Playerctl: Lightweight Media Control for Your Conky Themes

When designing a Conky theme, one of the most frequently requested features is media control. Imagine a desktop setup with a live music section — showing the currently playing track, with real-time updates, play/pause status, and maybe even clickable areas. Themes like Mimosa Dark are perfect candidates for this kind of interaction.

But for that to work, we need a lightweight bridge between Conky and your media player. This is where playerctl comes into play. It's a simple, scriptable command-line utility that speaks the language of media players — perfect for lightweight desktops and minimal setups.

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What is Playerctl?

Playerctl output example

playerctl is a command-line utility that interfaces with media players using the MPRIS (Media Player Remote Interfacing Specification) protocol. It works with a wide range of players, including:

• Spotify
• VLC
• Rhythmbox
• Clementine
• MPV
• Firefox (yes, even YouTube tabs)

Key Features:

• Retrieve metadata: title, artist, album
• Control playback: play, pause, next, previous
• List available players or control a specific one
• Compatible with Conky through ${exec} or ${execi}

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Installing Playerctl

Ubuntu / Debian:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install playerctl

Arch / Manjaro:

sudo pacman -S playerctl

Fedora:

sudo dnf install playerctl

openSUSE:

sudo zypper install playerctl

Void Linux:

sudo xbps-install -S playerctl

Nix / NixOS:

nix-env -iA nixpkgs.playerctl

Uninstall:

Use your distro’s package manager. For example, on Ubuntu:

sudo apt remove playerctl

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Using Playerctl in Conky

1. Display Current Track Title

${exec playerctl metadata title}

2. Display Artist and Album

${exec playerctl metadata artist}
${exec playerctl metadata album}

3. Show Playback Status

${exec playerctl status}

Values can be: Playing, Paused, or Stopped.

4. Control Playback (used with scripting):

playerctl play-pause
playerctl next
playerctl previous

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Example: Adding Playerctl to a Conky Theme

Let’s say you want to include a Now Playing section in your Mimosa Amethyst theme:

Now Playing:
${color #ff77ff}${exec playerctl metadata artist} - ${exec playerctl metadata title}
${color #999999}${exec playerctl metadata album}

To show this only when a track is actually playing:

${if_match "${exec playerctl status}" == "Playing"}
🎶 ${exec playerctl metadata artist} - ${exec playerctl metadata title}
${endif}

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Why Use Playerctl in Conky?

• Lightweight: Perfect for resource-conscious environments.
• Flexible: Can be used in scripts, Lua, or direct Conky calls.
• Universal: Works with nearly every major Linux media player.
• Customizable: Integrate with any theme aesthetic.

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Tips & Notes

• Ensure MPRIS is enabled in your media player. Firefox may need additional configuration or extensions.
• If multiple players are running, specify one with:

  playerctl -p spotify metadata title

• Use Unicode icons (▶, ⏸, ⏹) or styled bitmap graphics to enhance your theme's look.

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Closing Thoughts

playerctl is a small but powerful tool — essential if you want your Conky themes to display real-time music information or interact with media controls. It’s easy to use, scriptable, and supports most Linux players out-of-the-box.

For theme creators like you, it opens the door to dynamic, responsive desktop setups. Whether it’s Mimosa Verdant or Another my conky themes, adding media integration gives your theme life — turning your desktop into a personal, living dashboard.

Related article

The application I used when creating the Conky theme:
▶ JQ Command: Parsing JSON for Dynamic Conky Widgets