It’s no surprise that our taste in music changes over the course of our lives, but, according to an international study analysing the listening habits of more than 40,000 people over a 15-year period, the number of our favourite songs also decreases.
Teenagers tend to share many favourite songs with their peers, but this becomes more difficult with age, the research outlines. After all, many people are less likely to explore new artists and genres later in life.
“Most 65-year-olds don’t embark on a musical exploration journey,” said co-author Alan Said, a professor of computer science at the University of Gothenburg, according to the press release.
Younger people generally listen to a wide range of contemporary pop music and are heavily influenced by trends. During adolescence and early adulthood, musical repertoires expand as many genres and artists are explored.
However, as people age, their musical tastes narrow, according to the study, published by the Association for Computing Machinery. Music preferences become more individualised, shaped by personal experiences rather than the charts.
“When you’re young, you want to experience everything,” Said explained. “But when you become an adult, you’ve usually found a style of music that you identify with. The charts become less important.”
From middle age onwards, nostalgia plays a significant role, the research confirms. Many listeners repeatedly return to the music of their youth, which forms the “soundtrack of their lives.”
For their research, the team used data from a music service where users could indicate their age and the songs they played on streaming platforms.
This allowed the researchers to track long-term trends. In total, they analysed more than 542 million plays of over one million songs.
The findings are also relevant for streaming services, Said said. “A service that recommends the same type of music in the same way to everyone risks missing what different groups actually want.”
Younger listeners, for example, want a mix of current hits and older discoveries, while middle-aged people prefer a balance between new and familiar music. Older users, on the other hand, are more likely to appreciate tailored suggestions that take nostalgic preferences into account. – dpa