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Spotify Study Reveals Penn Staters’ Music Habits

Music streaming apps are clutch in college, whether you’re creating the perfect pregame playlist or just surviving a ride to campus. Spotify collected data about the listening patterns of college students across the country in 2014, and it revealed some pretty fascinating facts about Penn State listeners.

It came up with a comprehensive list of America’s most music-loving schools, then took the top 40 schools and broke down day-to-day music patterns of each specific campus. Here’s how Penn State compared to other schools on the list:

Spotify determined that Penn State's average listener is a Lana-Del-Rey-loathing, Hardwell-heavy, punk rock fanatic who sleeps until noon and typically never goes to church (Photo: Spotify).
Spotify determined Penn State’s average listener is a Lana-Del-Rey-loathing, Hardwell-heavy, punk rock fanatic who sleeps until noon and typically never goes to church (Photo: Spotify).

Students apparently love Hardwell and really can’t stand the soulful melodies of Lana Del Rey — Born To Die probably isn’t the easiest jam to get down to at the typical frat party. Penn Staters are punk fans, and really aren’t into Christian music (sorry, Willard Preacher). Surprisingly, Penn State also listens to live recordings of songs more than any other university. The typical student also rises late and loves to kick back to some good ‘ol R&B.

Although Penn Staters pass through miles of farm land on their way to campus, we actually don't really like country music that much (Photo: Spotify)
Although Penn Staters pass through miles of farm land on their way to campus, they actually don’t really like country music that much (Photo: Spotify)

Penn State also parties to pop music a bit more than the national average, with dance, hip hop, and R&B following close behind. Don’t let the overabundance of rolling hills and flannels fool you — Happy Valley listens to notably less country music than the rest of the United States.

Nope, it's not just you -- Penn State students every love to blast We Dem Boyz everywhere they go.
Nope, it’s not just you — Penn State students love to blast We Dem Boyz everywhere they go.

Penn State’s Student Programming Association sure knew what was up when it brought Timeflies to campus, as Penn Staters jammed out to “All The Way” more than any other school (Keep in mind, this was in 2014.) Timeflies is also the second most-liked artist on the study. “We Dem Boyz” also dominated the distinctive tracks list, which comes as no surprise as spring nears and students everywhere begin to reminisce on football season.

Naturally, Happy Valley loves to bust a move at Indigo late at night before enjoying a slumber for as long as possible (Photo: Spotify)
Naturally, Happy Valley loves to bust a move at Indigo late or night before enjoying a slumber for as long as possible (Photo: Spotify)

The graph above shows the relationship between the time of day and the amount of people listening to Spotify at that time. It’s the same type of graph Spotify used to predict when students wake up and go to sleep. Researchers labeled Penn State as one of the “latest to rise” schools — folks sure do hate those 8 a.m. wake ups.

spotify 5

Penn State students as a whole seem to enjoy songs that include a fair amount of instrumentals. Penn State also listens to the most high-energy music out of all schools. According to the study, “high energy” music includes the likes of R&B, punk, and live music.

Overall, it doesn’t take a scientific study to know that Penn Staters love their music. Which songs are you surprised didn’t make the cut? Let us know in the comments.

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About the Author

Carolyn Popescu

Current senior studying Advertising and Visual Arts, Carolyn has a passion for entertainment and music. She also loves photography, film, graphic design, social media, and all things in between. She's the current Sony Music Marketing Representative for State College, so be sure to reach out to her with any local music scene questions, ideas, proposals, or if you just need someone to geek out about music with.

(Contact her through [email protected] or [email protected])

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