After a stressful day, putting on headphones and listening to a favorite song can make a person feel more relaxed and happy. Or, when someone is having trouble focusing, putting in earbuds can improve concentration. Music is not always background noise, music is a universal language and songs vary in the way it makes everyone feel. Music helps listeners maintain focus, cure their boredom, and keep a person energized. The chords, rhythm, and melody of a song can all change how a listener is affected. 

The lyrics in a song can connect to a person’s mood. Depending on someone’s mood, they may want to find a song that has lyrics that make them feel seen. The lyrics can also impact feelings. Listening to sad songs all day will most likely impact someone’s mood in a negative way. Rather than listening to a sad song when having a bad day, listening to happy music can improve their mood. 

Teenagers often have playlists that might be titled “sad” or another one like “hype”, but by playing a specific playlist to match one’s mood, may cause harm rather than good. Listening to energetic music will increase positive emotions and bring someone’s mood up, although immersing oneself in slow and sorrowful songs can intensify that emotion of sadness. 

Psychologists say the reason people listen to sad music when they are feeling depressed is because they want something to validate their feelings. The human body has a hormone called prolactin which is a hormone connected with grief, empathy, and comfort. When listening to sad music, prolactin is released, causing someone to continue playing sad songs. 

According to the Healthline website, “Although music can have positive effects on mood, including making people feel better when they feel anxious or angry, music can have the opposite effect in some instances. Some research suggests that some types of music may lead to more intense depressive episodes when a person already feels depressed, potentially validating their feelings.” 

To avoid getting in a loop of sadness, psychologists recommend the Iso-principle. By using the Iso-principle, a person feels more validated, because they aren’t forced from a sad state, to a happy state.  Rather than going from sorrowful music immediately to upbeat, a listener should build up the music. Start by playing music that mirrors one’s current mood, then slowly build up to songs with a higher tempo.

Music takes listeners to a different headspace. Music can help when someone is stressed or sad, due to certain songs releasing dopamine. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that improves a person’s mood and increases focus. 

Other than dopamine, music can release adrenaline. When listening to fast-paced music, adrenaline is released, boosting someone’s heart rate and instantly making them more energized. Songs releasing adrenaline can take someone from sluggish to motivated. On the other hand, listening to ambient music with a beat anywhere from 50-90 beats per minute, can bring the body into a state called auditory entertainment. Auditory entertainment is when a person’s heart beat begins to match the beat of a song, lowering their cortisol levels. 

Listening to music does far more than release neurotransmitters though; songs help depression and anxiety. According to UW Medicine, “In one study, Tick explains that in a palliative care setting (places of specialized care for those with serious illnesses), music therapy produces significant improvement in anxiety, depression and overall mood among people experiencing physical pain.”

Beyond mood elevation, music alters brainwaves to increase focus. Listening to songs without lyrics allows the brain to take in more information rather than overloading. By listening to instrumental music, it increases overall alertness and prevents distractions. Studies prove specifically that songs with 60 beats per minute encourage calming brainwaves, making instrumental music a great way to help students study. 

Music is related to healing disrupted brain functions, making music beneficial for Alzheimer’s. According to Harvard Medicine, “Other conditions and diseases, ranging from Parkinson’s to depression to Alzheimer’s, could someday have therapeutic solutions derived from an understanding of music. For instance, by identifying the exact type of music able to provoke a particular cognitive, motor, or emotional response, there could be progress toward healing, improving, or compensating for disrupted brain function in various diseases.”

Music is also used in motor therapy. Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation, TMS, is a method to reshape brain activity through magnetic pulses, using the TMS method, it helps heal. Stanford Report said, “Music increased what TMS could do by 77% when timed with the dip just ahead of the beat. The timing itself mattered, too. Sending pulses 200 milliseconds ahead of the beat increased the effect by 37% compared to timing them right on the beat.” 

Music is far more than background music. It’s a tool that affects the listener’s mind and body. Whether someone is listening to music to boost their mood, gain energy, or support conditions like Alzheimer’s, understanding how to use music intentionally makes music a powerful tool to increase mental health.