Music In Me

We woke up and began to chat about anything we could possibly think of. I asked him what time were his parents leaving. He told me he wasn’t sure but sometime soon. We were lying in his bed and I desperately wanted to avoid running into any parents on my way out (this was years ago). Anxious to kill some time we continued talking. He mentioned to me how his younger brother would sometimes play some rock on the stereo first thing in the morning. Or at times he would play some reggae like Bob Marley. He went further on to explain, depending on what type of music was playing, everyone’s attitude was affected by it each morning. Or vice versa, depending on what attitude he was in that particular morning determined the style of music he decided to play. I never thought about music that way before.

               My favorite type of music would have to be conscious rapper’s or hip hop. Lyrics can be so powerful and unique when the music is under the radar like underground hip hop. There’s always a time and place for some R & B, usually when I’m in love. I also enjoy rock, oldies, and everything else in between. When it comes to favorite music, or movies I hate to answer that question. There’s so much out there that I haven’t been exposed to yet, it truly frustrates me. I want to hear it all. It’s like there’s not enough hours in the day. My ultimate favorite undeniably is hip hop. I love great hip hop, not the mainstream stuff on M.T.V or B.E.T., more like the underground struggling artist. Their vocabulary and lyrics are on an entirely different level. I love the stories and struggles that come to light in hip hop. I love the conscious rapper that expresses meaning or a moral in his messages. I love the style.

               I listen to what reaches my soul, or what affects me at that time in my life. If I’m in love I’m definitely reaching for something like Lauryn Hill’s water. If I’m a bit feisty, I’m popping in Lauryn Hill’s fire. Usually I have to have a righteous meaning behind an artist’s lyrics, that’s the core of my preference. Although, I may dabble in some hard core stuff when I’m pissed I remain a huge sucker for music that speaks to the soul. Or some “man hating music” when I’m broken hearted. I used to always listen to Tupac as an angry teenager when I was into “bad boys” but grew out of that stage. I still love my Pac as an artist, but honestly I have not played any of his music in years.

               Most recently, I’ve been taking some interest in Jill Scott and India Irie. I think as I grow in my life so does my taste for music. I’m drawn to a more mature artist to activate my inspirational influence. Music is without a doubt a soundtrack to all of our lives, we simply put our own sound track together. One of my favorite artists, Lauryn hill, once said in an interview, something along these lines: listen to my album and you will know what’s going on in my life at that time. It’s the same with me, I cling to what is relatable. Listen to my IPod and you have a huge clue of who I am and what I’m going thru at that time in my life.

Experience with Music

Since I was a kid music always had a huge impact on my life. There are two memorable moments that I had with music from my childhood. The first one was with my Mom. It took place at home. One of those Saturdays where mom was up early, cleaning up the house, and of course blasting Dad’s radio while he was at work. Me and my sisters were playing in our room, when she called us to the front room. Her C.D., Mary Wells was Playing and the track: I have two lovers was called on for us to pay special attention to. As little girls in elementary school we listened trying desperately to figure out what the song was about. Without much life experience it wasn’t really relatable to our lives. As a woman now, I definitely get it. Dad wasn’t the perfect husband to our Mom. It's a little humorous now to even think of how our Mom was warning us about guys like my Dad at such a young age. The next experience that’s always clear in my mind was created while spending time with my Dad. My younger sister and I, again in elementary school, joined my Dad for the day for a drive to his work. He left us in the car for a very long time when we arrived to his work place. He had War playing in the C.D. player. Out of all the songs that played throughout the drive there was one in particular that clung on to our very souls. As soon as Dad was out of sight we put “Can’t take away our music”, on repeat and raised the volume. We could have listened and sang along to that song, for maybe more than a half an hour or so. It was such a brilliant and soulful piece of art! I think I speak for almost everyone when I say that music is like a sound track to my life. All my favorite songs have so much meaning behind them. Music can be the most inspirational thing out there that is easily accessible. It’s a universal escape to all people. Everyone has their preference and taste but it all works the same magic to us as individuals. There is healing power in music. There is an escape in music. Memories can be trapped in music. Dreams can be grown in music. Strength can be drawn from music. It has influenced me by showing me that all of us are really the same after all. We can relate to so many of the same things through music. We all think we’re so unique, and yes we are in some ways but when it comes down to it I realized that we all are very similar after all. Music has affected communities as a whole by expressing meaningful topics in music. For example, conscious rappers artistically call attention to moral issues instead of just entertaining for the sake of just dancing at a party. Music has crossed time zones simply because it can relate and reach so many people. Music has also crossed generations; we love our classics & forever loved artistic stars. Every time a song comes out that personally touches me I develop a new respect and appreciation for music. Music is always being created and evolving which a reason to appreciate it in itself.