Music is a big part of some people’s’ lives. It can help us express emotions, calm us, or even hype us up. But different generations listen to different genres of music. Based on an anonymous survey, most Gen-zers listen to rap/R&B whereas most millennials listen to rock/heavy metal. We may listen to the same music as our friends but not our family.

Friends and Music

Based on a survey taken by 82 individuals, 74.4% listen to the same music as their friends. But is this because they actually like it, or are they just trying to be a part of everyone else? 86.6% of people who took the survey claim that they have different playlists with different genres. Some of the responses even say that they have separate playlists for when with friends/in public and when they’re alone. Some people may have a sad playlist and a hype playlist, but 13.4% only listen to one specific genre.

Controversy on Country and Rock

Country and rock/heavy metal are mostly liked by millennials-baby boomers. But some gen-zers are starting to understand the hype.

“I prefer to listen to heavy metal when I’m working out in the gym. Nothing gets you motivated at the gym like some rock or metal, ” said Allison Walker, millennial English teacher.

Whether it’s from listening to their parents’ playlists, or viral audios on apps like TikTok, rock/heavy metal is the most listened to genre in the survey. But there are still some people that do not want to listen to it. 28% of the respondents said that they would not add a rock song to their playlist. But 26.8% said that they absolutely would/have.

Country music is where it gets tricky. Most people who like country music only listen to country music. Lots of people also believe that country music is only for people in the South. 30.5% of the respondents said that they would not add a country song to their playlist and only 23.2% said they would.

“I wasn’t raised on country. I was raised on Brazilian funk. I use to hate country music as a kid, but as I’ve grown up I started to appreciate the lyrics. I mainly listen to country now but I also listen to R&B and Brazilian funk,” explained Stephanie Gontijo, senior.

“I wasn’t a country fan until about fifteen years ago. Someone I was dating was into country music so I had very little choice on what music was playing when I was in his car. But when the relationship ended, I found myself still listening to country music. A lot of what they were singing about resonated with me and now I listen to country music more than other genres, ” explained English teacher Danielle Allen.

“There’s always a beginning middle and end to a country song because it’s a story and its a story people can relate to. It stays with you. If you have something going on in your life . . . there is a country song about it. I love country music but that’s not the only music I listen to,” said Kerstin Hartlieb, American Sign Language teacher.

Music and Emotions

Some people listen to music when they need an escape. When asked why you listen to music, one respondent said, “I listen to music to express my emotions because I struggle to do it myself and I feel that music does it for me.”

Music can also bring people joy and thoughts. Another respondent said, “Music has been a big part of my life since I was a child- took piano lessons for many years- music covers all emotions- all times of life. It also reminds me of my childhood, music was always in the background. I can’t imagine my life without it.”

62.2% of respondents listen to music based on their moods and emotions. For example, this could mean when they are sad, they listen to sad music. Or when they are happy, they listen to upbeat music.