There are many ways to treat depression. Antidepressants and psychotherapy are the usual first-line treatments, but ongoing research has suggested that a regular meditation practice can help by changing how the brain responds to stress and anxiety.
While listening to sad songs may not seem like the ideal way to address a depressed mood, it’s still very common for people to turn to melancholy music when they’re feeling down. According to a study by the University of South Florida, people with depression actually prefer sad music.
As it turns out, the music we listen to affects the way we perceive the world, which can have a direct impact on our mood. Studies have found that one of the main reasons we listen to music is to regulate our mood and attention. Music can encourage sleep, wakefulness, concentration, relaxation, stress, and emotional expression.

Choosing angry songs, for instance, while feeling stressed may seem counterintuitive, but as it turns out, energetic music can help listeners manage their feelings of stress or anger. It isn’t merely the content of the music that affects our mood—our brains respond to the beats and tones of music in the cerebellum and amygdala (the feeling parts of the brain) before it is processed in the frontal lobes (the thinking parts of the brain).