Can the Echo Dot Kids Edition filter explicit songs?

Best answer: Yes, all Amazon Alex-enabled devices have an option to block explicit songs, and that setting is on by default on the Amazon Echo Dot Kids Edition. Not all music services compatible with Amazon Alexa work with the explicit filter, but Amazon Music and Spotify do.

Amazon: Amazon Echo Dot Kids Edition ($70)

Automatically blocking crude ditties

There's a lot of music out there in the world, and some of it is not safe for young ears. Amazon knows this, and on most of its devices, there is a setting somewhere to filter out explicit content. Parents shouldn't have to go hunt this setting down on every device they allow their kids to use, and so on Amazon devices that are branded for kids — such as the Fire HD 8 Kids Edition Tablet and the Amazon Echo Dot Kids Edition — the setting to block explicit songs is turned on by default as part of the year-long subscription to Amazon FreeTime Unlimited that the Echo Dot Kids Edition comes with.

With FreeTime Unlimited on the Echo Dot Kids Edition, only the parent can disable the explicit songs block on their child's profiles and devices. If you're using an Echo Dot Kids Edition with an older child who you trust and want to disable the explicit music block for, you can set them up on the Parent Dashboard.

Blocking explicit songs on non-Kids devices

The block explicit songs setting is only turned on by default on devices that are branded as Kids devices by Amazon, but what about the other Amazon Alexa-enabled devices around your home? What about devices that are not using FreeTime? Well, turning on the explicit filter on regular Echos is a simple voice command:

This will filter out explicit music on supported music sources, but if a music source does not support Alexa's explicit song blocking, then Alexa will not launch that music service while the explicit music block is turned on. If you need to turn off the explicit block, you can use the command, "Hey Alexa, Stop blocking explicit songs."

What services work with Alexa's explicit song block?

Spotify and Amazon Music are two music subscription services that Alexa's explicit music block works with, but with FreeTime Unlimited, your child can also listen to dozens of playlists and live music radio stations from providers like:

• Radio Disney
• Nick Radio
• iHeart Radio
• Breakthrough Radio, powered by the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

If you subscribe to a music service that doesn't integrate with Alexa's explicit music block, that music service will not launch when you ask Alexa for it on a device with the explicit music block enabled. It's not optimal, but that's how Amazon has set things up, erring on the side of safety.