Your identity is unique to you. The way you view life, love, people, the world--all of that make up your personal philosophy and that's what contributes to your personal identity.
Philosophies about life and love and happiness and adventures are as vast and varied as we are as individuals. Figuring them out, deciding how you want to look at the world, and how you want the world to look at you, is an integral part of the search for identity.
Googling quotes about those things may provide a glimpse into something worth exploring, so start there if you wish, but remember--we are, for better or worse, a gang of intellectuals. And to that end, we shall explore to depths a quick glance at quotes would never allow.
Many of you use music as a gateway. To sanity, to serenity, to solace and/or to solitude. Music, to many of you, is an escape from the harsh realities of teenage life.
So, now it is also going to be a tool in which you come to a greater understanding of how you see the world, and how you see yourself. I'm trying to ruin music for you--quite the opposite, actually. I am kind of hoping you'll get a clearer understanding of why you like music that you do.
Think about all the music you love to listen to. Specifically, think about the lyrics to songs you love. Now, I want you to pick one or two songs that adequately encapsulate how you feel about life, your life. Of course, like a quote, nothing can COMPLETELY "sum up" your entire life--I understand that. But many songs, either through explicit or implied messages in lyrics, can at least provide a concrete example of either what you want out of life, what you want out love and how you want to be perceived, taken, understood etc.
So, your task this week is to tell us about a song, copy a few of the refrains/chorus/passages, and explicate their meaning(s) to you.
First, try to look at the song objectively--from a purely lang-intellectual standpoint. That is, identify metaphors or imagery, hone in on concrete and abstract language, and try to analyze how the songwriter put together the lines to tell a story.
Why does one lyric come first? Why is that the chorus? Etc.
Then talk about what the song means to you, specifically. Try to pick ones that have some depth and that will provide a deeper understanding of your innate beliefs.
No one's ever gonna hurt you, love
ReplyDeleteI'm gonna give you all of my love
Nobody matters like you
She tells him "your life ain't gonna be nothing like my life
You're gonna grow and have a good life
I'm gonna do what I've got to do"
She tells her child that no one will hurt him and she will provide for him a good life. She talks a lot about loving her child and how she will treat him. She references to the old lullabye, “Rockabye baby on the tree top...” and instead saying “So, rockabye baby, rockabye
I'm gonna rock you…” in the chorus. She references the lullabye because that is a song that most families sing to little babies when they are rocking their children to sleep. The lullabye is a comforting song which is why Clean Bandit used it in their new and upbeat version of the old song.
The song “Rockabye” by Clean Bandit really makes me think about my parents and the things they say to me. My parents came to America together at 19 years old with no money or job or family to look after them here. They did not go to college or get a high paying job. My dad’s first job was a dishwasher, and my mom’s first job was a hotel maid. They came here with a backpack around their shoulders and love holding them together. Once they landed decent jobs, they had me. When I began growing up, my mom and dad would push me very hard about my grades and being a good person (ex.going to church, doing my homework 100% right every night, repeating assignments if they were not neat, etc.). They always tell me that they want a better life for me than they had, and they get very upset when I do not take advantage of opportunities they never had.They always try to give me the world even if they can’t always afford it. I will be forever thankful for being blessed with two of the most amazing people I can call “mom” and “dad.”
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ReplyDelete“But there's a hope that's waiting for you in the dark
ReplyDeleteYou should know you're beautiful just the way you are
And you don't have to change a thing
The world could change its heart
No scars to your beautiful, we're stars and we're beautiful”
This inspiring song “Scars to your Beautiful” by Alessia Cara shows every girl listening, either young or older, that you are beautiful just the way you appear to be. You do not have to change anything about yourself to be beautiful. This song is very powerful because girls nowadays, including myself, are so self conscious of their flaws and they worry too much about how they look in public. They are afraid they are going to be judged or they base what they wear around what people might say about them. So, I chose this song because what I want in life, is for every single girl on this planet to love themselves and to not give a crap what people think; this goes for me too. This passage from the song is the chorus because it is the main message that Alessia Cara is trying to inform people of. This song also touches on girls’ body image:
“She has dreams to be an envy, so she's starving
You know, "Covergirls eat nothing."
She says, "Beauty is pain and there's beauty in everything."
"What's a little bit of hunger?"
