Our favourite songs don't disappear – but we find fewer new ones
Have you noticed that Spotify's music recommendations have become increasingly odd? Perhaps the algorithm didn’t change, instead you did. In a study conducted by, among others, researchers at the School of Engineering at Jönköping University, over 15 years of listening data shows that musical tastes become narrower with age.
"What surprised me most was how dramatically music preferences change after the age of 40. Until then, most people prefer contemporary music and explore a wide spectrum, but after 40, listening habits become more nostalgic," says Bruce Ferwerda, Associate Professor in Computer Science at the School of Engineering and one of the researchers behind the study.
Music is a strong marker of identity – but what we listen to changes with age. The results may not be that surprising, but now there is scientific evidence showing how listening habits change over time.
The international study from Jönköping University, the University of Gothenburg and the University of Primorska in Slovenia shows that younger users listen to a wide range of contemporary popular music and follow trends in popular culture. In the transition from adolescence to adulthood, music habits broaden – more artists and genres are explored, and listening becomes increasingly varied. With age, this spectrum narrows, while music choices become more personal and influenced by previous experiences.
Music is linked to identity
“When you are young, you want to experience everything. You don't go to the Roskilde Festival just to listen to a particular band, but when you become an adult, you have usually found a style of music that you identify with. The charts become less important,” says study co-author Alan Said, Senior Lecturer in Computer Science at the University of Gothenburg.
The researchers used data from the music service Last.fm, where users share their music listening habits from Spotify, for example. Listeners create a personal music profile and get an overview of their listening habits. Since Last.fm users can enter their age when they register, it was possible to link listening habits to age. The study is based on data spanning 15 years and covering more than 40,000 users. The data contained over 542 million listens to more than 1 million different songs.
Nostalgia is an important driving force
It turns out that listening to music continues to change throughout life. In middle age and beyond, nostalgia becomes a strong driving force; the music from one's youth becomes the “soundtrack to life.” Among older listeners, the pattern becomes twofold. They continue to enjoy new music, but at the same time return repeatedly to songs from their youth.
Bruce Ferwerda explains that the most important difference between younger and older music listeners is the balance between diversity and personalization.
"Young listeners consume more of what is generally popular and keep their options open, while older listeners limit their tastes and focus on music that feels personally meaningful. For recommendation systems such as Spotify, this means that younger audiences benefit from diverse, exploratory suggestions, while older audiences prefer more personalized recommendations that evoke memories,” he says.
Improved recommendations
Recommendation systems' suggestions for new music to their users not only reflect their musical tastes, but can also shape them, which brings both risks and opportunities.
"The risk is that algorithms reinforce existing patterns, for example, young people may be driven further into what is already popular, while older listeners may get stuck in nostalgic loops. This can limit personal development and reduce exposure to new and meaningful music," says Bruce Ferwerda.
He also sees a real opportunity.
"If recommendation systems are designed with an awareness of how tastes evolve over the course of a lifetime, they can actively support people's identity and well-being. For young listeners, they can promote exploration and discovery. For older listeners, they can balance nostalgia with carefully selected new material, helping music remain a source of reflection and self-actualization throughout life.”
