Lyrics vs Facts

Something that has always bothered me is my ability to remember some things and not others. The biggest issue I have is that I can remember the lyrics to every song in my iTunes account but fail to remember any of the material I learn in school long enough to pass a test.

I have always received As and Bs and since elementary school I have received post secondary school marks on standardized testing. However when it comes to taking a test or quiz I have not been able to pass. The only exception to this is math. I absolutely love math and actually have the opposite problem – I can’t remember a math test or quiz that I didn’t pass. I can study for weeks on end, I can gradually study from the beginning of the semester to the final exam, I can cram, I can fill out study guide after study guide, reread every chapter, take and rewrite notes, make and study flash cards, but NOTHING seems to work. On the other hand if I listen to a song twice I can remember all the lyrics and by the fourth time I hear it, I have all the ad-libs down. I can go years without hearing the song and still if it comes on I can recite (I can’t sing for my life) the words and ad-libs as if it is one of my favorite songs.

We are constantly taking in stimuli and the stimuli that makes it through short term memory, and working memory gets placed into long term memory. Experiences and specific events become a part of our episodic memory. Episodic memory is “the memory of autobiographical events (times, places, associated emotions and other contextual knowledge) than can be explicitly stated” (The Human Memory). From research done it has been proven that we associate song lyrics with our experiences. Therefore the lyrics become apart of our episodic memory and just like we are able to recall past experiences we are able to recall the lyrics to songs, even if we haven’t heard them in a while. Semantic memory is the complete opposite. It is the “record of facts, meanings, concepts and knowledge about the extern world we have acquired” (The Human Memory). This is the memory system that is responsible for the information on my tests and quizzes.

8 thoughts on “Lyrics vs Facts

  1. Jana Lynn Burbage

    I have the same problem. It is so much easier when I listen to songs and remember lyrics compared to remembering information that is for tests and quizzes. Episodic memory is easier, not just for me, but I would say most people. When I listen to a song, I usually remember where I first heard it or what time period it was or who I was dating at the time, and even the weather and how it made me feel. With so many ways to connect a song and its lyrics, episodic memory is more fun and interesting so that also makes it easier to remember. Now semantic memory is more difficult especially if it is a brand new subject with new information that I have never heard of or learned about before. When it comes to test taking when I study I feel like I know the information, however for the most part the questions are not what I expected. I can learn a definition but if I have to think outside the box of how that definition is put into practice I have trouble. When the test information is familiar or something I am interested in than it is easier to remember for me. It takes a longer time to make connections with some information to make it easier to remember for a test; and other information I just have to beat into my memory with repetition and practice. I have a problem of cramming and procrastinating which also makes test taking more difficult. I believe that creative thinkers find information that is fun or something that interests them also makes it easier than people who are more type A or bookworms who can learn test information faster. I like to join the two if I can and use rhyming and make connections to something else I know to make test taking easier

  2. Rebecca Leah Freeman

    I find your blog post to be very interesting because I too have experienced this phenomenon. It seems as though one of the primary reasons people remember song lyrics over say, a study guide for an exam, is due to repetition. When people listen to a song they like, they usually play it over and over again. In my own experience, I have noticed that many radio stations play the same song repeatedly, so even if I don’t like the song, I remember it because of how often it’s played. Therefore, there is a much greater chance of remembering it. Another reason people remember lyrics may be due to the way our “brains use networks to store and retrieve information; essentially because it becomes easier to find information that has more associations” (Sinicki, n.d.). Typically when people remember song lyrics, they are not just remembering the actual words, but also the tune, or a specific voice, and perhaps even various instruments. Personally, I can recall the lyrics to many songs just be hearing the instruments. The combination of all of those seems to be a contributing factor as to why people find recalling song lyrics easier than recalling other things. Finally, rhythm and pattern also seem to play a significant role in remembering song lyrics. This might be because “beats and rhythms help to provide clues as to what the next line is” (Sinicki, n.d.).

    Sinicki, A. (n.d.). Why Do We Remember Songs so Well? Retrieved November 2, 2014, from http://www.healthguidance.org/entry/17224/1/Why-Do-We-Remember-Songs-so-Well.html

  3. Kimberly M Sholley

    Hi Chelsea. The same thought has run through my mind on many occasions. A few weeks ago I watched a video in which Gabrielle Giffords, the senator from Arizona who was shot in the head a few years back, sings Tomorrow from Annie. She has such a hard time finding words, but can belt out an entire verse of a song with no problem. It’s pretty amazing. From what I’ve researched in relation to this video, it turns our that the function of our brain that processes language is different from that which processes music. I wonder if that has any impact on our ability to remember lyrics versus class information?

