Whether it's hip-hop, rap, pop or rock, much of popular music aimed at teens contains sexual overtones.
Its influence on their behaviour appears to depend on how the sex is portrayed, researchers found.
Songs depicting men as "sex-driven studs," women as sex objects and with explicit references to sex acts are more likely to trigger early sexual behaviour than those where sexual references are more veiled and relationships appear more committed.
Teens who said they listened to lots of music with degrading sexual messages were almost twice as likely to start having intercourse or other sexual activities within the following two years as were teens who listened to little or no sexually degrading music.
Exposure to lots of sexually degrading music "gives them aspecific message about sex," said lead author Steven Martino, aresearcher for Rand Corp in Pittsburgh.
Boys learn they should be relentless in pursuit of women and girls learn to view themselves as sex objects, he said.
The study, based on telephone interviews with 1,461 participants aged 12 to 17, appears in the August issue of Pediatrics.
The Recording Industry Association of America, which represents the US recording industry, declined to comment on the findings.