affects android) and bluetooth devices.  I've dug into it a bit more and while many people blame Apple the precise cause is the bluetooth device.

The exact "fault" for this issue is with the bluetooth device and not Apple.  Unfortunately you seem to have a number of bluetooth devices with the same flaw/issue (which is partially by design of the manufacturer).

Basically what happens is that the iPhone with bluetooth enabled is constantly "listening" for trusted bluetooth devices to connect to.  When it detects a trusted device it initiates a type of handshake with that device and passes permissions to the bluetooth device to control audio.  The bluetooth device as part of that handshake is not just taking the audio feed but also sending a PLAY command.  The iOS device is responding and the "default" feature in iOS is to trigger the Music player which is always running even when the Music app is closed.

Unfortunately Apple play a part in the whole scenario as they COULD put in some kind of double-lock to require the iPhone to approve the play request following a new connection but ultimately the fault lies with the bluetooth device.  If this was not the case then EVERY audio bluetooth device would have this issue but it doesn't as I have 3 bluetooth devices including headphones and a speaker and NONE of them autoplay music when I connect them.

If you search online you'll see that thousands reported this issue with bluetooth car stereos for example and many found that firmware updates for the stereos resolved it in recent years.  I'm a little surprised that a reputable manufacturer such as Plantronics do it this way but I can imagine that for a handsfree kit they may have "designed" it that way.  Imagine you’re on the phone and want to switch to handsfree, if you power up the headset .. it will connect and take-over the call immediately which has its benefits.  The downside is that if you're not on a call the same bluetooth connection triggers the Music app to start playing!!

Eoin,

Thanks so much for all the effort and help. I completed another support call with Apple this morning and they had me reset network connections. I'm not sure at this point if that has accomplished anything. I have a problem with iTunes opening every time I dock my phone with my computer, so that just adds to the problem.  [Note: I implemented a correction for iTunes starting automatically - placing a check mark in "Prevent iPods, iPhones, and iPads From Syncing Automatically", but it worked for a while and no longer works.]  With more testing, I'll let you know if their resetting network connections actually worked.

I've seen this issue all around the Internet. It's surprising that manufacturers don't seem to know about it or bother to correct it.

I agree that having the Bluetooth headset take over a call is very helpful.  It seems that, if Apple would not allow music apps (including Spotify in my case) to run even when they are closed, there wouldn't be a problem.

Strangely, I don't recall having this problem with my iPhone 6 Plus or when I first got my 7 Plus.

Jackie, my Plantronics hub software is fully up to date. Thanks

@EOIN, he said Apple Support had him reset the network connections. It's in his comment 42244649.

My apologies, I should have indicated "Assisted Solution" for everyone's help. Apple Support's resolution was to go into General | Reset | Reset Network Settings.

Thanks again everyone.