Loudcasting: The Tyranny of Unwelcome Music

Have you ever sat in a restaurant or a lounge struggling to carry on a conversation because of incessant, unwelcome, and loud background music?

Do you enjoy Walmart parking lots with music blaring from outside speakers? Then, once inside, you are subjected to up-tempo muzak (and commercials) as you shop.

Have you filled your tank at a gas station only to be greeted by loud techno-sounds and ads blasting from speakers at the pump?

Have you ever been to a barber shop or hair stylist when it is impossible to relax and enjoy the personal pampering because of the grating music played in the background?

I like music. My tastes range from classical to folk rock to classic country. But I would never dream of imposing my music on others or subjecting those nearby with noise they may have no wish to hear. Yet something is changing. Unwelcome, overly loud, and intrusive music is now the norm. Some call it “loudcasting.”

There are a number of reasons why this is happening.

Perhaps the number one culprit for the growth of intrusive music, like so many other things that corrupt our society, is money.

Researchers have discovered that background music makes people spend more in stores and restaurants by altering their mood, regulating their pace, and manipulating shoppers subconsciously with sensory signals that can be programmed to encourage the purchase of more and higher-priced items.

In eating establishments, using the same menu and the same space, studies have shown that slow-tempo music increases dining time by nearly 25% compared to fast-tempo music. Conversely, faster music leads to higher turnover. The difference in outcome is driven entirely by sound. For managers, the right approach depends on what the establishment is designed to do; i.e., haute cuisine vs. fast food.

Research also shows that background music can affect how people assess taste, quality, and value. Music can make the same drinks and meal feel more high-end and the environment more refined. And vice-versa. The entire experience can feel more memorable—depending on what is played in the background.

Almost 100 years ago, Muzak Holdings invented and distributed pre-recorded music directly to subscribing businesses. There was no playlist to assemble and no station to select. The service arrived pre-packaged. The background music was played through dedicated infrastructure the company owned and maintained. Muzak pitched its product as a scientifically proven means to increase productivity and thus make more money.

Today, at least for people of mature generations, the word “muzak” is treated as a common noun. It is a synonym for background music. The jokes about soft, ever-present, boring “elevator music” or “dentist office music” are legion.

While this type of non-intrusive music/muzak still exists, something else is happening.

Have you ever been in a park, at the beach, or in a public space like a library or airport terminal when somebody plays their music—quite loudly—from their cell-phone or other personal electronic device?

According to the Pew Research Center, about 91% or about 325 million Americans own a smart phone. That is up from just 35% in 2011. The proliferation of personal electronic devices is changing our country in countless ways, including the ready availability of personalized music/noise.

Today nearly everybody has a music generating device that is only six ounces, has a screen that is six inches, and that fits in a pocket. Seemingly unlimited music genres can be had with a simple finger swipe. Many use earbuds or headsets to quietly enjoy their favorite songs. Unfortunately, others do not silence their device. They put their music (and phone conversations) on speakerphone for everybody around them to hear.

Have you experienced somebody in a coffee shop playing a TikTok music video while you are trying to enjoy a quiet conversation over a morning coffee?

Researchers have found that the COVID-19 pandemic loosened informal social policing and public etiquette. People took casual behaviors at home and carried those habits back into shared spaces.

Has anybody else been offended when sitting in your car stopped in traffic with your windows up, your personal space is invaded with the booming, pulsating, pounding of vulgar rap “music” blasting from a nearby vehicle with windows down?

Dr. Rachael Kent, a specialist in digital economy and society, told the BBC that she believes this type of behavior is “performative … a way to rebel. ‘I’m going to play music, watch stuff,’ that’s a way to express who you are, what your tastes are.” To this observer, it’s also impolite, immature, and simply bad-mannered.

According to a Pew survey, nearly half of Americans think our culture has become ruder and coarser over the last five years. In the same survey, nearly 60% of adults think playing loud music in public is unacceptable, 32% think it is sometimes acceptable and nearly 9% indicated that it’s OK. A 2024 study by an audio equipment manufacturer, found that 35% of Americans surveyed have listened to audio in public without headphones.

