Most people wait the whole year for that day in December when that one notification pops up on Spotify. People post on their Snapchat and Instagram with screenshots of their top artists and albums. There, people can either swipe up to bond over having the same listened to artist or judge you on your musical taste. A Spotify Wrapped is evolved to put each user into one of 16 listening personalities based on the music they streamed and other categories. Too many sad songs may suggest a listener is really going through it, and it’s fascinating to know you were in the top 0.1% of Taylor Swift listeners (a major accomplishment among the Swiftie fan base), but it’s a bit tiring to swipe through one Snapchat story after another showing someone has listened to 24 hours of Hamilton: An American Musical. 

You can tell a lot from the music a person listens to, such as their personality or their mood. Scientists call listening to music a “total brain workout” as music activates just about all of the brain. Why is that so important? Well, have you ever heard the expression, “If you don’t use it, you’ll lose it”? It turns out this is actually true in the brain. Brain pathways – and even whole networks – are strengthened when they are used and are weakened when they are not. Music can also influence your mood of the day such as if you listen to upbeat music, including songs with positive lyrics, can provide an energy boost and get your brain primed for learning. Once it’s time to buckle down and concentrate, like when you need to read, write, or study your course materials, instrumental music and soothing genres can help you stay calm and focused. Studies have shown that listening to music while doing homework or studying for a test can help reduce stress during an academic task and that it may help with memory and processing during tasks that require thinking. 

Spotify has over 433 million users and we asked a few of them their opinions on Spotify Wrapped. Out of all the interviewed students, 84% said they have Spotify and 15% said they used other streaming apps. As far as checking the annual Spotify Wrapped, 94% said they check it every year and only 6% do not. Sophomore Cate Fahey, when asked if she checks her Spotify Wrapped every year, stated, ¨Yeah, I do. It’s the best thing about Spotify.¨ Sophomore Olivia Sandercock, when asked if she could describe Spotify Wrapped in one word, said it was ¨Magnificent.¨  We also asked the interviewed students who their top artists were, and some popular answers were Taylor Swift, Bad Bunny, Steve Lacy, and Harry Styles.  

How do you incorporate music into your life? It’s easy to do. Those who actively listened to music showed the strongest brain benefits, even those who just listened to background music showed benefits too. So turn on your favorite playlist and blast your favorite songs because music isn’t only fun, but can lead to a healthy, happy life.