Dancing is a fun activity that most people partake in. Whether it’s a quick shimmy of the shoulder or a full, choreographed dance, it is an enjoyable experience for everyone. While dancing can be a fun activity, it is not something that you can do to every tune. Some songs make you want to dance more than others, while some don’t even provoke a response from your body to move (some songs just aren’t meant for boogying). While studying for my exams, I always notice that I cannot play certain playlists because the songs lead me to bop my head too much and I end up getting distracted. This leads to me changing my playlist with songs that are a bit slower paced. Having this realization made me curious about why we feel the urge to dance sometimes. Does it just solely have to do with the type of music and its composition, or does our brain also play a role in interpreting this music as something that needs to be danced to?
A study conducted in 2024 found that the urge to “groove” has to do with the sensorimotor cortex. In this study, A stimulus of 12 melodies with a 2Hz beat were created with 3 variants being derived from each in order to vary their level of rhythmic predictability (syncopation) (Arnaud Zalta et al, 2024). Participants were also asked to rate the groove for each melody through an online survey where they expressed how much each melody moved them to dance and to reproduce the rhythm of the dance step they would naturally produce when listening to the melodies by tapping with their index fingers on the computer keyboard. When participants were asked to replicate their dancing while listening to the melodies, most of them moved to the 2-Hz beat confirming that movements tend to be synchronized with the beat of the music (Arnaud Zalta et al, 2024). Researchers’ findings confirmed previous findings that moderately syncopated melodies induce the strongest desire to move (Dolan, 2024). So, if the melody is predictable, but a bit complex as well, people are more likely to feel the need to dance.
Fig. 1. Syncopation (blue) and the feeling of groove (red) were shown here using MEG while the participants listened to the melodies. Groove is better coded in motor areas of the brain and syncopation in auditory areas.
The results of this study showed that the need to “groove” comes from a balance in predictability and complexity in melodies meaning that when we hear a song that is relatively different, but that can also be somewhat deciphered, we tend to feel the urge to dance more as compared to songs that have a more complex or simple melody to them. The participants showed unique neural responses when listening to the syncopated melodies with the left sensorimotor cortex playing a major role. This area of the brain showed increased engagement when participants listened to melodies that caused them to dance. The sensorimotor cortex is believed to help link sound and movement and coordinates brain activity through cortical dynamics. Cortical dynamics help us integrate sensory input with future behavior outcomes (Pemberton et al, 2024). In this case, the cortical dynamics are referring to neural oscillations (brain waves) which are the ventral delta and dorsal beta waves. Delta waves are connected to beat prediction while beta waves are connected to coordination of movements. When listening to music, the sensory input is the music and the future behavioral outcomes are the dance moves you produce. The somatosensory cortex along with the cortical dynamics help coordinate auditory and motor information to help you process what you hear with how you move with it. In other words, it helps you stay on beat and groove with the rhythm.
Fig. 2. The way I set up my desk before I started working on this post so I could actually focus. I found this classical music playlist on Spotify to listen to.
While studying or performing other tasks that I need to maintain focus on, it is forbidden for me to listen to fun, upbeat music. The reason for this is simply that I get the urge to dance and move around. When this happens, it is most likely that the melody is moderately syncopated which elicits a response in my brain to move to the beat. These songs also increase activity in the sensorimotor cortex and along with cortical dynamics. This helps me coordinate auditory and motor information in order to move in sync with the beat. So getting groovy is a lot more complex than just finding a song enjoyable and fun. So, if you are ever trying to focus on a task while listening to music, but can’t because you feel the urge to move and dance, try listening to songs with a more simple melody that won’t elicit a strong response to dance as songs with a moderately syncopated beat.
Works cited:
- Arnaud Zalta , Edward W. Large, Daniele Schön, Benjamin Morillon. 2024. Neural dynamics of predictive timing and motor engagement in music listening. Science Advances [Internet]. [cited 15 Apr 2025]. 10(10). Available from: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adi2525
- Dolan, Eric W., The neuroscience of groove: Why certain rhythms make us want to dance [Internet], PsyPost, ; 2024 March 24 [cited 2025 Apr 14]. Available from: https://www.psypost.org/the-neuroscience-of-groove-why-certain-rhythms-make-us-want-to-dance/#google_vignette
- Pemberton, J., Chadderton, P. & Costa, R.P. Cerebellar-driven cortical dynamics can enable task acquisition, switching and consolidation. Nat Commun 15, 10913 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-55315-6
This was actually a really interesting topic that I also thought about writing about. I always wondered why it feels like my body is being pulled to dance when I hear certain songs, and it makes sense that the combination of predictability and complexity that occurs in a song would compel me to dance. It’s really hard to dance to songs that are too complex or predictable because you never really know what it’ll do, but also extremely predictable songs are boring and don’t cause that same inner incitement of dance. As for studying, I also find it hard to study to music that I like too much, but unlike you I continue to listen to it, likely hindering my progress.
Hey, Yoana! Whenever I listen to lyrical songs while I study, especially very emotional songs, I find that I flail my arms and act according to the tone of the songs, as if I were performing them on stage. I had to stop listening to music with words because I felt that at some point, it was going to affect my grade. I found it very interesting that our bodies essentially have an internal metronome that makes sure we stay on beat to whatever music is being played. Grooving at inappropriate times is a small price to pay to have a good sense of rhythm, in my opinion!