Scientists say earworms — songs that loop involuntarily in your mind — tend to be faster, melodically familiar, and contain unusual note leaps. A study comparing 100 frequently reported earworms with 100 similar songs found earworms averaged 124 beats per minute versus 116 for non-earworm tracks. Exposure matters too. Songs with higher chart positions and recent airplay appeared more often in earworm reports. A separate 2023 experiment found repeated listening increased mental interference, but results varied by song. A review of 47 studies found little overlap in which songs stuck between individuals, unless researchers controlled what participants heard. Researchers note the findings apply mainly to Western popular music and cannot prove any single feature causes an earworm.
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