background music

noun

1. music, often recorded, intended to provide a soothing background, usually played over loudspeaker systems in public places, as railway stations or restaurants.
2. music composed specifically to accompany and heighten the mood of a visual production, as a movie.

Word History and Origins

Origin of background music¹

First recorded in 1925–30

Example Sentences

As with the PlayStation 5, certain Xbox games may play music or play other sound effects that interfere with your background music app, though the ones we’ve tested mute their own sounds accordingly.

From Popular-Science

When Biles took to the beam, the crowd, as it were, went silent save for the soft background music in the building, only erupting in cheers toward the end of her routine with each completed skill.

From Time

Maybe it has something to do with the frictionless experience being sold by music streaming services, where the “chill” aesthetic has forced today’s pop stars to reconsider their work as background music.

From Washington Post

The harder you listen for that answer, or for any kind of answers, the more one song melts into the next, until everything feels like background music, until his grievances become an ambiance, and that’s American all the way.

From Washington Post

At Vector Marketing, we experienced a huge spike in brand awareness thanks to a deceptively simple TikTok video featuring our product, a clay Baby Yoda head, and annoying background music.

From Search Engine Watch

Yorke and Godrich know how to make all this fiddling about sound pretty good, even if just as background music.

From The Daily Beast

During an IRS “scandal” hearing in which he rebuked Lois Lerner, he even added some heroic background music.

From The Daily Beast

When they exceeded that goal, she read a lengthy portion of the book, aided by romantic background music.

From The Daily Beast

Complete with stilted dialogue and cringe-worthy background music, the whole thing would be laughable were it not so terrifying.

From The Daily Beast

Fiddling while Rome burned at least provided background music.

From The Daily Beast