The psychology of the playlist: How do our musical selections reflect our moods, our personalities and the stages of our lives?

Last September, the Spotify platform announced the launch of a brand new personalized playlist. Called “Daylist”, the latter aims to draw inspiration from our listening habits, in order to offer us a musical selection and all that, according to our mood.

 “ It’s hyperpersonalized, dynamic and fun, because it reflects what you want to listen to right now” Spotify

Updated several times during the day in order to follow us, the functionality is already available in English-speaking countries and should soon arrive in France.

If this recent innovation from Spotify highlights the growing importance of music in our daily lives, it is also an extension of our identity.

Music as a mirror of our lives

And if music is a universal language that transcends cultural barriers, it also proves to be a powerful vector of emotion and a mirror of our soul. From the first moments, it is heard through the singing of mothers to infants and definitively highlights its role in human emotional communication.

Photo credit: @/rollie6x6 ( Cx0fp86snte )

It is a force influencing our mental and physical well-being, thus revealing its therapeutic capacity adapted to our changing moods. Music therefore gives a very special meaning to our experiences and simply promotes social connection.

But then can we classify musical tastes by taking into account several parameters, such as age and personality?

According to some studies, it appears that followers of the same gender can share common character traits, regardless of their culture, gender, or geographic origin. However, musical preferences evolve over time, depending on different experiences and the influences to which we are exposed.

Other researchers argue that these affinities are rather linked to our cultural origins and the environment that surrounds us; the possibility of transgenerational transmission can therefore take place from parents to child. Predilections that are largely the product of culture. In line with this perspective and considering that a person's upbringing exerts a notable influence on their musical tastes, it becomes difficult to consider them as a universal phenomenon.

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The moving echoes of our musical affinities

Much more than a simple reflection of our essence, music weaves close links with our memories and the significant moments of our existence. Like a veritable cabinet of curiosities, the playlist transforms into an intimate space where each song, each artist, each musical genre, becomes an archive of our experiences. An appropriation of music which ultimately endures as an aggregate of memories.

An inexhaustible source of understanding of ourselves and a silent witness, it accompanies us throughout our journey and goes well beyond simple entertainment, but becomes an indelible part of our identity.


Written by Camille Noel Djaleb
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cosycam/
Cover photo credit: Lois