The Emergence of Ear Porn

There's this thing... they're calling it A.S.M.R. or Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response.

Nobody seems to fully understand what this phenomenon is or how it works in the body. The scientists seem to be doing their best to ignore it unless they are conducting their research in secret. And so it's left to the sub-culturals, which these days pretty much amounts to youtubers. There is a vast realm of ASMR deep in youtube archives.

My own personal experience with this particular sensation started at some point when I was a kid. A young kid. I to remember at school, this female teacher leaning over me in class and reading the words on my paper under her breath, her finger-nail tracing the surface of the page and then slowly turning it. The sound of the page turning, the semi-inaudible whispering, it did something to me on a purely physiological level.. I felt like my brain was melting. It's an orgasm of sorts that can leave you drooling, but not a genital orgasm. This kind of sensation builds in the brain stem and drips down the spine with a deeply narcotic effect. It's a pleasurable tingling in the scalp that can overwhelm if you let it. At that age I thought it was just me; some weird wiring in my brain. Later, as a young adult, I occasionally shared my experiences with a friend and now and then met with someone who knew what I was talking about, but I had no idea just how wide-spread the phenomena really is.

One night, lying in my room, feeling out of sorts, I went searching the web to see if I could find anyone whispering soothing sounds and lo and behold, I discovered the world of ASMR.

Thousands of videos. Whole channels dedicated to each and every conceivable trigger sound. I spent the next few months investigating and exploring, learning more about my own specific triggers. I discovered I have a thing for soft spoken Russian women. That certain gum chewing can set me off or someone eating licorice. For real, I'm not kidding. You can go searching through Youtube; you key in the phrase ASMR followed by whatever – Soft spoken Asian Women Call center role-play - and just see what you find. Little Korean girls eating jelly right into the microphone because one of their subscribers just about melts into the sofa every time they hear it.

There are thousands and thousands of people out there experiencing this and yet no scientific, empirical data. Is it just too weird a phenomenon for the scientists to go near? Because personally, I want to know more. I want to understand why I start drooling every time someone's muttering under their breath while reading. Is it a frequency thing? A childhood memory getting triggered?

In terms of history... the name ASMR was coined through online discussion groups like the Society of Sensationalists who were formed way back in 2008, or the Unnamed Feeling blog started in 2010 by Andrew MacMuiris. These groups were formed to try and build community and with an aim to learn more about this strange sensation by individuals sharing their personal experiences and theories. And I have to say, I love that this whole movement was basically born and raised on Youtube mostly by the Y generation. Whatever you want to say about the Y Gen, they're not doing the same old shit with a different dress on.

So... what's next?

Anyway, that's enough from me. I had the pleasure of talking with Becca Dee, one of my favorite ASMRtists. We did a little skype interview, just to get her take on the whole ASMR thing. If you are interested in hearing her, drop into the video below.