Do you hear / listen to lyrics when you listen to songs?

[JoBrodie]

I don't hear lyrics when I listen to songs (or rather I don't attend to them) and have no idea what the singer is singing about unless I have the lyrics in front of me or someone tells me what the words are, or I pay more attention. I just hear the sound - the melody of the song, timbre of the instruments, production etc.

It seems that there's a distinct split between lyrics-hearers and non-hearers, the topic has come up on other forums but I didn't find a thread on Mumsnet about it so I thought I'd ask here.

If you do hear lyrics are you making an effort to hear them or does it come naturally? Are lyrics important to your enjoyment of the song? (For me they make no difference).

I don't know if it's a subject that's been researched (I had a cursory glance on PubMed, but not really sure if that's the right place or what to look for) but I'm curious to know if the ways in which people experience music are to do with the way the brain is hard-wired, or differences in auditory processing, or even just earliest exposure to musical styles and current preferences.

I'm a bit like Alan Partridge in this scene where he clearly has no idea what the song Sunday Bloody Sunday is about :)

"...really encapsulates the frustration of a Sunday..."

Jo

Really struggle to hear lyrics. I'm autistic and process auditory input differently to most people. My theory is that most neurotypical people have brains wired to prioritise speech over other sounds.

My brain gives equal priority of processing to every sound - no matter how irrelevant. In some situations this can be a disadvantage - in open plan workspaces I struggle to focus on the person sitting in next to me and speaking as my brain is also trying to take in every conversation and noise in the room - every footstep, every tap of the keyboard. Everything, all the time...it's exhausting.