High-Flying Tunes: The Best Music to Accompany Your Skydiving Adventure

On a tandem skydive, you can’t wear headphones. Not on the plane, not in freefall, not under the parachute. Your music happens on the drive to the dropzone, in the hangar while you wait, and on your jump video afterward. The playlist below is built around those three moments, with every song checked so you can find it on any streaming app.

Why no earbuds on a tandem

Dropzones are firm about this. Skydive Carolina calls it “a hard-and-fast no” for tandem students, and gives three reasons:

• You have to hear your instructor. They’ll give you directions in the plane, at the door, in freefall, and again right before landing, when you need to lift your legs on cue.
• You wouldn’t hear it anyway. You fall at about 120 mph. The wind noise drowns out normal earbuds unless you crank them loud enough to hurt your ears.
• They won’t stay in. An earbud that pops out at 120 mph is gone, and it could hit your instructor in the face on the way.

Licensed skydivers sometimes listen on the plane ride up, but per Skydive Key West, they pause it before exit altitude. Once you’re on your own license, your dropzone’s rules still apply.

The drive in: calm the nerves

Most people are more nervous in the car than in the plane. A tandem day usually means 2 to 4 hours at the dropzone, with paperwork, a training talk of under 30 minutes, and a lot of waiting on weather and plane loads. Start that day calm.

• “Weightless,” Marconi Union. Made with sound therapists from the British Academy of Sound Therapy. It starts around 60 beats per minute and slows to about 50, and it topped a small Mindlab International test of relaxing tracks. Eight minutes of slowing your breathing down.
• “Breathe,” Télépopmusik (with Angela McCluskey). Soft, slow electronic track from 2001. The title is good advice too.
• “Clair de Lune,” Claude Debussy. Five quiet minutes of piano.
• “The Wind,” Cat Stevens. Under two minutes, just guitar and voice, from Teaser and the Firecat (1971).
• “Weight of Love,” The Black Keys. The slow-burning, almost seven-minute opener from Turn Blue. It builds, so it works as you pull into the parking lot.

The hangar: get your energy up

Many dropzones play music in the hangar or packing area. Skydive Key West tells students to “crank up the tunes prior to your jump” as much as they want. If you’re waiting on your own phone, here’s the turn from calm to ready.

• “Jump,” Van Halen. The obvious one, and it earns its spot. That synth riff is the sound of saying yes.
• “Jump Around,” House of Pain. 1992, and still the fastest way to get a group of nervous friends bouncing.
• “Eye of the Tiger,” Survivor. A little corny. It still works.
• “Don’t Stop Me Now,” Queen. Freddie Mercury compares himself to a rocket ship in this one, which is close enough.
• “Thunderstruck,” AC/DC. The guitar intro alone will raise your heart rate.
• “Can’t Hold Us,” Macklemore & Ryan Lewis (with Ray Dalton). Fast, loud, and built for a crowd.
• “Uptown Funk,” Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars. For when you need to shake off the nerves rather than pump them up.

Your jump video: the songs that fit each part

This is where music and skydiving really meet. If you buy a video package, many dropzones film and edit it, and some let you pick the soundtrack. Skydive Key West’s tip: line up the beat drop with the exit shot, the moment you leave the plane. Ask your dropzone how they handle music before you jump; policies differ, and some use their own licensed tracks. If you’re cutting it yourself, here’s what fits each part of the jump.

The plane ride (10 to 15 minutes)

The climb to altitude takes 10 to 15 minutes. On video it’s the nervous grin, the thumbs-up, the door opening. You want something that builds.

• “Levels,” Avicii. The long build-up and the drop are made for a door-opening shot.
• “Dreams,” Beck. Bright, funky, and moving forward. The 2015 single, later on his album Colors.

Freefall (30 to 60 seconds)

From about 14,000 feet, you get roughly 60 seconds of freefall; from 9,000 feet, closer to 30. That’s not long on video, so pick a song whose best part hits right away.

• “Free Fallin’,” Tom Petty. Yes, it’s slow. That’s the joke, and it plays well over a smiling freefall shot.
• “Killing in the Name,” Rage Against the Machine. If you want the opposite: loud, heavy, and angry in a good way.
• “Thunderstruck” or “Jump” from the hangar list both work here too.

Under the parachute (5 to 7 minutes)

The canopy opens around 5,000 feet, the noise stops, and you float for 5 to 7 minutes. Many instructors let you steer for a bit. This part of the video wants space and quiet.

• “Here Comes the Sun,” The Beatles.
• “Somewhere Over the Rainbow / What a Wonderful World,” Israel Kamakawiwoʻole. Just a ukulele and that voice.
• “A Sky Full of Stars,” Coldplay. Bigger and brighter, if your canopy ride is at sunset.
• “Weightless” from the drive-in list. You bookend the day.

Landing and the walk back

Feet down, big hug, the photo with your certificate. Go loud.

• “We Are the Champions,” Queen.
• “Celebration,” Kool & the Gang.
• “Jumpin’ Jack Flash,” The Rolling Stones.
• “Confident,” Demi Lovato. The 2015 title track, all horns and drums.

The drive home: coming down

The adrenaline wears off on the way home, and a lot of first-timers feel tired and a little quiet. That’s normal. Slower songs fit.

• “Where Is My Mind?,” Pixies. About as good a description of the feeling as any song title.
• “How to Disappear Completely,” Radiohead. Strings and floating guitars from Kid A (2000).
• “The Scientist,” Coldplay.
• “Lua,” Bright Eyes. Just Conor Oberst and a guitar. Quiet enough for the last hour of the drive.

What to do next

• Build two short playlists: one calm (for the drive in), one loud (for the hangar). Download them, because many dropzones sit at small rural airports where cell signal can be weak.
• Leave the earbuds in the car or your locker before you suit up.
• If you’re buying video, ask at check-in whether you can pick the song.
• Pick your exit-shot song before the jump. When the video arrives, you’ll know exactly where that beat drop goes.

Related: Defying Gravity: The Intricate Physics Behind Skydiving and the Art of Freefall · Skydiving and Film: The Most Iconic Skydiving Scenes in Movies · Leap of Faith: Skydiving and Religion – Perspectives from Different Faiths

Photo by ELG21 on Pixabay.