Mixed In Key energy level and star ratings in Music: keep them apart

Mixed In Key gives each song an Energy Level from 1 to 10. Music gives it stars. It is tempting to squeeze one into the other, so you can sort by a single column. This is why that does not work, and what to do instead

What the two numbers say

Mixed In Key describes Energy Level as a value from 1 to 10 for how intense a song feels, not only how fast it is. Levels 1 and 2 are very chill or atmospheric, 3 to 5 lower to medium intensity, 6 and 7 more danceable and upbeat, 8 to 10 high intensity (Mixed In Key). It is a measurement of the song

A star rating is your opinion. It answers how much you want the song in your sets

Why not use the stars for energy

Ten levels do not fit the stars. In Music, a rating is stored from 0 to 100 in steps of 20, so a song can hold only six values. In our library, we found exactly 0, 20, 40, 60, 80 and 100. Two energy levels per star would erase the step between them, and the stars could no longer hold your opinion

Where energy can go instead

Mixed In Key writes the Energy Level into a tag field that you choose in its Tag Options. The options listed on its sorting page are Comments, Grouping, Label, Song name and a custom field supported by your DJ software. Every song in Music has Comments and Grouping fields that a script can read

That page names rekordbox, Serato and Traktor and does not mention Music, so check it on a few files before you rely on it: analyse them, add them to Music, and see whether the energy shows up in the field you picked

Two fields, two jobs

1. Energy goes into a tag field, written by the tool
2. Stars stay in the rating, set by you
3. When you plan a set, read them together: energy for the shape of the set, stars for which songs make the cut

To set the stars faster, Likeit rates the song that is playing from the menu bar: a Rate shortcut and a digit from 0 to 5. More on sorting a library with stars is in how to organise a DJ music library in Apple Music