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Mental health disorders and suicidality are rising among adolescents and young adults (A-YA) while rates of treatment engagement remain notoriously low. Emerging research supports the potential of music-based interventions to improve mental health, but their efficacy remains unclear for A-YA. This systematic review evaluates the evidence on music-based psychosocial interventions to improve engagement in treatment and/or mental health outcomes among A-YA. This review was prospectively registered with PROSPERO and followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Twenty-six studies were extracted. There was heterogeneity of designs, populations, measures, and outcomes. A typology of music-based interventions emerged, which is characterized by combinations of three broad categories: 1) Somatosensory, 2) Social-Emotional, and 3) Cognitive-Reflective. Most interventions are Socio-Cognitive and Holistically Integrated (combines all three) followed by Socio-Somatic. All interventions involved Social-Emotional processes. Results indicate that most studies report significant effects for mental health outcomes related to social and emotional improvements and reductions of internalizing symptoms for adolescents. Few studies targeted young adults and effects on engagement were rarely measured. There is a need for more studies that use rigorous methods. This review illuminated a need for interventions that are developmentally and culturally tailored to subgroups. Finally, the field is ripe from more studies that apply experimental therapeutics to conceptualize, operationalize, and test mechanisms of change to improve the understanding of how and for whom music-based interventions work. Recommendations for embedding these innovative strategies into research and practice for A-YA are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Mental health remains a significant issue among young people in the US and elsewhere. Evidence of the beneficial role Hip Hop-based approaches can play in this space is growing. The value of such approaches centers on links to community, culture, and the therapeutic potential of practicing certain Hip Hop elements. Yet, while there has been a steady growth in Hip Hop-based approaches, little work has explored how they can overlap, complement, or reinforce each other. In response, this article explores the theoretical synergies between two established Hip Hop-based models – "Hip Hop and Empowerment" (HHE) and "Therapeutic Beat Making" (TBM) – to offer an integrated approach that draws on the complementarity between and uniqueness of each. Findings: Authors identify an integrated HHE–TBM model for supporting youth mental health which forefronts sense of community, cultural relevance, social justice, and empowerment. Authors outline a practice model, which leverages the best of activities, reflections, and discussions, and indicate its potential in working adaptively with diverse communities of young people. Applications: When engaging Hip Hop for therapeutic means, whether for health promotion or complex therapy, it is a dynamic, creative, culturally sensitive, regulating, and developmental means for finding common ground and creating rapport. It bridges creative and insight-oriented practices. It embraces the ability to generate emotional responses from creating and analyzing music, including esthetic emotions (i.e. appreciation (of qualities)), utilitarian emotions (i.e. functional, motivational, relevant to immediate well-being, goal-oriented), and epistemic emotions (i.e. gained knowledge or insight, awareness). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]