How do I restore iTunes functionality and custom workflows in the Apple Music app on Windows?

The following problem caused me to create an Apple Community account. This is the first time that I post somethin on here!

I’ve been using iTunes on Windows for what feels like forever. Back in the day, I switched to it when I got my first iPod, and over the years I adapted my behavior to fit what iTunes allowed me to do. Was I ever a true fan of the app? Probably not. But it became a key part of how I enjoy and manage my music library. I’ve invested countless hours maintaining a personal collection of around 30,000 songs, mostly from physical CDs that I imported as MP3s to ensure compatibility. I manually added and cleaned up metadata like genres, year of the release, artwork – everything.

Then, out of nowhere, iTunes was disabled and replaced with the Apple Music app on Windows. No prior warning, no opt-in – just a pop-up telling me to download something new. That is not how you treat loyal users.

The Apple Music app not only lacks key features from iTunes, it also completely breaks the workflows I’ve built over years. There is no way to view my library the way I used to – sorted by album artist, with album cover, custom columns, and “recently added” logic. Even basic things like converting downloaded tracks to MP3 seem to be missing. I can’t see any real benefit to this new app, and at the same time I’ve lost what made iTunes so functional for me.

I’m usually open to change, even if it’s uncomfortable at first – but this change feels rushed, unpolished, and forced upon users like me with zero consideration. If this is the direction Apple is taking, and if core functionality doesn't return soon, I will have no choice but to stop using Apple’s music apps altogether and switch to a different solution.

Please reconsider the way you're rolling this out. At the very least, give long-time users more control over their library experience – or at least a proper heads-up when something this disruptive is about to happen.

[Re-Titled by Moderator]