Music and Me

Music is certainly very tricky topic with me. Mostly because I can't really say that I have a certain genre that I appreciate the most. One thing I can say for sure: If music defines the person, than I am a very outgoing, or colorful individual. Meaning that I am open to listen to anything, and there I am only limited to certain types of music (which I will explain soon).



Now growing up, I was exposed to many types of music. Artist such as Lauren Hill, Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, Mos Def, Talib Kweli, Bob Marley, Dead Prez, Sizzla Kalonji, I Wayne, 2nd others who fit those categories, so I could be exposed to conscious community cultures and music. The older I got, my mother revealed to me that art of rock music. The first rock song that I listened to (back in 2011) was Nothing Else Matters by Metallica. I was amazed at how cool it sounded. I knew of rock groups like Linkin Park (a friend of mine was listening to them on his mp3 player, but I wasn't really into it), but not enough to make references and such. Then I went to Billboard.com and tried to find more rock, and started listening to Coldplay, Incubus, and The Foo Fighters.

The Foo Fighters were the ones that really interested me. My mother says that the lead singer used to be the drummer in Nirvana (a group she used to listen to "back in the day"), but I guess he decided to make his own music. I first listened to Rope, then Walk, and The Pretenders. I saw that they were performing Walk on the 2011 MTV Movie Awards and was so ecstatic. I sang along with the song in complete enjoymentness (yes, I am aware that that is not an actual word). Thus, my passion for music was born.

Now like I said, I do not stick to one specific genre.Something else life-changing had happened. I was using my Facebook, and I pressed Like on MTV (can't say I had that great of a reason), and a video came up on my news-feed  It was the music video to the song Our Deal by Best Coast. There was some really cool people in the video: Alia Shawkat (Maebe Funke), Chloe Moretz (Hit Girl), Donald Glover (Childish Gambino), Shailene Woodley (George Clooney's daughter in The Descendants), iCarly, and it was directed by Drew Barrymore (too many references). I was watching the music video, and it sounded a bit strange to me. I was expecting a beat or something to begin, but it was just singing and a guitar. "Wait for it. It'll come," I kept saying to myself. I liked the video so much that I kept watching it repetitively, not knowing that I was humming the song out loud, and that I didn't hear not one beat start the entire time!!!

The best part is that I actually liked the song. It was catchy, and I liked the way it sounded. I immediately became interested and looked up the band's name and what genre it fit into. I know that technically it's not a reliable source, but according to Wikipedia, Bet Coast is indie rock and garage rock. I had no idea what this meant, so I looked up more groups that fit this category, or were similar to Best Coast (I only like some of their songs. Most of them are about a girl "wanting" a boy. I don't have a problem with that, but I do have a problem with that becoming my entire source of music). That's when I found the Beach Fossils and Real Estate.

The first Beach Fossils song that I listened to was Youth. The song only lasts 2 minutes, but it's still really cool. I really liked the use of their instruments and their vocalizing. After that song, I listened to Adversity, Daydream, What a Pleasure, Face It, and other Beach Fossil songs. I listen to them when I'm calm or if I want to calm down.

Real Estate has the same calming effect on me, if not more. I read that the band was from New Jersey  and they mention it in their songs. I don't have a problem with New Jersey, but since the music they make is cal and suburban (they literally  have a song called Suburban Dog), I guess it fits. I never known New Jersey to be all that much of a place to socialize (not as much as Philadelphia is). The first song I listened to that they made was Beach Comber. That song made me feel calm and optimistic about the future. The other songs that I listen to that Real Estate made are: Reservoir, Easy, Suburban Dog, Younger Than Yesterday, and others.

I also listened to a little bit of The Drums (Let's Go Surfing, and Down by the Water), but I stopped because my mother thought that Down by the Water was strange. At least it sounded nice with their passionate singing. And might I mention that there was a strong beat to it than expected. :-p

After those groups have entered my life, I was more familiar with was indie music is. One day in 2011, I heard Pumped Up Kicks by Foster the People (FTP) and loved it! I always waited for it to come on the radio again, but I went to YouTube whenever I got impatient or was tired of hearing the mainstream pop music (not too big of a fan). I Googled the song and found that FTP was indie pop (my mother said that it is an oxymoron, since independent music isn't meant to be popular). Today, I have FTP's entire Torches album (or most of it).

As of 2012, I was an avid indie music consumer (if that makes sense). However  one day my mother said that I don't listen to enough hip-hop. And when she says hip-hop, she means the hip-hop that doesn't talk about booties, gangstas, money, or the romance S word (that's what I used to call it when I was little). Like the hip-hop I used to listen to when I was younger. She really listens to different genres from Jah Cure, to R.E.M., to John Legend, so I decided to take her multi-genred word and find some hip-hop.

With the help of Pandora, I started my research. I couldn't find anything conscious and modern at the same time. Everything that she mentioned just seemed like her generation, and that doesn't seem too appealing for some reason. The most I would listen to that she suggested is Lenny Kravitz (Are You Gonna Go My Way and Fly Away are my favorites), and that's still not hip-hop.

So one day, was watching MTV hits, and Heartbeat by Childish Gambino came on and it was so catchy. I really liked the song (the only difference is that the song was censored on the television. I'm too used to asking permission to listen or watch things with bad words on it). I listen to his Pandora station, and his Camp album. Lupe Fiasco has also been apart of my music preferences, like the songs: Daydreamin', Beautiful Lasers, and Show Goes On.

Like I said, I used Pandora to find a lot of other bands and songs this year. The Black Keys was one of those groups, but I was more familiar with them when I heard Tighten Up on MTV hits (that's helped me find music too). Artists such as: Phoenix, The Shins, M83, Deadmau5, Empire of the Sun, Two Door Cinema Club, Ratatat, and some others.

I appreciate the different types of music at different times. In the summer time, I listened to country music. In Christmas  I listened to Christmas music. So really, it just depends on how I'm feeling at the time. I like using over-ear headphones (the ones that fit in your ear can be aggravating at times) because they really help me feel the music. Whether I'm listening to my mp3 player, or enjoying Pandora with my mother and little brother, I love listening to the many varieties of music. :-)