I love music as much as the next person, but I’ve been thinking a lot about how the ease of access to music, especially with headphones and playlists, is changing how we experience it—and maybe not always for the better. Music used to be a more deliberate, shared experience. You’d sit down and listen to a whole album or go to a concert, and there was something intentional about the way you consumed it. Now, with endless playlists and the ability to listen to anything, anywhere, all the time, I wonder if we've lost some of that intentionality and connection.

Think about how often people walk around with their headphones in, blocking out the world. Sure, headphones are convenient, but they've normalized shutting off one of our senses. People are no longer engaging with their surroundings, with others, or even with the music in a meaningful way. Instead of albums that tell a story or create a cohesive experience, we now have playlists that are more like fast food for our ears—quick hits of dopamine but no substance.

Don’t get me wrong, I still love music and use headphones myself, but I’ve noticed how often I reach for them just to fill silence or avoid my own thoughts. It’s like music has become an emotional crutch. Instead of processing feelings, we just queue up a playlist that matches our mood and stay in that emotional loop. It’s almost like we’ve outsourced our emotional regulation to music.

And it’s not just headphones. Playlists have taken over in a way that devalues the album experience. We don’t sit down to listen to an album from start to finish as much as we used to. Instead, it’s all about shuffling through individual tracks, never really getting the full artistic intention behind an album. It’s the difference between bingeing random YouTube clips and watching a thoughtfully crafted film.

I came across this idea recently: Music is like gasoline for emotions. It can fuel us, uplift us, or drag us deeper into whatever we're feeling. But because it’s so accessible now—Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, you name it—it's easy to overconsume. We rarely give ourselves space to feel things on our own or let silence do its work. Instead, we rush to fill every moment with sound.

So I ask, are we overdoing it? Has music become too much of a good thing?

Would love to hear your thoughts.

Hi!

My name is Benjamin Gustafsson, I’m a swedish 24-year-old web developer and UX designer with a huge passion for music. I play drums in a small indierock band and also have a huge passions for movies and books. I’m currently working on a project to build a community-based music app, where users can log, review, and share albums with friends—kind of like Letterboxd for music. This is something I myself have been looking for since I started using Letterboxd but havn´t found any solution to my liking.

To help shape the app, I’m conducting some research on the habits of people when it comes to listening to , sharing or discovering new music. The survey consists of about 10 questions and should take just 3-4 minutes to complete at most. Your feedback will be super helpful for making this app something music lovers can enjoy!

The Survey:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScM9WXRbYdcPsLpnq-KHygnbUXGuUDOr2aqrNs6u6GkFIwd5Q/viewform?usp=sf_link

Thanks so much for your time!

If you´re more interested in the project just hit me up with a message! (I might even send you my prototype once I´ve updated my sketching based on insights from the survey + some real life interviews).

https://on.soundcloud.com/D2Mni2kGCDCwFGAPA