Why Do We Love Lofi Background Music so Much?
Whether you are a student, working from a home office, or are simply trying to set the perfect mood for your evening in, it’s clear that a lot of us are head over heels in love with lofi music.
This unusual, distinctive style of music has become incredibly popular in recent years, with endless numbers of YouTube videos, Spotify playlists and new releases showcasing these gentle, nostalgic beats.
There are a few reasons why this kind of music is so popular, and why we use it and enjoy it, whenever we want to get into a specific state of mind.
1. It feels familiar
Creating a gentle, nostalgic feeling instantly is one of the main reasons we love lo-fi so much.
This type of music immediately brings back vibes of VHS tapes, cassettes and late nights with its hazy, fuzzy feel.
It lets us immediately get into a great state of mind, where we feel comfortable, unhurried and undistracted.
Perfect for working, studying or reading late into the early hours.
2. Lofi music rarely features vocals
Research has shown that music that has vocals intends to be a lot more distracting to work with than music without vocals.
Lo-fi music is usually composed using old samples – but it rarely has distinctive vocal lines running through it.
The human brain hones in on voices automatically – which is why some lyric-driven music can be super distracting.
It’s why working to talk radio is rarely a good idea.
If lofi music features a human voice, it’s usually as a texture or as an accent to the rest of the music. It’s not the main focus.
This means the music is effective as background noise, because we can zone in and out of it, as we please.
Music that we are familiar with has also been shown to be good for studying to. Lofi music is all about that familiar, nostalgic feeling – so you don’t have to spend time – and therefore mental energy – getting to know each new song.
Each beat already feels familiar, which makes it helpful to listen to when you want to be productive.
3. It removes a decision
How many times do you open up your laptop, only to get distracted before you’ve even started?
It can be difficult to know what music to throw on when you want to do some work, or studying.
This usually leads to wasted time browsing through different songs, trying to find exactly the right mood and atmosphere.
Or you can easily get lost in YouTube or social media.
A great thing about lofi playlists, is you know exactly what you’re going to get. You don’t need to waste any time thinking about a certain track or a certain artist, you can just jump right in, and get straight into the zone.
This means a good lofi playlist is the perfect music choice for getting started, and removing any friction that might prevent you from kicking off your work or study session.
Here at GBM Music, we have a number of different playlists and YouTube videos, which can help you to get straight into the working zone.
We optimise and design all of our music for productivity to help you to achieve a certain mindset. Give them a try for free, or listen to one of our latest videos:
If you like this article, you might like these as well:
How music can double your workplace productivity overnight
Top apps to help you live a happier, healthier life
Until next time,
– Alistair