"I could go a little while longer," she fades away
She don't see her perfect, she don't understand she's worth it
Or that beauty goes deeper than the surface
Ah oh, ah ah oh,
So to all the girls that's hurting
Let me be your mirror, help you see a little bit clearer
The light that shines within”
This is showing that girls are willing to starve themselves just to be thinner or to look like someone else, like a celebrity. Alessia Cara touches on how we, us women, are set to so much standards and how we are expected to do and look like different things. So, Alessia Cara chose to make this song for the people that let comments get to their heads, to tell them to appreciate and to love themselves because they are beautiful just the way they are. She also uses the figurative language, metonymy, “..that beauty goes deeper than the surface” to show that your beauty is not just what is on the outside, it is also what is on the inside that makes you beautiful.
“Loving can hurt, loving can hurt sometimes
ReplyDeleteBut it's the only thing that I know
When it gets hard, you know it can get hard sometimes
It is the only thing that makes us feel alive
We keep this love in a photograph
We made these memories for ourselves
Where our eyes are never closing
Hearts are never broken
And time's forever frozen still”
In “Photograph” by Ed Sheeran, Sheeran talks about his undying love for his special someone. He implies that distance will never break their love for each other. In the song, he used photograph as a symbol. The photograph that he is talking about symbolizes their love. It symbolizes their memories together. Moreover, Sheeran uses hyperbole in this song. The first stanza is a hyperbole. Love is not the ONLY thing Sheeran knows nor it is the ONLY thing that’s keeping him and his special someone alive. Also lines, “where our eyes are never closing” and “time’s forever frozen still”are hyperboles. It’s impossible for us not to close our eyes, and time can never be stopped. In addition to that, the line, “And time’s forever frozen still” also consists an alliteration “forever frozen.”
The lyrics from the first stanza comes first because it is being utilized as a background information to understand what the second stanza means. The first stanza tells about Sheeran’s genuine feelings towards his special someone, while the second stanza describes THAT feeling by how he perceives their photograph (love and memories).
Every time I listen to “Photograph” by Ed Sheeran, I can’t help it but feel nostalgic. It reminds me of my childhood days when my dad and I used to be so close. We were the best of friends that bickered a lot, at the same time we were the definition of “partners in crime.” Most of the pictures I had with my dad were pure happiness and full of love. However, at the moment, our relationship isn’t really that great especially if it cannot be mended properly, since he’s all the way across the country. So in a form of a photograph, that is how I reminisce those happy moments and remember the bond that was once thought to be unbreakable. The times when there was never even a touch of awkwardness in our surroundings.
I am a hot head, and while I like being nice and fun to be around I have this switch that only flips whenever something rubs me the wrong way. I’m known to black out, to get so angry that I don’t know what I’m saying or doing. That has happened this year before when someone tried to bully a friend and I went off and completely lost it. I couldn’t just sit back and ‘ignore it’ , so I got involved. And many of my classmates saw the quiet black girl lose it. I hate being like that, I hate being mad to the point of jittering and tears and black outs, so after I spent my voice yelling at the boy- borderline fighting him myself- I sat back down and couldn’t even think straight, so I plugged in my earphones and cranked my music up to the highest volume. My thumbs were shaking I was so mad but I still knew to scroll down to the I’s and play one of my favorite artists India Arie. Of all my music I could’ve chose anyone, I have such a wide selection that I could’ve picked something completely opposite of her tranquil, neo-soul, acoustic melodies and really channel my anger. But instead I played a song called River Rise, and it calmed me down faster than I got angry. I grew up listening to India Arie, so I’ve always had her as a backbone in any time. When I needed to chill all the way down, or when I needed a little bit of self recognition of who I am and the women I’m going to be. She’s even helped me embrace being a black girl, and believe it or not I didn’t always want to embrace that. It’s necessary for me to have music as my chill pill, because I’m emotional and I always need an outlet for my sanity, and so the song I think speaks to me out of the many songs I have by India Arie, is titled Back to the Middle. The beginning lines of the song goes, She is, twenty five, spent over half of her life//So afraid to speak her mind, it's such a shame//Cause oh’ what a brilliant mind she has//And now she's been introduced to confidence//She doesn't see, that she is bordering on arrogance//When will she learn, to come back to the middle...this song is true to me because one I don’t like speaking my mind, and adults around me always tell me I need to do that more.