  4. Laura J Eisenhower

    I suffer from the exact same problem, and I honestly thought I had developed a learning disability somewhere between primary school and college. Your post made me wonder if semantic memory decreases with age, so I did a little impromptu research, in which most experts agree that semantic memory does not decrease with age, and actually improves in many cases. However, I should note that one is hard-pressed to find research discussing memory loss in anyone under age 65. So if we cannot blame our inability to retain information on age, what can we blame it on? I am by far not an expert in cognitive science, but I would assume if our ability to retain facts and information is based on our preference for a particular subject, we will be able to better incorporate accompanying information into our semantic memory. You noted that you love math, and therefore you perform well on your tests and quizzes. It would appear that our brain needs to be engaged by whatever we are learning to retain information. When I took personality psychology, I found the first half of the semester to be rather dull, and struggled on my assignments and tests because I did not retain information well. When we began discussing personality disorders, which interest me, I did very well on my tests and quizzes that lesson. I have come to the conclusion that if the subject matter does not interest me enough to get into it, it seems I am not mentally into it either, and thus do not encode information as I should. If we enjoy a subject, we are more eager to learn and retain facts. If we could care less, our brain cares less too. Aside from semantic memory, your thoughts on episodic memory made me wonder if we can retrain our brains to associate facts and information with experiences. For example, if something memorable happened to you shortly before or after you studied for a test, perhaps you would be more likely to remember the information. Wouldn’t it be great to be able to think of a time we were really happy and be able to come up with test answers? However, a main concern with that proposal, is while we relate memories better when associated with emotion, there is a strong possibility that our minds would become so clouded with said emotion we might jumble information and create false memories. My only other thoughts regarding semantic encoding issues is that perhaps as adults, we have so much more going on and so many more things to worry about than we did when we were younger, it affects our ability to process and encode information. When we are younger, our minds are like a sponge, because we have so much to learn and not much to worry about. As we get older, it seems our minds are like a sieve, as we have to worry about the responsibilities of adulthood, which may cause interference when trying to learn new information. It is hard to think about a new math formula when we are worrying about money or our jobs. In short, we are a lot more distracted as adults. As I mentioned before, I am far from a cognitive psychologist, but these are just some possibilities we might take into consideration next time we get frustrated with our knack for remembering useless information.

  5. Denissa Cioraneanu

    Story of my life. I have more songs stuck in my head than iTunes has in their store, and what’s worse is that I can probably recite every lyric of every song I have ever heard even if it has been a while. Now you can imagine my frustration when it comes to my academics and I cant remember what information was contained in the paragraph that I just read 5 minutes ago before going to get that glass of water. However, a little Backstreet Boys comes on the radio and I’m singing it like I just heard the song 5 minutes ago. It is so frustrating when I cant remember the important things. According to research, our brain has two proteins important for forming connections in the brain, NR2A and NR2B. A study was done in mice and compared to adult mice, the young mice had an increase of NR2B while the adults an increase in NR2A. However, when the researchers induced the young mice to produce more NR2A, like the adults, the young mice had trouble forming new connections and making new long-term memories at the expense of old ones (Stoller-Conrad, 2013). Basically in a nut shell, my older college-aged brain may have had trouble learning the new material simply because teeny-bopper song lyrics were there first. What I wouldn’t give to trade song lyrics for knowledge right about now. Great post!!
    Denise

    Stollen-Conrad, J. (2013). Why Do We Remember Countless Song Lyrics, But Not Our Studies? Figure One. Retrieved from https://figureoneblog.wordpress.com/2013/05/02/why-do-we-remember-countless-song-lyrics-but-not-our-studies/

  6. Stacy Lynn Clarke

    I know many people wonder about the ease in which we pick up song lyrics and quotes, and the difficulty we have retaining other information. I wrote about echolalia in my first blog post, and your post seems to connect to mine well!
    Along with the ease of learning and recalling song lyrics, the topic of earworms is interesting too. Earworms are the involuntary, uncontrollable bits of songs or jingles that won’t come out of your head (thanks, Carly Rae). There’s been a lot of media attention on how certain songs are constructed to be more conducive to getting stuck on repeat in a person’s memory. Science Friday says that a person’s personality, mood, or stress factors may also come into play.
    The methods for getting rid of earworms involve using what we’ve learned about the working memory model. According to Science Friday, engaging in something using language (playing word games, talking, or even listening to the entire song to ‘wipe out’ the fragment) can help erase the earworm.

    Works Cited
    Tu, Chau. (2014, May 28). Why Do Songs Get Stuck In Our Heads? Science Friday. Retrieved from: http://www.sciencefriday.com/blogs/05/28/2014/why-do-songs-get-stuck-in-our-heads.html?series=28

  7. Daria Kowalska

    I have to totally agree with you, I have always wondered the same thing about lyrics and why they were so much easier to remember. I had/have the same problem with studying materials from school. I am just unable to learn or remember very much when it comes to a test or quiz. I don’t know why but I can’t remember. I will remember that I read that somewhere but won’t be able to remember what it said exactly or what it really means or how to answer the question. But, Its interesting to see how the episodic memory really works and how it helps us to remember things such as lyrics. Life would be so much easier if I could remember everything I learned the same way I remember lyrics. I think it is also because we really like a song enough to sing it everytime it plays or on the radio or if its stuck in our head. Unfortunately we won’t go around reciting what we just learned in school because it’s not something we want to be constantly thinking about. I find it interesting to see that we actually relate lyrics with experiences I guess if a song has to do with our life or how we are feeling in a given moment we are more likely to remember it. But, wouldn’t that work the same way for school? If the given topic has to do with an experience that we have gone through and we can link it back then why wouldn’t that go to our episodic memory? These things are very interesting to look at. I think that Episodic and Semantic memory should be switched so that we could remember more facts and meanings but that just won’t happen.

  8. Amanda Jeanne Smith

    Hi Chelsea!
    Your post is very interesting to me because I have always thought the same thing in regards to memorizing songs versus memorizing information for tests or exams. I could go years without hearing a song, but when I do hear the song again I can sing the song word for word. However, studying for a test is much more difficult and it seems like the information cannot stay in my brain no matter what I do to try and study. It all makes sense now, after reading your post, that songs go into our memory as episodic memory so it is easier to remember the lyrics, even if we haven’t heard them in years. Now that I think about it, I do relate songs to experiences. I wonder if we started attempting to relate the information we are studying for exams to our experiences if it would be easier to memorize this information long term. Another difficulty I have found is with cumulative exams. Even if I ace the test at the beginning of the semester, I have forgotten the majority of this information by the time we have to take the final. Maybe by equating the information to personal experiences the information would go into episodic memory, thus making it easier to remember.

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