German scientists from the Nuremberg University of Music analyzed more than 12 thousand lyrics of English songs published from 1980 to 2020. They noted that over the past forty years, the literary component in musical works has become much simpler and somewhat more monotonous due to the large number of repetitions. The study was published in the scientific journal magazine Scientific Reports (SciRep).
The work of experts covered compositions in the genres of rap, pop, country, rhythm and blues (RnB) and rock, each consisting of 2.4 thousand tracks.
As the analysis showed, the lyrics of the songs became easier to perceive in general. The study revealed another trend: The textual content of musical works has become more personal and emotionally charged over time.
For example, writers in the rap and hip-hop genres began to use both emotionally positive and negative words and combinations more frequently. At the same time, negative lyrics increased in pop, country and RnB music. There was also a noticeable increase in the number of anger-related words across all genres.
Scientists also found that rock music fans are more likely to prefer older songs from their favorite genre, while country music fans are more interested in new artists in that genre.
Previous researchers provenMany pop songs give bad examples about love and romantic relationships.
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Source: Gazeta
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