Cigna is joining forces with basketball legend Earvin "Magic" Johnson to support mental health using the power of music.
The insurer and Johnson will release a collaborative album later this month titled "Magic Sounds," which includes multiple tracks that lean on techniques like binaural beats and autonomous sensory meridian response to support relaxation, focus and stress management.
The first song, "Bounce," is designed for a gym playlist, with high-energy beats that aim to boost mood and help people amp up their workouts to relieve stress. The song is available now, and the full album will be released on Nov. 14.
Johnson told Fierce Healthcare in an interview that people across the country are struggling with their mental health, and he wanted to use his platform to help. Music has helped him get ready for a big game, business opportunities and important trips, so it made sense as a place to start.
"When I'm trying to make a big decision, what do I turn to? Music to help me calm myself down so I can think clear and to make the right decision in my everyday business," Johnson said.
The hall-of-famer has been a longtime spokesperson and partner with Cigna, and they brought the clinical know-how to the project. The insurer tapped clinical experts and music therapists to determine the effective composition for each track.
The tempo, frequency and instrumentation are based on an array of peer-reviewed studies on efficacy. For example, a song that aims to reduce anxiety and promote focus includes slow instrumentals without lyrics and birdsong, while a track designed to support sleep instead leans on binaural beats and ambient and nature sounds.
Stuart Lustig, M.D., national medical executive for behavioral strategy and product design at Cigna Healthcare, told Fierce that binaural beats, for instance, play slightly different frequencies in each ear at the same time. And the brain can perceive these sounds in ways that align with different brain waves.
This type of audio has been proven to be useful in relaxing patients before surgery, for example, he said.
"So there are different of these low-frequency waves that are associated with different kinds of brain states—alertness, concentration, relaxation and so forth—and so that's kind of the science that we've tried to incorporate into this," Lustig said.
Despite how common behavioral and mental health challenges are, these needs are still frequently stigmatized. Johnson said that seeing athletes and other public figures speaking openly about the challenges they face is a critical tool to reach people in need.
For instance, he's made efforts to go into schools and speak to kids about their struggles. Challenges around youth mental health were already ramping up before the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated them significantly, data show.
Johnson said a listening ear is often enough to help these young people open up, which then paves the way for them to receive real help.
"We're just there to help, and also we're just there to listen," he said. "Sometimes young people just want somebody to listen to them."
Part of the calculus in addressing that stigma through the project is that it's free and delivered through an avenue that basically anyone is already comfortable with: music. Lustig said that while the album is not going to replace a therapist or medical intervention for a patient that needs it, it could serve as a critical first step.
Having a familiar and relatable face like Johnson attached to the initiative also helps open that door, he said.
"Music is a way to really bridge the gap between what they need and what they can actually get for help," Lustig said. "And it's not a substitute, obviously, for a professional psychotherapist if you need that to help with anxiety or help relax, but for many people, it is a big step forward that is not stigmatizing."
Johnson added that there's also plenty of room for the two to build on this work and continue to find new ways to reach patients who are struggling.
"Remember that this is coming from our hearts," he said. "How do we help people at a time that people are crying out for help? That's the key, right? They're crying out for help, and we're here to try to help them."