Who writes the saddest songs? (2023)

FAQs

Which is the saddest song ever written? ›

R.E.M.'s 1992 hit “Everybody Hurts” has been named the “Saddest Song of All Time” according to a recent survey by OnePoll. Sinead O'Connor's “Nothin Compares 2 U” and Eric Clapton's “Tears in Heaven” came in second and third.

Sad music elicits sad feelings but also more positive emotions and evaluations that explain why people listen to it. However, for some, listening to sad music may be a maladaptive strategy, as it may worsen depressed or sad mood.

Sad music does not — as many people believe — make you feel worse. In actuality, it can help you feel better. It makes logical sense that, when you're sad, you would feel better by changing your mood.

In this study, participants reported feeling better after listening to sad music, not that it perpetuated a low mood as was previously thought. As study co-author Jonathan Rottenberg said, “They actually were feeling better after listening to this sad music than they were before”.

We dare you. The song – Discovery of the Camp, from Band of Brothers – has been used in several scientific studies to make people feel really, really sad. Most recently, researchers got 102 people aged 18 to 67 to listen to eight minutes of the song – and found that people who cry at music might be a bit nicer.

Sad music tricks the brain into engaging a normal, compensatory response by releasing prolactin. In the absence of a traumatic event, the body is left with a pleasurable mix of opiates with nowhere else to go. Prolactin produces feelings of calmness to counteract mental pain.

What is the saddest song to play at a funeral? ›

The Science of a Music-Induced Cry

A 2014 study of more than 700 people by a team in Berlin found that there are four specific rewards that come with experiencing sadness due to music: reward of imagination, emotion regulation, empathy, and a lack of "real-life" implications.

"Old Town Road" by Lil Nas X featuring Billy Ray Cyrus

"Old Town Road" holds the record for the longest stretch at No. 1 with 19 weeks. It also became the fastest song in history to be certified diamond.

"Friday" has been widely described as the worst song ever recorded, attracting derision for its weak lyrical content and its vocals that were excessively processed by Auto-Tune. Produced by Patrice Wilson, the song became an Internet sensation, making it the subject of multiple parodies and ridicule.

EMST results revealed that MDD people had a stronger preference for both low energy and sad music, relative to HC. The strong appeal of sad music to people with MDD may be related to its calming effects rather than any desire to increase or maintain sad feelings.

Sad music also triggers the release of a hormone called prolactin, which can help reduce feelings of grief. Since the feeling of sadness, which led the brain to release the hormone, was second-hand — there's no actual grief the person experienced that needs consoling, so the hormone just leaves them feeling happy.

[S]adness is a common theme in popular music, and it may be that individuals with depression turn to these messages to make themselves feel less alone in their sadness. Conversely, it may also be that individuals with MDD turn to happy music to “tune out” their negative moods or to elevate their moods.

They found that listening to music affected the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), with those using sad and aggressive music to reflect on their emotions having higher levels of anxiety and neuroticism than those who didn't. This was particularly true for men.

The classic term might be melancholy, as it is used in this exchange between Amiens, who has been singing a sad song, and Jaques, who has been avidly listening, in As You Like It: Jaques.

Do depressed people love music? ›

Research suggests that people with depression find sad music calming — or even uplifting. A 2015 study found that people diagnosed with depression were more inclined to listen to sad music. The researchers believed, then, that this finding meant depressed individuals sought to maintain their low mood.

While there's little fault to find with those effects, some question whether people can enjoy music a bit too much. The short answer to this is no: Experts don't formally recognize music addiction as a mental health diagnosis. Still, that doesn't mean music habits can still sometimes become problematic.

“Babies are also sensitive to music, recognizing musical phrases, for example.” Gopnik believes that the baby was responding to the sorrow in her mother's voice and presentation, especially as evidence suggests that babies “take on the emotions of those around them, imitating facial expressions literally from birth.” ...

There are studies that show, however, that music can impact our mood long-term, increasing depression or anxiety. Certain songs, certain lyrics, certain genres of music are more likely to intensify depression or anxiety, sometimes as much or more as outside stressors and environmental factors.

Classical music is a winner at helping you focus. Music that has a tempo of 60 bpm (beats per minute) increases the efficiency of the brain in processing information. The best way to use it is to have it playing softly in the background as you get on with your tasks.

The top genre for depressed listeners is rock, followed closely by alternative, pop, and hip-hop/rap. On the other end of the spectrum, blues is the least popular genre for people hoping to improve their moods. Easy listening, R&B/soul, electronic, and classical music are similarly unpopular.

You may have songs you remember from childhood that affect you this way, and sometimes bring tears to your eyes. But why? For many people, music is linked to memories, from nostalgia to trauma. For others, beautiful music is emotionally moving in a positive sense, independent of context.

What is the most overused song? ›

Historically, classical composers felt that D minor was the most melancholy of the keys, suitable for lamentations, dirges and requiems.

The biology of sad music

When we experience real-life loss, or empathise with another's pain, hormones such as prolactin and oxytocin are released within us. These help us cope with loss and pain. They do so by making us feel calmed, consoled, and supported.

Prolactin is released by endocrine neurons in the hypothalamus in response to tears and to the experience of negative emotions such as grief, sadness, and, more generally, stress (Turner et al., 2002).

Sentimental R.E.M ballad Everybody Hurts has been voted the song most likely to make men cry. In a survey by songwriters and musicians group the Performing Right Society for Music, published online, the 1992 hit topped the list of men's top tear-jerkers, followed by Eric Clapton's Tears in Heaven at number two.

What is the number one requested funeral song? ›

“My Way” by Frank Sinatra. “Time To Say Goodbye” by Andrea Bocelli. “Over The Rainbow” by Eva Cassidy. “Wind Beneath My Wings” by Bette Midler.

Some basic song themes to not pick for a funeral would include hell, death, abuse, break ups, survival, and celebratory happiness.

Closing one's eyes while singing leads to increased auditory acuity and improved vocal control - which acts as a type of biofeedback. This allows the singer to express an enormous amount of energy at the moment as it becomes a larger-than-life experience.

Especially when it's music we love, the brain releases dopamine while listening. Dopamine is a chemical messenger that plays a role in how we feel pleasure.

When you get mad, your body produces a flood of hormones that stimulate strong reactions in your body — everything from a racing heart to sweaty palms to short-term memory loss. In response to the elevated stress level, you may cry.

We've rounded up ten of the 20-year-old's bleakest, bluest songs for listening to on those long, gloomy and never-ending days when you just need to let it all out. Get ready, for Billie Eilish's most devastating songs.

She is the daughter of actress and teacher Maggie Baird and actor Patrick O'Connell, both of whom are also musicians and work on Eilish's tours. Eilish is of Irish and Scottish descent. She was conceived via in vitro fertilization.

Elvis Presley. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, Elvis Presley is still the best-selling artist in music history with more than 1 billion album and song sales worldwide. He's also still breaking records from beyond the grave.

Does listening to gloomy music make your mood worse? A new scientific report says yes - and you're putting your mental health at risk if you keep on listening. You know what it's like when you're feeling a bit “down”… You throw on a gloomy record and have a good melancholic wallow.

Do sad songs cure depression? ›

In this study, participants reported feeling better after listening to sad music, not that it perpetuated a low mood as was previously thought. As study co-author Jonathan Rottenberg said, “They actually were feeling better after listening to this sad music than they were before”.