According to a recent study conducted by the California Institute of Technology, it appears that there’s actually no evidence that suggests listening to enough R&B music can cure a generalized anxiety disorder.
It’s safe to say that Cal Tech scientists were left scratching their heads after reviewing the results of the study.
“It turns out that while R&B might be great music to relax to, it doesn’t stop someone from having anxiety in their everyday lives,” Head Researcher Dr. Tyra Hughes told us. “It’s literally just music.”
Despite R&B being an overall chill music genre, its effects don’t seem to last long after a song stops being played.
“While our participants with anxiety reported being calm while listening to ‘Focus’ by H.E.R.,” Dr. Hughes said, “their stress rates jumped right back up as soon as the song finished, meaning that the effects of listening to R&B unfortunately couldn’t treat their general anxiety.”
We were also able to speak with some of the participants of the study, who were just as surprised as the scientists.
“I always used to think that if I listened to enough SZA, Solange, or Aaliyah it would take my anxiety away for good,” 24-year-old Jamie Swanson told us. “But after finishing this study, I found that this wasn’t the case. It’s still not gonna stop me from trying though.”
While R&B music can still be used to ease anxiety, it is not currently recommended as the sole solution for it.
“Listening to artists like Maxwell or Erykah Badu may be a great way to calm down once in a while,” Dr. Hughes explained. “But it shouldn’t be the only thing you use to treat your anxiety. Other treatments include things like cognitive behavioral therapy and/or medication.”
“I don’t really want to go through all that,” said another participant, 28-year-old Bria Moore. “So I’m just gonna keep listening to Summer Walker.”
To each their own!
