I’m a researcher of popular music. I spend a lot of time thinking & writing about how people use & understand music, especially online. A colleague once described me as “relentlessly interpretative”.

(I’m not sure it was a compliment, but there you go).

I am currently working on the independent research fellowship Digital Flows, studying internet-based hip-hop music and culture.

Published March 2021

How Music Empowers argues that empowerment is the key to unlocking the long-standing mystery of how music moves us. Drawing upon cutting-edge research in embodied cognitive science, psychology, and cultural studies, the book provides a new way of understanding how music affects listeners. The argument develops from our latest conceptions of what it is to be human, investigating experiences of listening to popular music in everyday life. Through listening, individuals have the potential to redefine themselves, gain resilience, connect with other people, and make a difference in society.

Find out more at howmusicempowers.com or purchase directly from Routledge.

Some things I do