The Language of Our Playlists

When I desperately need to decompress, I turn on indie music. When I need confidence to wear a new outfit, I turn on rap. When I want to remember a good day, I turn on pop. I use music as a linguistic framework to understand and reframe the world around me. Furthermore, our libraries and playlists then communicate ourselves to others and our individualistic views of the world. 

I think of music as an extension of the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis. For those who may not be familiar, it hypothesizes that language shapes how we see and understand our world. Someone who speaks a different language, with a cultural background different from our own, sees the world differently than we do. The most prominent example is how we categorize colors differently. Some cultures have one word to describe multiple colors. So when we ask someone in another language to point to the blue squares out of the green ones, they don’t see the difference. They perceive color differently than we do because of their language, and therefore the world is different for them. 

Music is a language as well, through both perspective and personality. I have been in swamps of negative emotion which has been drastically switched depending on the music I am listening to. It gives perspective, and it shapes how I am going to view the outcomes of situations in front of me. If I am already upset, then I listen to Gracie or Taylor Swift, I will be upset for the rest of the day, but it will provide me with a space to let my emotions out. On the other hand, if I turn on chill uplifting music, I will be able to get out of the mental state I am in, but maybe not process it fully. With music, I can shape my perspective on everything around me. Before a big exam or presentation, I’ll listen to rap. When I do, I can feel my confidence boost, I carry myself differently, and even with the music off, I handle situations differently. If I had just listened to sad music I won’t want to talk and I’ll need space to think. If I had chosen the uplifting music, I might go wanna hang out with friends and talk about it.

The article, “Music Preferences and Your Personality” by Kendra Cherry, reports on a study of musical styles. More than 36,000 participants were asked to rate musical styles, provide their favorite music, and fill out the Big 5 personality test. The results showed that music and personality are linked. According to the study, pop music lovers were extroverted, honest, and conventional. Rap/hip-hop fans had high self-esteem and were more outgoing. Country fans were hardworking and outgoing. Rock/heavy metal lovers were gentle, creative, and introverted. Indie fans had passivity and anxiousness. Dance lovers were open to experiences, and classical lovers were at ease with themselves. 

We choose what we listen to, and in doing so we create the world around us. We then connect with others through music and share our views of the world, experiences, and personalities. The article touches on this relationship between cognitive styles and musical taste. They describe the two ways of processing the world: empathizing and systemizing. Cherry writes, “Empathizers enjoy mellow but emotionally rich contemporary music ranging from indie rock to country to folk. Many have careers in the arts or helping professions and prefer soft music that evokes strong emotional responses. In contrast, systemizers gravitated toward math and science. They were drawn to structural complexity, often liking classical, jazz, and world music and complex, intense, energetic, upbeat music”. Our music both matches our navigation and views of the world and our views match our music. 

Personality then follows perspective. By listening to the music of our choosing, we are expressing how we are choosing to feel the world during that time. I had the dreaded lottery of a random roommate, and to my surprise, I won. I still live with her to this day and she is a country girl from New Mexico who blasts country music in the shower. I let my stereotypes take over when I first met her and assigned her to a role based on her music taste alone. One day she was shuffling her music and amid the country songs, which all sounded the same, NF came on. Now, anyone who knows NF would understand why this was confusing when it started playing. NF makes…very depressing music to say the least. I was so taken aback by this that I shouted, “Is this NF?” to which she laughed awkwardly, apologized, and quickly skipped to the next song. 

While this was funny and out of the ordinary, just hearing that artist in her playlist showed me something about her that I wouldn’t have seen past the country stereotype. It spotlighted more of her personality and her own story that I couldn’t see before. I could understand, relate, and see her all through one artist in her library that accidentally came on. While music can shape our perspective, it can communicate and create a space for understanding and relatability. 

I am a part of these stereotypes as well. I typically dress like someone who looks like they would listen to rock, and I do. I make a point to stand out with my style and be different, and I hold uniqueness very close to my list of values. With that being said, my favorite artist of all time is Taylor Swift. She is the most basic of artists, yet I would give up every artist I know before giving up listening to her. Outside of my own stereotypes from personal style and looks, I see the world very similar to how she does. I share similar experiences with her, and I feel when I listen to her, I am understood, and I can view things the way I would like to view them. Instead of listening to an upbeat song about how I am “back outside” during a breakup, I want to process it. I want to sit in with Taylor, blasting in my headphones, making sense of everything. I choose to view the situation through Taylor because I like the way she influences my worldview. 

Try turning on some Taylor when you’re upset: I promise her songs not on the radio are heart-wrenchingly beautiful. If you’re insecure, turn on some upbeat rap music. Or if you’re really happy, turn on that cheesy but addicting pop song. Reshape your world through your library, and let your music guide you through every life step.