Many people across the world use accessible sources of music without a second thought every day. Youths are a distinct group of people who spend vast amounts of time with music playing in the background as they perform their daily tasks, such as completing academic assignments, engaging in extracurricular activities, or simply helping around the house. Additionally, many adolescents use music to cope with the pressures of modern life and an apprehensive concern for the future. Since Harrison High School is an International Baccalaureate World School, there are many responsibilities to accompany fruitful opportunities. Students who partake in this rigor often grapple with immense amounts of anxiety surrounding school. While wandering through the hallways, into classrooms, or the library, one can discern this distressed quality among the students. However, earbuds and headphones also remain a constant sight. Recent statistics report that 82% of youth listen to music daily for an average of 2.5 hours. According to Eli Singer, a sophomore at Harrison High School, “listening to music during the school day is a source of relaxation to avoid stress,” which helps him feel more confident in his studies and perform better. 

Therefore, there must be some correlation between listening to music and a benefit on one’s mental health and ability to function on a day-to-day basis. According to North Shore University, when one hears notes or lyrics that they perceive as beautiful or aligned with their values and perspectives, the essential hormone of dopamine, which causes contentment, is released. Health Direct also states that dopamine causes blood to flow easily and reduces heart rate and blood pressure. Increased levels of dopamine also correspond with the depletion of cortisol (the stress hormone), and the growth of serotonin and endorphins (the function-regulating hormones). The alleviation of worries and elevation of mood may have something to do with adolescents’ consistent use of music in both times of distress and relaxation. 

Music Industry How-To claims that today, artists who explore themes of identity, melancholia, reminiscence, romanticization, wanderlust, and introspection have grown in both popularity and relatability as we progress farther from the simplicity of the past and further into a possibly nightmarish future. These artists are often referred to as “indie” (independent) or “alt” (alternative) and have been overlooked as part of counterculture movements throughout the latter 20th century. However, as claimed by Give It A Spin, indie and alt artists have gradually emerged as prominent figures, icons, and symbols of the mainstream. Lana Del Rey, Mitski, The Neighborhood, and Sufjan Stevens are among the most recognizable artists of this genre who have ventured into luminary status. Perhaps these artists appeal most to youths because of their genuine intentions and untouched personas, which are often idolized. 

A prime example of an impactful and idyllic song released in the recent past year is Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd? released by Lana Del Rey on December 7, 2022, as the first single and title track of her latest album. This “slow, dreamy ballad” is quite intricate upon first listen and beyond. The lyric in the form of a question, “When’s it gonna be my turn?” signifies Lana’s desire to be let into a world in which she sees herself and her frustration in being shut out. One of the lyrics central to the chorus, “Open me up, tell me you like me,” represents Lana’s craving for external validation and the divulging of herself in exchange for feeling loved in a relationship. Lana’s balmy voice poetically serenades, “Something about the way he says, ‘Don’t forget me’ makes me feel alive.” This is quite telling of Lana’s fear of being forgotten beyond her death and her shame in being overlooked during her life. Woven throughout lyrics chanted in the chorus is the desperately romantic, “love me until I love myself,” where Lana implores her lover to care for her and maintain her existence, and her lack of belief in and love of herself. Spotify statistics report that Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd? has reached 38 million listeners since its release on the platform alone. The key to Lana Del Rey’s continual success and her success within this particular ballad is her listeners’ identification with the suffering she so heavily romanticizes. Through this illustration, one can conclude that the melancholic themes of indie music deeply resonate with adolescents. This is because they are comforted by the idea they are not alone in the pain of their experiences. Junior Faria Ahmed says this particular song “really opened my heart to seeing myself as beautiful and loved.” In present time, it makes sense that artists who reveal their inner thoughts in this authentically tender way would achieve such grandeur and reverence in a mainstream society dictated by the likings of the youth. 

The relationship between adolescents and music signifies the importance of musical influences in all of our lives, whether attending Harrison High School as a student or even a teacher at Harrison. With final exams approaching, Harrison students may experience familiar thoughts of dread and anxiety surrounding school. Thus, it may be wise to dedicate time, perhaps during the upcoming spring break, to creating a personalized collection of heartfelt songs. Whether listened to on an iPhone or a record player, music can be an ardent source of hope. This growing significance of music in modern times, especially in the most delicate group in our society, adolescents, is a reflection of how music today fulfills its eternal purpose- to unveil universal truths, unite people in their pain, and embody their desires.