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Earworms: why some songs get ‘stuck’ in your head
25th June, 2026 01:56 PM
It a common experience. A song you heard in the morning ends up repeating on a loop throughout the day and well into the evening.
These ‘stuck’ songs are known as earworms. Scientists call the experience involuntary musical imagery, and data shows that over 90 per cent of people experience it at least once a week.
This mental replay happens to almost everyone, showing how deeply music wires into the human brain.
What makes a tune stick?
The brain has a habit of replaying what it finds catchy.
When a person listens to music, the auditory cortex, which processes sound, activates. If a track has a fast tempo and a familiar melodic shape, the brain can easily trap it.
When the mind is idle, such as during a walk or while doing house chores, the brain automatically begins replaying these incomplete loops.
Personality also plays a role in how often this happens. Individuals who are highly analytical or show obsessive traits often get earworms more frequently.
Because their minds are wired to focus heavily on patterns, they find it much harder to shake off a repetitive tune once it takes hold.
Easy ways to clear the noise
Fortunately, cognitive science offers solutions to break the loop. One of the easiest methods involves a simple stick of chewing gum.
A study by researchers at the University of Reading discovered that the physical act of chewing interferes with the brain’s ability to imagine sounds.
Dr Phil Beaman, who led the study, explained that an earworm “may be a form of involuntary musical memory” that relies on the same pathways used to speak or sing mentally.
When a person chews gum, they tie up the motor planning systems needed for inner speech. This simple action makes it difficult for the brain to keep the mental music playing.
If gum is unavailable, engaging the brain in a moderately difficult task can help. Solving a crossword puzzle or an anagram works well.
The trick is to find a task that is not too easy, which allows the mind to wander back to the song, and not too hard, which causes a person to give up.
Finding that perfect mental balance successfully overrides the loop and restores quiet.
