Grounding: Managing Reactivity In An Overstimulated World

In a currently archived video I posted on Instagram last year, I made a suggestion that everyone should meditate to rap music— and I still think I’m right about that. I realize that at first thought it sounds like a bad idea. How could anyone possibly find a sense of peace, ease, or relaxation through meditating with rap music?

Before I go any further, I want to make something clear about the intention behind this idea. The point of meditating to rap music isn’t to keep yourself overstimulated or overwhelmed. The goal is actually the opposite—to learn how to stay grounded in the presence of chaos. In other words, the practice is about pairing something that might feel intense, loud, or chaotic with calm, disciplined energy through meditation. With all that is going on in the world my hope is that by intentionally practicing calm within stimulation, you begin to train your mind and body to regulate even when things around you feel noisy, unpredictable, or overwhelming.

I don’t have any scientific proof to back up my frame of thought (although I’ll likely do a little research and add in what I find here prior to posting this), but the real gag is that not everything needs scientific confirmation for it to be valid. We are innately intelligent beings, and if we started being able to connect with our intuition more closely, I truly believe we would find our way.

"When we feel either understimulated or overstimulated, we physically cannot reason, listen, or think about anything else." - Jennifer O’Toole

As promised I did a little research on meditating to rap music I didn’t find much scientific studies or literature that specifically covers it. However, I did find research on rap music’s effects on the brain and on the benefits of listening to music during meditation more broadly.

Studies on music and meditation show that listening to music while meditating can enhance relaxation, improve focus, and help regulate breathing and heart rate. Music can also encourage the brain to enter calmer states associated with mindfulness and emotional regulation.

While rap music has not been widely studied in meditation research, I think meditating to it can help train minds across the world to handle chaos and uncertainty better. Why? Because you are pairing chaos (the music) with calm, disciplined energy (meditation). In doing so, when you are exposed to chaos in the world—whether through TV or in general—you may find that you are less reactive to stimulating environments and thus better able to regulate not only in the face of chaos, but potentially in the face of trauma as well.

Here’s a mini framework for how you could implement this strategy into your routine:

The R.A.P. Method for Meditation with Music

1. R – Rhythm: Focus on the beat.

2. A – Awareness: Notice your breath and body.

3. P – Presence: Let the lyrics guide the energy.

Choose your rap music of choice (I would choose something upbeat with a lot of bass and energy—think The Giant “Freestyle” by Chef Boy). Then meditate to it for 5 minutes, gradually working your way up to 20 minutes as you get used to it.

Then, to counterbalance the energy, listen to something a little more serene — think Pretty Thoughts by Alina Baraz.

I would say make a playlist with multiple songs starting with the intense music and ending with the softer tones.

Here’s a playlist I created on Apple Music as an example: The R.A.P. Framework

Remember, the point of this is to help you learn how to stay grounded in chaos, not keep you overstimulated or overwhelmed. So you want to be careful with this and notice how it’s making you feel before doing it routinely.

Try this 1–2x per week to train your mind and body, then come back to this post and tell me how it’s going (I’m genuinely interested).

Friendly disclaimer: I’m a licensed therapist, but reading this blog or trying any ideas mentioned here does not establish a therapeutic relationship between us. The information shared here is for general educational and wellness purposes only.