US traffic deaths jumped 15% during blockbuster album launches, study finds

Researchers from Harvard Medical School identified a statistical link between major pop music launches and a surge in US road fatalities, according to data published in JAMA Network Open.

The study reviewed 233,809 road deaths recorded between 2017 and 2022. It isolated the launch days of the ten most-streamed debut-day albums in that period—including Taylor Swift's Midnights, Drake's Certified Lover Boy, and Harry Styles' Harry's House.

Across those release dates, road deaths averaged 139.1 per day compared to 120.9 on surrounding control days. That represents a 15.1% increase, or approximately 18 additional fatalities per album release, totaling an estimated 182 excess deaths over the analyzed events.

Activity on streaming platforms spiked in tandem. Daily streams for the top 200 songs on Spotify rose from an average of 86.1 million to 123.3 million on release days—a 43% leap.

The authors suggest distracted driving as a potential mechanism: drivers unlocking phones, navigating streaming apps, or adjusting car infotainment screens to queue unfamiliar music while behind the wheel.

However, the findings do not establish causation. The dataset could not determine whether drivers involved in fatal collisions were listening to music at the time, and streaming logs do not distinguish between in-car listening and users playing music at home.

Source: habr

Study: JAMA Network Open