WMG PRESCRIBES "MUSIC AS MEDICINE"

"Music as Medicine" to relieve anxiety and pain will be tested via a partnership between Warner Music Group and MediMusic. It’s WMG’s first music-therapy pact.

MediMusic will conduct testing as part of trials in the U.S. and U.K. in which they will deliver playlists from WMG’s catalog to sample groups, observing how participants respond to the music in real time. Beginning in Q1 of next year, the partnership with MediMusic will see such trials in hospitals and care facilities.

Using artificial intelligence, machine learning and participant data, MediMusic generates 20-minute personalized playlists and plays the music through a streaming device called the MediBeat. The playlist running order is designed to reduce the heart rate and the effect of stress hormones while promoting relaxation via hormones like dopamine and oxytocin. Initial U.K. National Health Service trials with dementia patients found the process reduced the heart rate of anxious participants by 25%. MediMusic is also developing models for dental surgery, among other avenues.

“At WMG we're focused on finding new ways for our artists and music to be used for good, to benefit society and to empower an ecosystem of partners with similar goals,” said Michael Baines, WMG VP, Digital Strategy and Business Development. “We’re thrilled to explore the transformative healing power of music in MediMusic's 'Music as Medicine' trials. We're just beginning to scratch the surface of what’s possible.”