By Giulia Bianchi
How does music effect us psychologically, and why do some producers get more recognition than others?
The reason I chose this question, is because I’m generally curious as to how music works. There are several different genres of music, yet the ones that are most played, by kids, my age are lacking variety. I personally dislike the radio music, at the moment, but I want to know why it is appealing to others. I’d also like to know how music can alter mood, environment, and thoughts. I myself, found that listening to “less depressing” music actually does help keep your mood and attitude in control, which is interesting. It irks me slightly how some artists pour their heart and soul into their lyrics, yet can only seem to reach a fan base of low millions-few thousands. Why is that so?
Step 1: Research the types of genres on the radio currently (keeping lyrics in mind) and how they effect us. This will be used for psychological information, to get an understand as to why it effects us the way it does.
Step 2: Look into the type of music kids in our community’s age range listen to. This will help with Step 1’s research, narrowing it down to the current people we’re looking into.
Step 3: Look into popular artist’s lyrics, compared to underrated artist’s lyrics. The lyrics will show us what the message of the songs are, and it’ll help determine what songs are nowadays.
Resources:
- https://www.statista.com/statistics/310746/share-music-album-sales-us-genre/
- https://www.ashford.edu/online-degrees/student-lifestyle/how-does-music-affect-your-brain
- https://www.healthline.com/health-news/mental-listening-to-music-lifts-or-reinforces-mood-051713
- https://www.billboard.com/charts/artist-100
- https://www.quora.com/Why-have-mumble-rappers-become-so-successful (despite this being a discussion site, there is prime examples given from other people)
Explanation:
I honestly think our taste in music is partially what forms us as a person, if you listen to it. I’ve seen many different people, and I’ve heard several different types of songs. However, they all seem to link certain types of people. I want people to realize that there could potentially be better music out there, rather than listening to music that gives off a bad message. There are a lot of songs that talk about drugs and other abusive topics, which taints people’s sense of reality and attitude. Hopefully, they can at least take into consideration that they made not be listening to appropriate music for their mental stability. I do not want this to be an opinion inquiry, I want this to be a general observation with honest results.
Hey Giulia,
Awesome project plan! I love how each of your research rounds clearly states the relation to the question and are concise. Music is a very subjective subject and I think doing a project on it will be very eye opening. Personally, I believe producers recognition is based on who they are associated with, how they present themselves as well as their work. Like most things in life, there is always more than one answer to the question, but through research your knowledge could help others build their careers. Overall, a very intriguing question with endless routes of research so I wish you all the best and I look forward to reading the next post.
Greetings, Lauren. Thanks for your feedback, even though this is a bit of a late reply. Your opinion will help with researching.
Hey Giulia,
I think music is a great topic to research. I agree that current radio music isn’t the best; it would be nice to know why it’s popular.
Here are a couple suggestions.
Step 3 should include not just judgement of lyrics but also melody. I understand that you are interested in the message but sometimes the message isn’t what people are listening for. Which is why the melody, beat, and vocals are also important.
You mentioned that you were wondering why big artists can put out music that is meaningless and small artists make beautiful work and get little to no attention but you didn’t include it in your research steps. If you’re also asking why big artists receive more attention even though their work may not be as good as underrated artists, I think you should look into how/where they got their start. Some artists are born into fame and have an easier time getting popular. You could also research the the way the kids perceive music. Like something really good to one person is really bad to another person. Along with that, research how media affects popular music. If something is advertised, it becomes popular and since it is popular, people listen to stay current.
Here are some links that might help
https://www.statista.com/statistics/253915/favorite-music-genres-in-the-us/
https://www.forbes.com/sites/hughmcintyre/2016/07/12/millennials-arent-very-interested-in-traditional-radio-any-more/#40ec86a837c4
Hey,
I appreciate the effort put into your comment’s feedback. Thanks. I probably should’ve been more clear on my steps, but your advice is really helpful. I highly agree that melody plays a role, after having seen more information.