Sultry sounds: Study reveals what music people prefer during sex

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A new study has found that people who said they listened to music during sex were generally more satisfied with their sex lives and had sex more often than those who didn’t.

ZipHealth, an online doctor and prescription service, compiled data by surveying more than 1,000 people on both their sex lives and their music streaming choices.  

47 per cent of respondents said they regularly listen to music during sex, and 68 per cent of people who listen to music during sex say it helps reduce sexual performance anxiety. 63 per cent say it significantly increases the duration of sex. 

With performance in mind, the study reveals that people who listen to hip-hop/rap during sex last the longest (31.5 mins on average), and EDM listeners last the shortest (27.2 mins). 

In addition to using the information provided by the respondents, ZipHealth also analyzed Spotify playlists – 11,267 songs across 148 playlists – with the words “sex,” “having sex,” “making love,” “freaky, “BDSM,” and “unprotected sex.” 

They found that pop music was the most popular genre in the bedroom (followed by hip-hop / rap in second place and R&B / soul in third), with respondents adding that they were generally streaming the Weeknd to get in the mood. 

As for the most popular song on sex playlists, ‘Super Freaky Girl’ by Nicki Minaj takes the kinky crown.  

Here are some of the breakdowns of Ziphealth’s study.

Top music genres across sex playlists:

1. Pop 
2. Hip-hop / Rap 
3. R&B / Soul  
4. Indie Rock 
5. Alternative 
6. EDM 
7. Heavy metal  
8. Classic rock

Additionally, the study found that people who listen to classical music during sex were most likely to be satisfied with their sex life.  

Top artists and songs for intimacy across sex playlists:

1. Nicki Minaj – Super Freaky Girl 
2. The Weeknd – The Hills 
3. The Weeknd – Often 
4. The Weeknd – Call Out My Name 
5. Nine Inch Nails – Closer 
6. Two Feet – Love Is A B***h 
7. The Weeknd – Earned It 
8. Ty Dolla $ign, The Weeknd, Wiz Khalifa, DJ Mustard – Or Nah (Remix) 
9. Two Feet – I Feel Like I’m Drowning 
10. Jeremih – Birthday Sex

Yep, that’s half the list dominated by The Weeknd. Congrats, you saucy Canadian.

Another finding – more alarmingly – was that 3% of people reported they have worn AirPods during sex. Not sure how we feel about that.

Overall, the Top 10 artists across sex playlists are:

1. The Weeknd 
2. Kanye West 
3. Deftones 
4. Drake 
5. Lana Del Rey  
6. Kendrick Lamar 
7. Tyler, The Creator 
8. Rihanna 
9. Taylor Swift 
10. Doja Cat

While a lot of these choices can seem evident (although no one here at Euronews Culture can fathom why you’d want to hear Kanye West’s voice over lovemaking), one surprising inclusion is American alt-metal band Deftones, who are the most popular metal band to listen to during sex. 

They also rank in the Top 5 artists with playlist keywords including « BDSM » and « Sex » – coming in fourth and third respectively. In case you were wondering, Nine Inch Nails takes the top spot for « BDSM », while The Weeknd (him again) ranks number 1 for « Sex ».

Elsewhere in the study, it was shown that people who have a fetish or participated in a threesome usually listen to heavy metal (72% and 54% respectively); that people having one-night stands prefer folk music (88%); people who cry during sex favour reggae as a musical genre (38%); and those who enjoy having sex in public do so in majority to the sounds of hip-hop and rap (53%).  

Check out the complete findings from the ZipHealth study here, and happy listening!