A new government-funded study offers data-backed support for a long-held belief among cannabis users: pairing marijuana with music amplifies both the listening experience and the drug's therapeutic value.
Published in Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research by researchers at Dalhousie University and other Canadian institutions, and partially funded by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, the study drew on self-reported responses from 122 cannabis users who completed a 176-question survey.
Results confirmed widespread anecdotal claims: "most participants viewed the combination of cannabis and music favorably, reporting enhanced relaxation, improved mood, and increased feelings of connection," the paper states. Marijuana use was tied to "altered responses to imposed music in various settings and a heightened likelihood of using music during routine activities."
Ninety-three percent of respondents viewed the cannabis-music combination favorably, and 74 percent said they use marijuana more than half the time they listen to music. Majorities reported feeling happier (71 percent), more lively (71 percent), more relaxed (70 percent), less fearful (61 percent), less angry (54 percent), and more nostalgic (57 percent) when combining the two. Compared to a control group, cannabis users were more likely to incorporate music into daily routines like bathing, exercising, and preparing for bed.
"Cannabis appeared to amplify music's emotional impact, particularly in mood regulation, evocation of nostalgia, and integration of music into everyday routine," the researchers wrote, adding that "music may act as a meaningful emotional adjunct during cannabis use."
A notable finding involved therapeutic substitution: participants "frequently reported the use of cannabis as a substitute for pharmaceutical treatments for pain, anxiety, and sleep disorders, with music further amplifying these therapeutic effects." Cannabis reportedly replaced sleeping pills for 28 percent of users, anti-anxiety medication for 18 percent, antidepressants for 16 percent, opioids for 12 percent, and non-opioid pain medicine for 6 percent.
The authors noted "no significant differences were observed in overall music reward experiences with or without cannabis," calling the interaction "nuanced and context-dependent," and said the findings lay groundwork for further research into cannabis-music pairing as a tool for emotional and psychological health.
Olivier Valentin, an assistant professor of audiology at Dalhousie University and study co-author, said in an interview that "despite countless anecdotal reports, and despite cannabis now being legal and widely used across Canada, science still knows remarkably little about how it shapes the way we hear and appreciate music." He added: "People often assume cannabis changes music perception itself. Our findings suggest something more nuanced: participants didn't report major changes in how they perceived the music, but they did report that it became more emotionally meaningful. Cannabis seemed to amplify the emotional experience of music rather than the sound itself."
The research follows a 2024 Toronto Metropolitan University study on cannabis's effects on auditory experience, and a separate follow-up examining real-time music enjoyment at a cannabis lounge. A separate U.S. government-supported study this year found more than a third of popular hip hop and rap videos referenced marijuana in 2024, a trend researchers attributed partly to artists like Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre promoting a "chilled" lifestyle.
