UMG Apple Music announce sound therapy audio wellness collection

Photo Credit: Apple Music

Apple Music teams up with Universal Music Group to introduce Sound Therapy, an audio wellness collection to help listeners relax, focus, or sleep.

Available exclusively on Apple Music, Sound Therapy is designed to blend songs subscribers already know and love with special sound waves made to enhance users’ daily routines, while retaining the artist’s original vision. Backed by research and powered by Universal Music Group’s (UMG) proprietary audio tech, Sound Therapy uses sound waves, psychoacoustics, and cognitive science to help listeners relax or focus the mind.

“For years, elevating music’s role in health and wellbeing has been a strategic priority for UMG, linked to a potentially significant commercial opportunity, as well as something that our Chairman and CEO, Sir Lucian, and the entire management team, are passionate about,” said Michael Nash, UMG’s EVP & Chief Digital Officer.

“Given Apple’s leadership at the intersection of health and technology, the launch of Sound Therapy represents an important validation of our innovative, science-led Sollos initiative. We look forward to working closely with the team at Apple to expand the ways that music can be harnessed to improve the wellness benefits for its users.”

The collection was crafted by a team of producers, scientists, and audio engineers at Sollos, a music-wellness venture incubated within UMG. Sound Therapy features extended, instrumental, and reimagined versions of popular tracks from artists such as Imagine Dragons, Katy Perry, Kacey Musgraves, Ludovico Einaudi, Aurora, Jhené Aiko, Chelsea Cutler, and Jeremy Zucker.

Sound Therapy features three categories—focus, relax, and sleep. Songs have been enhanced with auditory beats or colored noise to help encourage specific brain responses. Gamma waves and white noise—a whoosh-like combination of every sound frequency—may help with focusing; theta waves could aid in relaxation; and delta waves and pink noise—a gentler, deeper variation akin to rain or wind—might assist in a better sleep.

Sound Therapy arrives on the heels of the new Apple Music Chill radio station, created to serve as a sanctuary of sound listeners can turn to throughout their day to seek refuge. The station’s programming is a continuous flow of chill highlights across genres, interspersed with mindful moments meant to remind listeners to make the time to find center and calm.

“Every day, people around the world make Apple Music part of their daily routine, and we’ve seen incredible engagement around our personalized mood playlists and the new Apple Music Chill radio station,” said Rachel Newman, Apple Music’s co-head. “Now, with Sound Therapy, we’re proud to work alongside UMG and Sollos to bring a new listening experience to Apple Music—one that’s grounded in artistry, shaped by innovation, and designed to support wellness.”

As part of its commitment to enabling users to lead healthier, more active lives through offerings like Apple Watch, HealthKit, and Apple Fitness+, Apple will work closely with Sollos and UMG to further establish scientific evidence supporting music and audio for improved wellbeing. Sound Therapy is designed to support a person’s overall wellbeing and is not intended to treat any medical condition.