According to Michael Bublé, this feature of iOS 18.2 will forever change how we make music

One of the new features of the recently launched iOS 18.2 update may, with the new Image Playground app and all the innovations brought by Apple Intelligence, easily go unnoticed, but it shouldn’t. This version brings us a tool that is marking a before and after in music creation. We are talking about Layered Recordings, a new feature of the Voice Memos app exclusive to the iPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max. A feature that Michael Bublé himself has used to record his latest Christmas song and claims that “it is going to change the way we make music forever.”

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A tool that redefines voice notes

With the arrival of the iPhone 16 Pro in September, Apple hinted at what could be a fundamental change in the Voice Memos app. Now, with iOS 18.2, we can enjoy Layered Recordings, a feature specifically designed for music creation.

This seemingly simple tool allows us to record a high-quality vocal layer over an existing instrumental track, all without the need to use headphones. The system isolates the vocal tracks thanks to the power of the phone’s chips and saves them as two-track projects, ready even to be exported to Logic Pro on Mac or iPad —where more professional editing can continue—.

As Apple itself explains, the system is not only designed for singers and musicians, but it is also extremely useful for narrators, podcast creators, and anyone who wants to contribute their voice to an existing track. A simple solution that eliminates the need for dedicated equipment or more complex applications, allowing us to focus on what matters: creativity.

Michael Bublé and his experience with layered recordings

The opinion of an artist with the trajectory of Michael Bublé does not go unnoticed. The well-known “King of Christmas” has recorded his latest song, Maybe This Christmas, using this feature. In a video released by Apple, Bublé and his team explain how Voice Memos has become an indispensable tool during the creative process. “This will forever change the way we make music,” stated the singer, highlighting the impact of this technology.

With just an iPhone 16 Pro, Bublé recorded his vocals directly over an instrumental track that played through the device’s speaker. The result, two perfectly synchronized tracks, was exported to Logic Pro, where the team completed the production.

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With this feature, we can record anywhere and anytime without sacrificing quality. It is this level of accessibility that Apple achieves with this seemingly simple feature. In Bublé’s words, this technology “is so typical of Apple: building something we didn’t know we needed and now we won’t be able to stop using.”