Music and Personality: What Does My Spotify Playlist Say About Me?

Rachel Poniman (Counselor Personal Growth)

Music plays an important role in the lives of people all over the world. There are boundless
musical genres and songs to enjoy. Could the contents of your personally curated playlist or
choice for listening to “Today’s Top Hits” reveal something about your personality?

People often listen to music as a way to set a mood, gain creative inspiration, or to motivate a
workout. I personally listen to a variety of upbeat music in the morning to boost my energy for
work. It ranges from listening to electronic music, The Beatles, Travis Scott, all the way to Arctic
Monkeys and Project Pop! Though have you ever wondered how much these choices are
influenced by underlying personality traits? Is this something that researchers could figure out?
The answer is; Yes, researchers have found correlations between your musical preferences and
your personality!

Don’t be intimidated, remember that these findings are correlational and not set in stone!

Music and Personality Traits

Professor Adrian North of Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, UK, has undertaken the largest study
so far of musical tastes and personality types. He is an expert on music psychology (yes, this is a
thing) and has carried out extensive research on the social and applied psychology of music.
One large-scale study was conducted in 2010 that consisted of more than 36,000 participants
from all over the world. Participants were asked to rate more than 104 different musical styles in
addition to offering information about aspects of their personalities (Cherry, 2020).

Here are some of the results found from Professor North’s study (North, 2010):
● Pop Music
Fans of the top 40 pop hits tend to be extroverted, honest, and conventional. While pop
music lovers are hardworking and have high self-esteem, researchers suggest that they
tend to be less creative and more uneasy.
Examples: Ed Sheeran, Ariana Grande, Justin Bieber
● Rap and Hip/Hop Music
Despite the stereotype that rap lovers are more aggressive or violent, researchers have
actually found no such link. Rap fans do tend to have high self-esteem and are usually
outgoing.
Examples: Travis Scott, Drake. 21 Savage
● Rock/Heavy Metal Music
Despite the sometimes aggressive image that rock and heavy metal music project,
researchers found that fans of this style of music are usually quite gentle. They tend to be
 creative, but are often introverted and may suffer from low self-esteem.
Examples: The Rolling Stones, Aerosmith, AC/DC
● Indie Music
Fans of the indie genre are typically introverted, intellectual, and creative. According to
researchers, they also tend to be less hardworking and less gentle. Passivity, anxiousness,
and low self-esteem are other common personality characteristics.
Examples: Arctic Monkeys, The Strokes, MGMT
● Dance Music
According to researchers, people who prefer dance music are usually outgoing and
assertive. They also tend to rank high on the trait of openness to experience, one of the
five major personality traits. People who prefer fast-paced electronic music also tend to
rank low on gentleness.
Examples: Diplo, Calvin Harris. Tiesto,

It’s important to note that personality traits alone do not account for musical preferences. While
music is often an important way to express self-identity, research has shown that people listen to
music for a variety of purposes. Keep in mind that this research is correlational based, which
means that you don’t have to be outgoing to listen to Dance music, vise versa.

References:

American Psychological Association. (2003). You are what you listen to. American Psychological Association. Retrieved
January 4, 2022, from https://www.apa.org/monitor/julaug03/listen

Cherry, K. (2020). What does your taste in music reveal about your personality? Verywell Mind. Retrieved January 4, 2022,
from https://www.verywellmind.com/music-and-personality-2795424

Collingwood, J. (2016). Preferred music style is tied to personality. Psych Central. Retrieved January 4, 2022, from
https://psychcentral.com/lib/preferred-music-style-is-tied-to-personality#1

Flannery, M. B., & Woolhouse, M. H. (2021). Musical Preference: Role of Personality and Music-Related Acoustic Features.
Music & Science. https://doi.org/10.1177/20592043211014014

North, A. (2010). Individual Differences in Musical Taste. The American Journal of Psychology, 123(2), 199–208.
https://doi.org/10.5406/amerjpsyc.123.2.0199