Do men and women listen to music differently? Over at the BBC, Lesley Douglas, who coordinates the pop music, says that men respond to music on an intellectual level, whereas female listeners have an emotional reaction to songs. George Lamb, a Hottie McHotterson "personality DJ", was introduced to BBC 6 Music's digital rock station, as a lure to attract the ladies. Says Ms. Douglas, "Men tend to be more interested in the intellectual side of the music, the tracks, where albums have been made, that sort of thing." (Apparently Lamb doesn't talk about track listings, production techniques and stuff like that.)
In the Times of London today, writer Caitlin Moran claims that while men love discussion music trivia in a "some secret nerd-battle", women, on the other hand, "prove that they love a song by either screaming: 'I love this song!' and getting up and dancing to it, or wailing: 'I love this song!' and bursting into tears."
Continues Ms. Moran:
Women make jokes about the band's hair, drink a shot of tequila for each time Rihanna sings the word "umbrella," and work out in which order they would have sex with the band lineup... That is, quite obviously, the more pure response to music. After all, no bands form with the dream of being speccily rowed over by trainspotting blokes in the no-fun corner of the pub. They form to make ladies drink, dance on tables, and want to have sex with them. On this basis, we can see that women understand rock music in a way men never will.
But while we can probably all agree that both women and men get emotional about music, is it true that women don't think intellectually about what they're listening to? As a music enthusiast, I started writing down the lyrics to Prince hits at a tender age; I love rare covers and random reggae/ska versions of pop hits and discovering that Neil Diamond wrote one of my favorite Monkees songs. I know I'm not the only woman who feels this way. Maybe I don't know what kind of amp Jack White uses or feel the need to frame vinyl covers. And what's so cool about intellectualizing pop music? Most people listen with their ears, brains and hearts anyway.
Are Women And Men On Different Tracks When It Comes To Their Favourite Music? [Times]
Related: BBC Chief: Male Musical Tastes More 'Intellectual' [Guardian]
6Music Boss Thinks You're An Idiot [The Lipster