Yes, I know we’ve all been guilty of it at least some time or another (girls definitely)! There is something about listening to sad music when you are down that just makes you feel better and picks you up. But how could this be? Wouldn’t sad music just make us sadder? Music has an incredible hold over our emotions and our mood in general. Many researchers and studies have been conducted to determine what about sad music makes us so happy.
In a study conducted by researchers, a group of 44 participants were subject to listen to two sad songs and one happy song and then rate their feelings on perceived emotions and emotions felt, based on a scale of how much they identified with each. The results showed that people thought the sad songs were “tragic” but had a more enjoyable, pleasant experience while listening to these over the happy song. Researchers made a statement that emotion is not induced by personal events but rather just an indirect relationship to the music, forgetting what it could remind them off. While this is a well thought out experiment, there is a chance that listeners could be biased to the sad songs over the happy purely because they like the artist better, or recognize with it more, third variables influencing their opinions. It is also possible that people feel happier when listening to sad music because many argue that it is “more beautiful” and pleasant to hear.
In another case, it was discovered that people find sad music more comforting when they are going something and could listen to music that relates to their current situation. It is said that the experience is more powerful and connecting with a song instead of feeling the sadness it is describing.
I agree that sadder music makes up happier because it provides us with a comfort when we are going through something and usually has a softer, tenderer emotional connection than something happy.
Sources:
http://www.newrepublic.com/article/119188/sad-music-elicits-pleasant-feelings
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/263558.php
Hey Kelsey, I personally love sad songs and for some reason I am never left feeling sad after listening to this kind of music. When I listen to someone singing about things that are depressing it makes me feel like I am not alone. I definitely relate to this blog post the most out of all the others I have read. I find a lot of comfort in listening to sad songs and lyrics. Heres a link to a website that further discusses this topic http://www.newrepublic.com/article/119188/sad-music-elicits-pleasant-feelings
I can totally connect with your blog post because I’m pretty happy right now and I’m listening to “depressive” music like everyones call it. But, at the same time, I feel like I’m about to contradict myself, listening to sad songs that remind me of stuff that had happened in my life, make me feels really bad and really sad. I would like to see more studies with for example songs that has an effect in people. Also, if you listen to upbeat music with friends, usually you are really happy. I do think that sad songs can make you happy because they’re beautiful, not because they are supposed to make you feel happy.
I agree with the comments before me as well as your article. This is a very interesting topic and one that many people can relate to. It’s interesting to know that we find comfort in things that are similar to us, like sad music, instead of the things that are supposed to bring our moods up, like happy music does.
I completely agree that listening to sad songs while you are sad makes you feel better. Although, I believe it might be due to the fact that we can relate to the song, I also think that there are other reasons why they make us happier. One of these being that if the song we are listening to describes a more tragic situation than what we are going through, it makes us feel more thankful for our lives, resulting in less self-pity.
I like this topic because it relates to most. I know it relates to me because I highly enjoy listening to music. Music has a way with me when I’m sad, it puts me at ease. I’m definitely one to listen to sad music when I’m sad, not because it makes me sadder but because it correlates to my mood. If I’m sad, I cannot listen to a happy dandy song to brighten up my mood because it won’t work. Music allows one to think and reminisce of certain situations or times in one’s life. I think music is used as a therapeutic thing when one is upset about something. I also agree with the fact that one can enjoy a sadder song as oppose to happier song because of the artist but here is more on this topic.
Such a unique topic! I agree that sad music is more relatable and can help people cope with a certain situation which in turn can help alter their mood. I remember countless nights listening to sad music because I related to it which made me feel better, like in the Eminem song Sing for the moment, “Or for anyone whose ever been through s**t in they lives/ So they sit and they cry at night wishin they’d die/Till they throw on a rap record and they sit and they vibe.” I found this one article that says when we are going through a tough time and feel depressed our body can release a hormone called prolactin which can create a “warming effect” and make us feel a bit better and when we listen to said music, that same hormone can be released.
http://www.realclearscience.com/blog/2011/07/sad-music-as-a-remedy-to-sadness.html
Wow this is very interesting, I always assumed that listing to sad music would depress a person more. But upon reflection I realized that the only times i ever listen to sad music is when I myself am feeling sad and it usually does actually make me feel a bit better. Theres a lot to say about how much empathy affects us, the idea of knowing that others have been through tragic occurrences as well. Listening to powerful sad music, we realize that someone had to have been very hurt to write this and it makes us feel less alone.