Have you ever been to the neighborhood pool when you simply want to relax, soak up the sun and read a good book but find it impossible because of loudly played music?

Faced with intrusive music, most people simply ignore it. They are conflict averse. Their natural instinct is to pretend everything is OK and not rock the boat. Others re-locate. Some people report the noise and other brave individuals directly confront the culprit/s.

If you are dealing with loud music in a public space, be careful. It is best to have the situation resolved by an authority figure. However, gym managers, librarians, homeowner associations and public conveyance personnel to name just a few are reluctant to confront and provoke. They commonly let violations of their own policies slide.

Are you tired of being in a sports stadium and the public address system takes over? It’s oppressive. Announcements, booming synthetic energy and fake excitement taking various musical forms are all layered into a seemingly nonstop decibel barrage.

Sometimes the sound volume is fixed and nothing can be done. For example, the front desks of hotels receive complaints about loud tunes but no one seems to be able to do anything. Movie theaters are challenged by patrons about the eardrum shattering volume of noise during the screening of coming attractions. Yet not even the staff can control the volume or the mix of sounds that pass for music or sound effects.

How come no one seems to be in a position to make the change that normal people want? Why aren’t common sense noise levels enforced?

Is it because we increasingly realize that complaining can have dangerous consequences? In just one example, a 78-year-old man was repeatedly and brutally punched in the face after he asked a man and a woman riding in the same New York City subway car if they would turn down their music. People have lost their lives after they confronted individuals about their music.

If the loudcasting is obviously disruptive, your legal recourse is based primarily on noise volume and public nuisance laws. In the United States, thankfully, people have the right to listen to whatever they want. But increasingly, personal wants are taking precedence over the rights of others.

Besides general annoyance, unwelcome excessively loud music can trigger health issues. Some studies link high noise exposure to extra stress, anxiety, behavioral issues, and trouble focusing. The most common cardiovascular effect of loudcasting is elevated blood pressure. Loud unwelcome noise triggers stress. The Center for Occupational and Environmental Health reports that exposure to loud sounds against a typically quiet background can be associated with heart disease, heart attacks, heart failure and even strokes.

Perhaps the most telling cause of loudcasting is the aversion of moderns to quiet. For many, the lack of noise makes them uncomfortable. They are seemingly incapable of spending long periods of time in silence and solitude. They feel awkward. I think many are afraid of introspection. They fill the void with noise. As a result, the rest of us are losing tranquility, and peacefulness in our environment, society, and in our personal lives.

We ignore the admonition from God, “Be still and know that I am with you.” (Psalm 46:10).

Cardinal Robert Sarah recognized this in his important book The Power of Silence: Against the Dictatorship of Noise. According to Sarah, “God is silence, and the devil is noisy. From the beginning, Satan has sought to mask his lies beneath a deceptive, resonant agitation.”

Sarah continues, “Our busy, ultra-technological age has made us even sicker. Noise has become like a drug on which our contemporaries are dependent. With its festive appearance, noise is a whirlwind that avoids looking oneself in the face and confronting the interior emptiness. It is a diabolical lie. The awakening can only be brutal.”

Our church fathers knew that noiselessness is essential in finding both yourself and God.

Loudcasting is another indication that the accepted ethics and behavior of yesteryear seem to have been replaced by today’s values that focus on the individual rather than the group.

Things that were once buffers for the stresses of daily life—such as a deep relationship with God, the sounds of nature, stillness, and meaningful relationships with others have instead been subsumed by our loud, in-your-face digital world and screen personas.

We should all frown on loudcasting. If enough people took it seriously, potentially it could be like “broken window policing” when police in New York City and other environs learned that visible signs of disorder and petty crime led to an environment that encourages serious criminal activity. Conversely, cracking down on petty crime like broken windows and graffiti led to a reduction in overall crime and much safer and productive environments.

As such, a crackdown on loudcasting and intrusive music might help to bring about an uptick in manners and societal harmony.

There are wonderful benefits to music. But we have lost a sense of appropriate times and places and respect for others.

There is calm in quiet. Individually and collectively, we have a right to it.