How to Make a Song Continue on Instagram Story

Ever create the perfect multi-part Instagram Story, only to have the music awkwardly restart with every single tap? You meticulously line up your photos and videos, pick the perfect song, and then *bam* - the seamless vibe you were going for is completely gone. This article fixes that. We’ll walk through two straightforward methods to make a song continue smoothly across all your Instagram Story slides, giving your content the professional, continuous flow it deserves.

Why Does Instagram Story Music Restart?

First, let’s quickly touch on why this frustrating issue happens. Instagram treats each Story slide as an individual piece of content. When you upload a photo and add a music sticker, that music is tied only to that specific 15-second slide. When you create the next slide, you're starting with a completely blank slate. Instagram doesn't assume you want the music from the previous slide to carry over.

It’s not a bug, it’s just how the platform is designed. But don’t worry, there are clever ways to work around this limitation to create a seamless audio experience that keeps your audience engaged from the first slide to the last.

Method 1: The Multi-Select Trick (The Easiest Fix)

If you're creating a new Story from scratch and want a quick, native solution, Instagram has a built-in feature that solves the continuous music problem. This is a perfect method if your primary goal is to get multiple photos or short video clips into one continuous story with one background song.

Here’s how to do it step-by-step:

Step 1: Open the Story Creator and Select Your Media

Swipe right from your Instagram feed to open the Story creation screen. Instead of choosing a single photo, look for the small square icon that represents your photo gallery. Open it up, and in the top-right corner, you’ll see a button that looks like a layered square with the word "SELECT" next to it. Tap this.

Step 2: Choose Your Photos and Videos

Once you’re in multi-select mode, you can tap on every photo and video you want to include in your Story sequence. You can select up to 10 pieces of media at a time. As you tap them, they will be numbered in the order you select them. This is the order they will appear in your Story, so choose them sequentially. When you’re done, tap the "Next" arrow in the bottom-right corner.

• Pro Tip: You can re-order the slides on the next screen if you make a mistake. Just tap and hold a thumbnail at the bottom and drag it to a new position.

Step 3: Add Your One Music Sticker

Now, you’ll see all your selected media as individual slides at the bottom of the screen. Instead of editing each one separately, tap the sticker icon at the top of the screen (the smiling square). From there, select the "MUSIC" sticker.

Search for and select the song you want to use. You can scrub through the song to find the exact part you want to start with and choose how you want the sticker or lyrics to appear.

Step 4: Publish Your Story

Once you've added your song, Instagram automatically applies it across all the slides you uploaded together. You’ll hear it play continuously as you tap through the preview slides at the bottom. You can still go into each individual slide to add text, GIFs, or other stickers, but the core audio is now locked in. Once you’re happy with it, share it to your Story.

When you tap "Your Story," Instagram will upload all the slides, and your followers will experience one seamless song playing from beginning to end as they watch.

Limitations of This Method:

While incredibly simple, this method has two main restrictions:

• One set of edits: The music sticker is applied to the entire batch. You can't have different songs or audio clips on different slides.
• Best for new content: It’s designed for creating stories on the spot, not for pre-edited videos or more complex sequences.

Method 2: Using a Third-Party Editor (For Maximum Control)

If you want complete creative freedom - think custom text overlays that last across multiple slides, smooth video transitions, or using your own audio - the best approach is to create your Story *outside* of Instagram first. By creating one single, long video file and then uploading it, you guarantee the music will be seamless because it’s baked directly into the video.

User-friendly apps like CapCut, InShot, VN Video Editor, or even Canva's video features make this process surprisingly simple.

Here's the general workflow, which is similar across most video editing apps:

Step 1: Start a New Project and Import Your Media

Open your video editor of choice and begin a new project. Make sure you set the project’s aspect ratio to 9:16, which is the standard vertical format for Instagram Stories. Import all the photos and video clips you plan to use from your phone’s camera roll.

Step 2: Assemble Your Storyline

Drag your clips onto the timeline in the order you want them to appear. This is where you have full control. You can trim each clip to the perfect length, add transitions between them for a smoother flow, and arrange them exactly how you envision your story playing out.

Step 3: Add Your Continuous Music Track

Now, add your audio. Most editing apps let you either choose from their own library of licensed music or import a song from your device. Add the audio file as a separate layer on your timeline, typically below the video track. You can drag the beginning of the song to line up perfectly with your first clip. Since it’s one continuous audio track running under your sequence of visuals, it will naturally be seamless.

• Copyright Note: If you use a popular, copyrighted song from your personal music library and upload it, there's a small chance Instagram could mute it. To avoid this, consider using audio from Instagram's own library or royalty-free music from services like Epidemic Sound, especially for business or brand accounts.

Step 4: Add Text, Stickers, and Effects

Here's the real advantage of this method. You can add text overlays, stickers, and graphic effects that persist across multiple clips. For example, if you want a title to stay on screen while three different photos cycle underneath it, you can easily do that by extending the text layer on your timeline. This is something impossible to do within the native Instagram app and immediately gives your Story a more polished feel.

Step 5: Export The Final Video

Once your masterpiece is complete, export the entire project as a single video file (e.g., an .MP4 file). Make sure you export it in high quality (1080p is usually perfect) to your phone’s camera roll.

Step 6: Upload to Your Instagram Story

Finally, open Instagram, swipe to create a Story, and select the long video you just exported. If your video is longer than Instagram's slide limit (usually 60 seconds for videos), Instagram will automatically break it up into consecutive slides for you. Because you’re uploading a single video file, the audio is embedded within it, ensuring a perfectly continuous and smooth playback experience for your viewers. Tap post, and you're done!

Creative Tips for Engaging Stories with Continuous Music

Knowing how to make a song continue is only half the battle. Here are a few quick tips to make your musical Stories more engaging:

• Match the Music to the Pacing: If you have a sequence of fast cuts or photos, choose an upbeat song with a strong rhythm. For slower, more scenic shots, a chill, atmospheric track will work better.
• Use a Beat Drop for Emphasis: Line up a significant moment in your visual story - like a reveal or a beautiful landscape shot - with a beat drop or chorus in your song. This creates a powerful, satisfying viewing experience.
• Hook Them with Lyrics: When using Method 1 (the multi-select trick), be sure to enable the animated lyrics feature on the first slide. It's a great visual hook that encourages people to watch the rest of the sequence and understand the vibe you're setting.
• Tell a Mini-Story: Think of your sequence of slides as a tiny film. Your music choice should act as the soundtrack, setting the tone from the opening "scene" to the final one.

Final Thoughts

In short, you can master continuous music on Instagram Stories by either using the quick in-app multi-select feature for simple sequences or a third-party video editor for complete creative control. Both methods will elevate your content, making your Stories more professional, seamless, and engaging for your audience.

Creating high-quality, multi-part Stories like this takes effort, and keeping that creative content planned and organized is just as important. To make sure that all our hard work on social content pays off, we built Postbase to streamline our entire social media workflow. I use our visual calendar to plan out my Story content days or weeks in advance, so I never miss a beat. When I'm in a moment of creative flow I can get batches of short form videos planned and scheduled. This focus on planning lets me stay consistent with less stress and gives me more headspace to focus on creating beautiful Stories.