Memory bumps across the lifespan in personally meaningful music.

Abstract

Some songs stay with us for a lifetime. Even decades later, a few familiar notes can unlock vivid memories. Yet the life periods from which these songs originate and their prominence across age and gender remain underexplored. This study examines lifespan patterns in music-related memory, focusing on age trends, gender differences, and the global presence of the "reminiscence bump", a peak in emotional connection to music from adolescence and early adulthood. While this phenomenon is well-documented in Western samples, its global manifestation, gendered dimensions and variation across life stages remains unexplored. Using responses collected from 1891 participants across diverse geographical backgrounds, we analysed the release years of personally meaningful songs. Results showed an inverted U-shaped distribution peaking at age 17, with men peaking earlier with a stable reminiscence bump into older age, while women showed a later peak and a stronger recency effect with age. This gender asymmetry, pronounced in older cohorts, highlights how age and gender shape the emotional salience of music. The findings reveal that musical memory is shaped by multiple temporal bumps - cascading (cross-generational), reminiscence (adolescence), and recency - each influenced by age and gender, offering new insights into how music gains emotional significance across the lifespan.