From happy and motivated to sad and anxious, there’s no denying the past year has been a rollercoaster of emotions. And with a new year brings new moods – but how does music play a role in how we’re feeling?

Here’s some recent streaming data from Spotify to help break it down: 

• Mood boosting and serotonin inducing tunes were in high demand. Streaming of playlists with “serotonin” in the title increased by nearly 180% from 2019-2020, and streams of Spotify’s “Mood Booster” editorial playlist increased nearly 120% between 2019-2020. Fans also started 2021 with an eye on serotonin, with more than 7,500 serotonin-themed playlists created in the first 11 days of the new year. 
  • Some of the songs most frequently added to “serotonin” themed playlists created by Spotify fans included: “Tongue Tied” by GroupLove, “Electric Love” by BØRNS, “Everybody Talks” by Neon Trees, “Out of My League” by Fitz and the Tantrums and “The Less I Know The Better” by Tame Impala.

• At the same time, music for the blues gained popularity. Streams of Spotify’s emo feelings playlist, “tear drop” increased by nearly 150% from 2019-2020, and playlists with the word “sad” in the title were streamed more than 616 billion times in 2020 – an increase of roughly 40% compared to 2019. 
  • Some of the songs most frequently added to “sad” themed playlists created by Spotify listeners include: “Someone You Loved” by Lewis Capaldi, “lovely” by Billie Eilish and Khalid, “Get You The Moon” by Kina feat. Snøw, “i hate u, i love u” by gnash feat. Olivia O’Brien and “Say Something” by A Great Big World and Christina Aguilera. 

• Listeners turned to the ladies for some confidence. Streaming of “confidence” themed playlists increased by more than 120% from 2019-2020, and the songs most added to these playlists was dominated by female artists, including:  
  • “Good as Hell” and “Truth Hurts” by Lizzo, “Love Myself” by Hailee Steinfeld, “7 Rings” by Ariana Grande, “Run the World (Girls)” by Beyoncé, and “Fight Song” by Rachel Platten. 

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