The dataset used for the study was 5,000 fairly recent and very popular songs. It doesn't include the vast majority of songs from traditional, folk, bluegrass, and other noncommercial genres. So, the results are tilted toward the handful of states where successful songwriters and musicians tend to live: New York, California, Texas, and Tennessee. Those states are the ones in which music is big business. The Eagles lived and recorded in California. They sure as hell weren't going to write a song called "Hotel Rhode Island".

Also, exactly what constitutes mention of a state? Does the state's name have to be mentioned verbatim, or can it be implied by mention of a prominent city within that state? "If you're going to San Fransisco," you've gotta go to California. It ain't in Alabama!