Music is ingrained in society. Music is inspiring, emotional, beautiful, and enticing, but most of all - powerful. There are so many genres of music out there; it is almost impossible to not find one that appeals to you. The most likely reason for the popularity and importance of music is what neuroscience has found in studies. We have most likely all experienced that feeling of euphoria when listening to our favorite songs. We either feel the adrenaline pumping through our veins, we may feel lethargic and slow, or we may begin to reflect on past experiences. All of these are due to the chemical changes that actually occur when engaging in one of the most popular activities. Since music is a stimulus, the dopamine release is what keeps us hooked. Recently, science has surprised us with findings that found the part of the brain that most enjoys music; it actually takes place before the climax. “Immediately before the climax of emotional responses there was evidence for relatively greater dopamine activity in the caudate. This subregion of the striatum is interconnected with sensory, motor and associative regions of the brain and has been typically implicated in learning of stimulus-response associations and in mediating the reinforcing qualities of rewarding stimuli such as food”(Lehrer, 2011). So the most powerful part of the music is not actual our favorite parts but rather the time before it. The article later goes on to say that the reason behind this discovery may be that because someone may not be able to guess what tune or notes are coming in the song, we experience that rush of dopamine as we wait for that bass drop, or high note, or guitar solo. As I write this article, I am listening to music myself and I can feel what science explains is happening. I feel relaxed, happy, and am ready to take whatever is thrown at me. So the next time you want to feel that rush, pull up Spotify or YouTube and let the chemicals flow.

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