Whether it’s putting on something smooth after having invited someone back to ours or pushing play on a playlist made up of nondescript techno in the bedroom, we all have music that we go to when it’s time to get in the mood
Choosing the right tracks is crucial. It’s not the time to trust shuffle on your Spotify liked songs and hope that that guilty pleasure track you don’t want anyone to know about comes on while you’re getting down to it.
You’re always just one accidental play of Chas and Dave’s ‘Rabbit’ away from not just killing the mood, but burying it forever.
But why are sex and music so intrinsically linked?
And before we go any further – no, it’s not because of ASMR – the lovely tingling sensation that can begin on the scalp and move down the back of the neck and upper spine if you hear a particular trigger noise.
According to the ASMR University, the key ‘stimuli/triggers for ASMR are things like gentle whispers, tapping sounds, and light touch’ but not everyone will respond to them.
However, ASMR and music are very different, and while the sound of someone chomping their way through a jar of pickles might make your brain feel nice and fuzzy, it’s not likely to suddenly make you want to have sex.
Likewise, a song suddenly coming on that makes you think about sex can have you feeling a bit hot and bothered, but it’s not probably going to scratch your ASMR itch.
While there isn’t one solid reason as to why certain songs and sounds make your body and mind kick into horny action (for you it might be a play of Marvin Gaye, for someone else – i.e. me – it could be listening to Naughty Girl by Beyonce), it turns out that there’s a whole lot of different reasons why music might be kicking your sex drive into action.
According to Alice Gray, neuroscientist and science communicator: ‘Rhythm and tempo is inbuilt into our bodies – through physiological mechanisms like our heart beat. Music has an intricate relationship with many brain functions such as memory and emotion.’
For instance, hearing a song might transport you back to a memory of a certain time (maybe even a certain sexy time). Music is a potent reminder of previous encounters – regardless of whether they’re good or bad. You might not want to think about the guy who tried to play Nickelback in a weird bid to seduce you, but you only have to hear ‘Never made it as a wise man…’ to suddenly be back in that flat.
In the same way, hearing Rihanna’s S&M might take you back to freshers week and making out with someone on the sticky dancefloor of a club at 3am.
Lyrics can also play a crucial role in why music makes you horny – spoiler, people singing about sex is probably going to make you think about sex, with bonus points if a song includes whispering or panting. Love to Love You Baby by Donna Summer goes one stop further, as according to a tally by Time magazine, Summer can be heard enjoying 22 orgasms throughout the number.
Listening to music is also a social activity, and as Alice puts it, ‘the tones, harmonies and rhythms of music trigger a part of the brain involved in socially-related emotions, so music can support activities around social behaviours and functions.’
She adds: ‘Background music can make us keener to make social connections – the perfect environment for flirting.’
So sticking on music while you have someone over can make them want to talk more – a win in our books (now just to master our flirting skills).
Alice also says that music can trigger arousal due to what our brains do when we listen to it, releasing pleasure chemicals that mirror those that flood the body during sex.
She explains: ‘Music is strongly linked to emotional responses in our brains. Music activates the reward pathways in our brains, causing the release of these pleasure chemicals.
‘These brain pathways are the same feel-good pathways that are activated when we eat delicious food, engage in social activities and have sex.
‘As sex and music both trigger our reward pathways in our brains and cause the release of pleasure chemicals such as dopamine, it’s possible that music can put us “in the mood” as we are triggering similar activity in the brain.’
The key bit? It has to be a song you like for that hit of hormones to appear – so when it comes to getting horny because of music, a lot of it is down to personal preference.
However, we reckon you’ll be hard pressed to find anyone without Donna Summer on their playlist after reading this.
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