A new emerging and green approach was used to synthesis nanomaterials. In the present study, we report the use of Yarrowia lipolytica supernatant in the synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs). During the synthesis, the reactional medium was subjected to different musical sounds (MSs) such as Quran sound, Tunisian music, and Flamingo. The obtained nanoparticles were analysed using UV–vis spectroscopy, which showed a peak near to 258 nm characteristic of ZnO NPs. The Fourier transform infrared spectrum was established to identify the functional groups that recorded absorption bands at 564 and 574 cm− 1 confirming the presence of ZnO NPs. While, X-ray diffraction revealed the high purity crystalline ZnO NPs and indicated the effectiveness of MSs on the crystal size by having the smallest size on Quran sound (20.9 nm). Moreover, ZnO NPs morphology was affected by the MSs that varied from spherical agglomerated to nanotubular shapes. These results reveal the successful use of MSs in the synthesis of smaller and controlled nanoparticles.