Music: Does AI Boost Impacts on Feelings and Emotions?

Written by Michelle Olatunji
Edited by Maryam Khan
Cover Image by Paige Wanniappa

When thinking of the arts, there is a broad, continuously expanding spectrum of different topics, subtopics, genres, themes, and ways to display them all. Art in all its forms, is diverse and alluring that I would highly recommend spending time immersing yourself in it. Within those such as digital, visual, or literary arts, I hold a branch much closer to my heart; performing arts and more specifically music. Musical/audible arts are a very powerful form of media and expression in that tempo, lyrics, and/or genre can influence feelings, emotions, and mood.

In considering the genre's impact, I think about how broad and different its spectrum truly is. Lo-fi, synthpop, or indietronica, to alt-rock, grunge, and hard rock, even classical, romantic, or opera. Genres have many impacts on emotion and can have the power to make you both unconsciously and consciously more emotional, or even experience entirely different emotions. For example, research-proven studies show how classical music such as pieces from Chopin, Debussy, or Pachelbel create calming effects and reduce anxiety (Darki). This happens through reducing cortisol levels causing both heart rate and blood pressure to be lowered as well as dopamine levels to spike up. 

In other terms, within pop, music listeners tend to feel deep connections to the music through the lyrics and melodies. Pop music delves into many themes such as happiness, love, and a feeling of lightheartedness. On the other hand, it can also discuss topics such as heartbreak and coming of age. A large contributor to the pop scheme is Taylor Swift who has many pieces of which have contributed to both synth-pop and electropop. For example, Lover an album with a quite literal focus on love, has several songs that portray lighthearted melodies and vivid lyricism. Paper Rings is a captivating example of this in its glorious 178-second portrayal of bliss, nostalgia, and glee. 

Furthermore, the genre groups of hip-hop and rap can together create themes with emotions of empowerment, rebellion, introspection, and even the theme of over-sexualization grace to up-and-coming media influence. These genres have a tendency to be linked with “hype”, dance or party music tones, or even inspiration through their repetitive rhythm and rhymes. As well as addictive and catchy lyrics, these widespread genres owe some of their success to rhythmic beats and unique, intense flow. For instance, artists such as Drake, Nicki Minaj, Flo Milli, and 21 Savage all create songs in this genre of music. Another artist is Kanye West, who currently has a considerable impact on the media and more specifically Tiktok with his newer songs. 

In addition, a more apparent conveyal of the connection between genre and emotion is movie makers' use of certain genre themes for specific moments in their films. To illustrate, in the classic film, “Shrek 2” (based on a piece by William Steig) the “Holding Out For a Hero” scene (originally by Bonnie Tyler, performed by Jennifer Saunders). This upbeat anthem adds a deeper dimension of emotion by increasing its intensity and showing the parallels between the world where Princess Fiona is dancing and where Shrek along with the Gingerbread Man are attempting to save her. The music chosen adds depth that would be impossible to achieve otherwise.

Building upon this, along with genre, some other similar elements that impact emotions and more specifically feelings are tempo, bpm, or perhaps the overall vibe of a song. For instance, (after restraint from being an Apple Music subscriber), if you are a Spotify follower you may have heard of or even tried out the “daylist” AI feature. The company mentions, “This new, one-of-a-kind playlist on Spotify ebbs and flows with unique vibes.” It has an update time ranging around every 3 hours depending on your usage of the Spotify app. Essentially, this feature captures the type of music you listen to daily on an in-depth level. It uses definitions such as bounciness, valence, and danceability. These and multiple others are used to find both new recommendations for your Daylists and groups previously listened to songs together. Additionally, not only does it create a new playlist for you, but these playlists also provide nuanced and intricate titles that may even provide a better investigation of your listening habits than the songs themselves. For instance, “self-sabotaging romcom wednesday afternoon” or “midwest emo flannel tuesday morning”. Expanding on this, another machine learning-powered feature is the Spotify DJ X. The DJ picks a selection of songs for you to listen to consequently in the moment.

To conclude, I hold performing arts and music very close to my heart because of the impact and power they hold over both the media and the lives of individuals. Music has the power to sway emotions, feelings, and moods. It brings together cultures, demographics, and people who might have absolutely nothing in common. I encourage you to try out an AI-powered playlist or perhaps just a new genre to expand your taste!

References

Darki, Amir. “The Effect of Classical Music on Heart Rate, Blood Pressure, and Mood.” NCBI, 27 July 2022, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9417331/. Accessed 1 April 2024.