I have noticed that some people listen to music when they play in tournaments. Come on! They are usually young and in my opinion, naive. As far as I can tell they aren't very good either as I have never seen a master resort to this. Isn't a song in your head the last thing you want when you're trying to calculate?

Maybe I'm naive, but I'm not young and I listen to music a lot when playing online chess or working.

For me it's like white noise and I don't notice it after a while. It's less disturbing considering my environment of ringing phones, talking people or a blaring television in the background.

Deep, Sure go ahead and spoil my whole argument right off the bat. Come on!

Seriously, you sometimes listen to music, or usually? And it doesn't affect your play?

I'm usually listening to music, but then my rating's not great so take that how you want. I don't *think* it affects my play.

I enjoy listening to baroque classical or ambient electronica while playing chess or writing, though not at all times—mostly late at night when the world becomes a private place. 

I find vocals highly disturbing, distracting, and in most cases distasteful. 

Instrumental music to me is inductive to ratiocination, inductive to vision and accomplishes what I wish it to—an altered state, almost hypnotic. 

The powerful drug caffeine also aids in consciousness consolidation, though only to a point.  After that point, your nerves give and you need to sooth them with food.  For the rest of the day you are useless...  Much like happens with alcohol...

Music is perhaps best for me. 

Chess itself alters you consciousness bringing you into a hypnotic-like state of concentration, now that I think about it.

Everything is drugs...

Maybe the whole online experience isn't a good test since the environment is not similar to an over the board tournament and there are plenty of distractions at home anyway. Ok I want to hear from you OTB music lovers. Admit it, you suck right?

If playing otb tournaments,then it will be annoying,but then it will be their fault if they lose,but on chess.com no.

I listen to music when i play. I'm barely paying attention to it when I play anyway.

But your brain is probably pulling a double shift when you are listening to music.

It is because more and more people need, or can have multiple inputs while doing one thing. There are even many people now who can't concentrate without some noise or sound or anything on the background.

I listen to music all the time, and also when I'm playing chess, but not really paying attention to it. It's just that I like music.
And there is also kv448 sonata in D major by Mozart, of which poeple claim would have a good effect on thinking.

wel i like listening to music but keep forgetting to put it on !!is that good or bad ?

  No music, just laser focus mode.