diff --git a/js/ui/calendar.js b/js/ui/calendar.js
index 1d92b3578..f7186110d 100644
--- a/js/ui/calendar.js
+++ b/js/ui/calendar.js
@@ -767,14 +767,10 @@ export const Calendar = GObject.registerClass({
 
 export const NotificationMessage = GObject.registerClass(
 class NotificationMessage extends MessageList.Message {
-    _init(notification) {
-        super._init(notification.source, notification.title, notification.body);
-        this.setUseBodyMarkup(notification.useBodyMarkup);
+    constructor(notification) {
+        super(notification.source);
 
         this.notification = notification;
-        this.datetime = notification.datetime;
-
-        this.setIcon(notification.gicon);
 
         this.connect('close', () => {
             this._closed = true;
@@ -792,6 +788,8 @@ class NotificationMessage extends MessageList.Message {
                     this.close();
             }, this);
 
+        this._onUpdated(notification);
+
         this._actions = new Map();
         this.notification.actions.forEach(action => {
             this._addAction(action);
@@ -800,10 +798,10 @@ class NotificationMessage extends MessageList.Message {
 
     _onUpdated(n, _clear) {
         this.datetime = n.datetime;
-        this.setIcon(n.gicon);
-        this.setTitle(n.title);
-        this.setBody(n.body);
-        this.setUseBodyMarkup(n.useBodyMarkup);
+        this.icon = n.gicon;
+        this.title = n.title;
+        this.body = n.body;
+        this.useBodyMarkup = n.useBodyMarkup;
     }
 
     vfunc_clicked() {
diff --git a/js/ui/messageList.js b/js/ui/messageList.js
index 1e8b26762..9cd0e7185 100644
--- a/js/ui/messageList.js
+++ b/js/ui/messageList.js
@@ -437,14 +437,36 @@ class MessageHeader extends St.BoxLayout {
 });
 
 export const Message = GObject.registerClass({
+    Properties: {
+        'title': GObject.ParamSpec.string(
+            'title', 'title', 'title',
+            GObject.ParamFlags.READWRITE,
+            null),
+        'body': GObject.ParamSpec.string(
+            'body', 'body', 'body',
+            GObject.ParamFlags.READWRITE,
+            null),
+        'use-body-markup': GObject.ParamSpec.boolean(
+            'use-body-markup', 'use-body-markup', 'use-body-markup',
+            GObject.ParamFlags.READWRITE,
+            false),
+        'icon': GObject.ParamSpec.object(
+            'icon', 'icon', 'icon',
+            GObject.ParamFlags.READWRITE,
+            Gio.Icon),
+        'datetime': GObject.ParamSpec.boxed(
+            'datetime', 'datetime', 'datetime',
+            GObject.ParamFlags.READWRITE,
+            GLib.DateTime),
+    },
     Signals: {
         'close': {},
         'expanded': {},
         'unexpanded': {},
     },
 }, class Message extends St.Button {
-    _init(source, title, body) {
-        super._init({
+    constructor(source) {
+        super({
             style_class: 'message',
             accessible_role: Atk.Role.NOTIFICATION,
             can_focus: true,
@@ -497,7 +519,6 @@ export const Message = GObject.registerClass({
             style_class: 'message-title',
             y_align: Clutter.ActorAlign.END,
         });
-        this.setTitle(title);
         contentBox.add_child(this.titleLabel);
 
         this._bodyStack = new St.Widget({x_expand: true});
@@ -509,7 +530,6 @@ export const Message = GObject.registerClass({
         this._bodyStack.add_child(this.bodyLabel);
         this._expandedLabel = new URLHighlighter('', true, this._useBodyMarkup);
         this._bodyStack.add_child(this._expandedLabel);
-        this.setBody(body);
 
         this.connect('destroy', this._onDestroy.bind(this));
 
@@ -523,7 +543,7 @@ export const Message = GObject.registerClass({
         this.emit('close');
     }
 
-    setIcon(icon) {
+    set icon(icon) {
         this._icon.gicon = icon;
 
         if (icon instanceof Gio.ThemedIcon)
@@ -532,34 +552,57 @@ export const Message = GObject.registerClass({
             this._icon.remove_style_class_name('message-themed-icon');
 
         this._icon.visible = !!icon;
+        this.notify('icon');
+    }
+
+    get icon() {
+        return this._icon.gicon;
+    }
+
+    set datetime(datetime) {
+        this._header.timeLabel.datetime = datetime;
+        this.notify('datetime');
     }
 
     get datetime() {
         return this._header.timeLabel.datetime;
     }
 
-    set datetime(datetime) {
-        this._header.timeLabel.datetime = datetime;
-    }
-
-    setTitle(text) {
-        let title = text ? _fixMarkup(text.replace(/\n/g, ' '), false) : '';
+    set title(text) {
+        this._titleText = text;
+        const title = text ? _fixMarkup(text.replace(/\n/g, ' '), false) : '';
         this.titleLabel.clutter_text.set_markup(title);
+        this.notify('title');
     }
 
-    setBody(text) {
+    get title() {
+        return this._titleText;
+    }
+
+    set body(text) {
         this._bodyText = text;
         this.bodyLabel.setMarkup(text ? text.replace(/\n/g, ' ') : '',
             this._useBodyMarkup);
         this._expandedLabel.setMarkup(text, this._useBodyMarkup);
+        this.notify('body');
     }
 
-    setUseBodyMarkup(enable) {
+    get body() {
+        return this._bodyText;
+    }
+
+    set useBodyMarkup(enable) {
         if (this._useBodyMarkup === enable)
             return;
         this._useBodyMarkup = enable;
         if (this.bodyLabel)
             this.setBody(this._bodyText);
+
+        this.notify('use-body-markup');
+    }
+
+    get useBodyMarkup() {
+        return this._useBodyMarkup;
     }
 
     setActionArea(actor) {
diff --git a/js/ui/mpris.js b/js/ui/mpris.js
index 55f6a97aa..6a4e31136 100644
--- a/js/ui/mpris.js
+++ b/js/ui/mpris.js
@@ -21,11 +21,11 @@ const MPRIS_PLAYER_PREFIX = 'org.mpris.MediaPlayer2.';
 
 export const MediaMessage = GObject.registerClass(
 class MediaMessage extends MessageList.Message {
-    _init(player) {
-        super._init(player.source, '', '');
-        this.add_style_class_name('media-message');
+    constructor(player) {
+        super(player.source);
 
         this._player = player;
+        this.add_style_class_name('media-message');
 
         this._prevButton = this.addMediaControl('media-skip-backward-symbolic',
             () => {
@@ -58,16 +58,20 @@ class MediaMessage extends MessageList.Message {
     }
 
     _update() {
-        this.setTitle(this._player.trackTitle);
-        this.setBody(this._player.trackArtists.join(', '));
-
+        let icon;
         if (this._player.trackCoverUrl) {
             const file = Gio.File.new_for_uri(this._player.trackCoverUrl);
-            this.setIcon(new Gio.FileIcon({file}));
+            icon = new Gio.FileIcon({file});
         } else {
-            this.setIcon(new Gio.ThemedIcon({name: 'audio-x-generic-symbolic'}));
+            icon = new Gio.ThemedIcon({name: 'audio-x-generic-symbolic'});
         }
 
+        this.set({
+            title: this._player.trackTitle,
+            body: this._player.trackArtists.join(', '),
+            icon,
+        });
+
         let isPlaying = this._player.status === 'Playing';
         let iconName = isPlaying
             ? 'media-playback-pause-symbolic'