Building a Dynamic Music App with React Native and Expo Go: A Developer's Guide

I have just completed a dynamic music app using React Native and the latest version of Expo Go, utilizing dummy data to finalize the user interface. This guide aims to help other developers implement music features in their apps and leverage the comment section functionality where users can express their feelings about the music.

Key Features and Technologies Used

The app incorporates several key libraries and technologies:

expo-av: For audio playback.

expo-linear-gradient: For beautiful gradient effects.

expo-linking: To handle deep links.

expo-router: For advanced routing within the app.

lodash: A utility library for simplifying JavaScript code.

nativewind: For styling components with Tailwind CSS.

react-native-animatable: For creating smooth animations.

react-native-gesture-handler: To handle gestures smoothly.

react-native-modals: To display modal dialogs.

react-native-reanimated: For highly performant animations.

react-native-safe-area-context: To handle safe area insets.

You can view the app and get the complete front-end code on my

 GitHub repository.

Implementing the Music Player

To play songs, we use expo-av which allows for easy integration of audio features. Here’s a basic setup to get started:

javascript

import { Audio } from 'expo-av';

async function playSound() {

  const { sound } = await Audio.Sound.createAsync(

     require('./assets/song.mp3')

  );

  await sound.playAsync(); 

}

playSound();

Building the User Interface

For the UI, we used various React Native components and libraries like react-native-animatable for animations and react-native-gesture-handler for managing touch interactions. The FlatList component was critical in rendering the list of songs efficiently. However, handling FlatList correctly is important to avoid common errors such as the VirtualizedList error. Here's an example of how to properly use FlatList:

javascript

import React from 'react';

import { FlatList, Text, View } from 'react-native';

const data = [

  { id: '1', title: 'Song 1' },

  { id: '2', title: 'Song 2' },

  // Add more songs here

];

const renderItem = ({ item }) => (

  <View>

    <Text>{item.title}</Text>

  </View>

);

const SongList = () => (

  <FlatList

    data={data}

    renderItem={renderItem}

    keyExtractor={item => item.id}

  />

);

export default SongList;

Adding Comments and Chat Functionality

The app includes a comment section where users can discuss their feelings about the music. This feature can enhance user engagement significantly. Here’s a brief overview of how to set up a comment section:

javascript

import React, { useState } from 'react';

import { FlatList, Text, TextInput, Button, View } from 'react-native';

const Comments = () => {

  const [comments, setComments] = useState([]);

  const [text, setText] = useState('');

  const addComment = () => {

    setComments([...comments, { id: Date.now().toString(), text }]);

    setText('');

  };

  return (

    <View>

      <FlatList

        data={comments}

        renderItem={({ item }) => <Text>{item.text}</Text>}

        keyExtractor={item => item.id}

      />

      <TextInput

        value={text}

        onChangeText={setText}

        placeholder="Add a comment"

      />

      <Button onPress={addComment} title="Post" />

    </View>

  );

};

export default Comments;

Bringing the App to Life with Expo Go

With the latest Expo Go, deploying and testing the app has become seamless. To view the app, simply scan the QR code using the Expo Go app on your iOS or Android device.

Getting the Code

You can view the app and get the complete front-end code on my GitHub repository. Don’t forget to give us a star and follow for updates on the web app and back-end projects.

Scan to view the app:

iOS Expo Go App: 

Android Expo Go: 

By following this guide, developers can efficiently build and deploy a feature-rich music app using React Native and Expo Go. Stay tuned for more updates on the web app and back-end development projects!