Apple + UMG Announce new ‘Pop Therapy’ Audio Wellness Project

Audio wellness platform Sollos is marking World Mental Health Day with a release of re-engineered tracks from major artists via Apple Music.

Today, audio wellness platform Sollos is marking World Mental Health Day by releasing a slew of re-engineered tracks from artists like Olivia Dean, Sam Smith, Shawn Mendes, Niall Horan, Jon Batiste, Chad Lawson, and more. Available now through Sound Therapy on Apple Music, the 151 new tracks—over eight hours of music—combine tracks from beloved artists with auditory beats, engineered using cognitive science to help listeners focus, relax, and sleep.

The songs are also available in the new Sollos iOS app, free to download in the UK and the US starting today. Listeners access Sollos music in the app by connecting an Apple Music account with an active subscription, and the first month is free for new users. Once connected, users can track their mood before and after listening and see a personalized list of their most impactful Sollos sessions.

According to the Mental Health Foundation, 73% of UK adults have felt anxious in the past two weeks, and one in five feel anxious most or all the time. This World Mental Health Day, Sollos is offering something people can easily build into their day: music from artists they already love, engineered to support how they feel.

A randomized controlled trial with over 300 participants found that 30 minutes of Sollos’ music with monaural beats—a type of pulsing sound created when two different tones are combined together—significantly reduced anxiety and improved mood compared to a control published in Frontiers in Psychology in 2025.

“World Mental Health Day is a moment when a lot is said about looking after ourselves, but it can be hard to know what to actually do. Most of us already reach for music when we need to feel better. With this drop, we’re giving people more music from artists they love, engineered with science to help them feel calmer, sharper, or more rested—and with the Sollos app, it’s now easier than ever to find the right music for the moment and see how well it works for you,” says Emily Ingram, General Manager of Sollos at Universal Music Group.

The release contains a diverse range of work, with curated collections featuring the latest from Olivia Dean and Sam Smith, along with extended remixes of hit songs from Niall Horan and Shawn Mendes. It also represents a huge step forward in the progression of Sollos Studios with the inclusion of a speciality commissioned meditation mix of “Always Know,” an original track from Jon Batiste’s new album, Monk Meditations. Further, it includes a unique collaboration with pianist and composer Chad Lawson, resulting in a complete reworking of his latest album, hush.

Each has been designed based on scientific research on the musical properties that support focus, relaxation, and sleep, and incorporates different frequencies of auditory beats associated with each of these states.

Sollos works in close partnership with Universal Music Group’s global roster, with over 250 artists already working with the company across pop, R&B, classical, soul, electronic, and more. Tracks are selected and re-engineered with full artist involvement, through a process that is transparent, artist-approved, and designed to protect the creative integrity of the original music.

Focus tracks use gamma beats, associated with attention, working memory, and cognitive performance. Relax tracks use theta beats, linked to reduced anxiety and improved mood. Sleep tracks use delta beats, the slowest on the spectrum, designed to support deep, restorative sleep.

“Unlike a general playlist, Sollos curates music using scientific literature on how features such as tempo and harmonic structure influence our nervous system and psychological state, then blends in auditory beats to support focus, relaxation, and sleep. Crucially, we then test our music with scientific research, conducting and publishing studies to check that it works,” shared Dr. Tara Venkatesan, Director of Cognitive Science Research at Sollos.

“Music is one of the few everyday experiences that can change how we feel within minutes, and people already listen to it every day. On World Mental Health Day, that makes it something easy and accessible anyone can add to their routine.”

Sollos Music can be enjoyed on any device, speaker, or headphones. Alongside scientific research involving control groups, Sollos also conducts user studies with listeners to evaluate the impact of its music. In its 2025 Listening Impact User Study with 140 UK-based participants, 91.9% felt calmer after a single Relax session, and 91.5% reported improved focus after a single Focus session.

The new Sollos-engineered tracks are available to stream now through Sound Therapy on Apple Music and in the Sollos iOS app, which is free to download from the App Store in the UK and US. An Apple Music subscription or free trial is required to access music.