Chart hits ‘may be encouraging drink culture’

References to alcohol in the lyrics of chart hits by singers like Katy Perry could be encouraging young people to drink, according to new research.
By The Newsroom
Published 3rd Oct 2013, 01:01 BST

Nearly one in five songs in
modern UK top 10s mentions alcohol, a sharp rise from just a decade ago, said researchers from Liverpool John Moores University.

Professor Karen Hughes, of the university’s Centre for Public Health, said: “Health and other professionals should recognise increased alcohol promotion in popular music and ensure this does not reinforce binge drinking culture or contribute to already high burdens of alcohol on young people.”

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The figure from 2011, 18.5 per cent, is more than double the percentage of references from 2001, at 8.1 per cent. In 1991, just 2.1 per cent of songs referred to drinking, with the 1981 figure at 5.8 per cent.