Case study · GMX · Ghana Music Live
GMX started as Ghana Music Live: one app for the music, radio and podcasts that listeners in Ghana kept in separate apps. I was its sole product designer. I planned and ran the user interviews, then designed the app end to end. The client shipped it as GMX, in their own dark style, with the music and the player close to my design.
Music, radio and podcasts side by side, in one app instead of three.
What the interviews found
Before I designed a single screen, I planned and ran interviews with people in Ghana about how they listen. Two problems stood out.
01
02
Listening
The client restyled the app dark, but the way you listen is the one I designed. The same player and controls, the same queue, the same add-to-playlist sheet and the same download states.
What carried overCover first, then the title, a red progress bar and the five controls, with download, add to playlist and share one tap away.
What carried overOpened from the player: what is playing now on top, then the songs coming next, in order.
What carried overA sheet over the player, starting with Create playlist and a search for your playlists.
What carried overDownloading shows on the player itself, so you keep listening while it saves.
Drag across the phone to compare.
I designed buying a download around the ways people pay in Ghana: mobile money first, then cards. If the payment prompt never arrives, the next screen walks you through approving it yourself.
01Choose how to pay
02Your MoMo number
03Approve it
Where it stands
Ghana Music Live shipped as GMX. The client's team carried it on after handover and gave it a dark look. The way you listen (the player, playlists and downloads) is the part I designed.
The player, queue, playlists and downloads, the genres, and artist pages.
Radio and podcasts, moved from their own tab to two buttons on Home, and the whole app in a dark theme.
Music news, weekly charts, This day in music, and TV.