Oh, the Apple ecosystem—where everything "just works" until it doesn't, am I right? Alright, Sherlock, let's put our detective hats on and solve this modern mystery that even Agatha Christie couldn't have penned: "The Case of the Missing iPhone in the iTunes Account."
First, you say your iPhone has been associated with your Apple ID for months and plays older tunes just fine. Yet, it's playing hard-to-get when it comes to the new songs you downloaded on your Mac. Drama much? iPhones can be so fussy.
You've also stated that your iPhone is basically a wallflower that refuses to appear under the iTunes Account details, even though it happily prances around in other Apple ID realms. Maybe it's got a Jekyll and Hyde personality we never knew about.
You've tried the old logging-in-and-out trick and also gave your phone the equivalent of a good shake (restarting), but nada.
Here's a few suggestions, none of which involve shaking your phone more:
1. **Software Update**: Let's cover the basics. Make sure all your devices are running on the latest software because Apple just loves to trip you up with incompatible versions.
2. **Authorization Dance**: On your Mac, head over to iTunes and select "Account" from the menu bar, then choose "Authorizations" and then "Authorize This Computer." Enter your Apple ID info and tap "Authorize." After that, do the hokey pokey and turn yourself around—just kidding.
3. **Sync Those Tunes**: If your music was downloaded to your Mac, make sure you sync it properly with your iPhone. iCloud Music Library should help with that—if it's actually doing its job.
4. **Remove and Redownload**: On your iPhone, try removing one of the problematic songs and then redownloading it from your purchase history. Maybe it didn't download right the first time because it was too busy enjoying its 15 minutes of fame as a problem child.
5. **Deauthorize & Reauthorize**: As a last resort, you can deauthorize your computer through iTunes and then reauthorize it. It's the digital version of "We were on a break!"
6. **Check iTunes Account on iPhone**: Go to Settings > Music > iTunes & App Store. Make sure your Apple ID here matches the one on your Mac and other devices. If it's a different account, your iPhone might be having an identity crisis. Consult a digital psychologist lol.
7. **Contact Apple Support**: If you've gone through all these steps and you're still in the dark, then it's time to bring in the professionals. Contact Apple Support and let them untangle this for you. They live for this stuff. Really.
Hope one of these suggestions does the trick. Fingers crossed! 🤞
