BY LYDIA DOSS

EDITED BY RYAN BIGELOW

As a freshman in college, there are many things I worry about: grades, money, friends; the list goes on.

Newly single, I did what any millennial looking for a date would do–download Tinder. After a lot of swiping left, I finally went on my first coffee date.

There was the normal small talk–“Where are you from? What’s your major? Do you like animals?”

Finally the question was asked: “What’s your favorite kind of music?”

I was stressed. What do you say in this situation? Is it too soon to tell him that my go-to shower tunes are all Taylor Swift circa 2008? I gave my usual response, “I know it sounds basic, but I really enjoy all types of music.”

Whew, that was a close one. He gave a similar response and the rest of my Tinder date was as mediocre as any.

Being the modern woman I am, I refused his ride home and awaited my Uber. My driver decided to showcase his Spotify playlist and I realized something: I hate techno-folk music. Yes, it exists.

It made me think about my response from earlier. Why had I felt so nervous to answer such an innocent question?

Amanda Denes and her colleagues conducted a study to find if we alter our music tastes to align with people we want to date.

In their study, “Don’t touch that dial,” they surveyed 159 volunteer college students from a large public university. Demographically, the students were 76% female and 24% male with an average age of 19.75.

Students cited that music taste is among the most important things to have in common with a significant other, however, individuals who liked one another were often selective or even lied about their taste.

David Steinweg’s study, “Do You Like What You Hear?”, studied intimacy in couples whose music tastes differ. 288 students in an entry-level communication class responded to multiple choice, close-ended, and open-ended questions.

They found at beginning of any relationship we want to be in, we tend to mirror our partner’s music taste.

While many similarities, including music taste, go into developing a relationship, it is usually not a deciding factor of the relationship. As they develop, similar attitudes, like music taste, matter less.

The better we know someone, the more they know our music taste, and the more likely they are to accept if you sing different songs in the shower.

Both studies concluded that although it is helpful to share music taste, the more a relationship develops, the less it matters.

Understanding all this, I headed out on my next Tinder date. The normal conversation began, and when he asked what kind of music I like, I had a different response, “You know, lately, old Taylor Swift has been my go-to shower jam.”

He laughed and responded, “Ironically enough, I just downloaded an entire Taylor Swift playlist on my Spotify.”

I should be honest more often–I think this just might work out.