ReplyDeleteAnd while I’m trying to work on that as we speak, it’s important for me not to let my words and just who I am, get the best of me. I need to come back to the middle, as she says. The song is quite literal and more like a five minute piece of advice with music and vocals, but I can still try analyzing it. India gives the listener scenarios and she goes from reality to the extreme tail-end which is most times what happens when people lose themselves. The song is all about keeping balance in your life, not holding back but not giving to much to the point of self destruction. She does have a bit of figurative language I guess when she says There isn't any way, to avoid the pain//But it's getting burned, that's how you will learn//To come back to the middle. This can be poetic because of how it is phrased with rhyme in almost each line. And it is metaphor because when she says burned she doesn’t legitimately mean burned, she means really hurt in life, and most times that is the way we learn.
DeleteAs much as I wish I was, I am not the type of person that has a genuine connection with music. I don’t consider it my savior, and I certainly don’t use it as my escape. That’s not to say I don’t listen to it when I’m driving or when I’m cleaning my room, but I just don’t go to music in hopes of restoring my faith or confidence or any other emotion out there. However, I do enjoy the song “Fix You” by Coldplay, simply because I can relate to it.
ReplyDelete“When you try your best, but you don't succeed
When you get what you want, but not what you need
When you feel so tired, but you can't sleep
Stuck in reverse
And the tears come streaming down your face
When you lose something you can't replace
When you love someone, but it goes to waste
Could it be worse?”
I think that this part of the song speaks to a lot of us, because a lot of the time we are stuck in reverse, as said in the song. We all try our bests, but that doesn’t mean we succeed. A lot of times we get what we want, but is it really what we need? Probably not. Some of us are exhausted, but we can’t sleep, and that just makes us more exhausted. We are experts at losing irreplaceable things, as well as loving someone only for it not to work out in the end. And I don’t know about everyone else, but a lot of times I find myself sitting back and asking “could it be worse?”, and I’m sure I’m not the only one. The songwriter put together these lines in a way that the listeners are able to relate to them, and reflect on all of the times that they have felt those feelings.
“Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you”
These three lines of the song are about escaping the struggles one has endured and having someone there to help fix them. The “lights” are used as a metaphor for guidance on the path that one desires to reach. This particular part of the song is relatable to me, because I believe that if you allow it, there is always a way out of hardships, and that there is light at the end of the tunnel. So when you don’t succeed, when you don’t get what you need, when you can’t sleep, when tears are streaming down your face, when you lose something you can’t replace, or when you love someone but it goes to waste, there is a light at the end of the tunnel, and there are people that are willing to try and fix you, like me.
I remember when I was younger my gramy, and my mom’s sister would always tell me, “Stop trying to grow up, so fast”, or “I wish I could be your age again”. I hated hearing that because I wanted to grow up fast in order to become wiser.
ReplyDeleteR.I.P 2 My Youth by The Neighbourhood describes this notion perfectly.
“I was naïve hopeful and lost
Now I’m aware and driving my thoughts”
These lines shows the artist growth; from when he would trust and believe everything he was told to now; where he had been through life experiences which taught him not everything that glitters is gold.
“I’m using white lighters to see what’s in front of me
I’m using white lighters to see
R.I.P to my youth”
There is a superstition that carrying a white lighter will result in you dying young because artist such as Jim Morrison, and Kurt Cobain both died at 27, and at the crime scene a white lighter was found in their pocket. By the artist carrying a white lighter it represents him wanting his younger self to die.
To me, music is something that is listened to in the car, while cleaning, or blocking out your brothers. Music doesn’t have much value to me. Kaitlyn had written an occasional paper about Twenty One Pilots; she mentioned how she loves the band, and how much their music helped her through rough times. Music has never affected in me in such a way. A song has never summed up my life, or explained how I was feeling. I simply don’t get attached to music, although there are a couple of songs that stand out to me because of the message they portray.
ReplyDeleteMy first song is pretty typical for any girl, “The Climb” by Miley Cyrus:
“I can almost see it
That dream I am dreaming
But there's a voice inside my head saying
You'll never reach it
Every step I'm taking
Every move I make feels
Lost with no direction
My faith is shaking
But I gotta keep trying
Gotta keep my head held high
There's always gonna be another mountain
I'm always gonna wanna make it move
Always gonna be a uphill battle
Sometimes I'm gonna have to lose
Ain't about how fast I get there
Ain't about what's waiting on the other side
It's the climb”
The first 5 stanzas that Miley Cyrus writes explains everyone's life in general. She explains how she has a dream but doesn’t believe in herself, and continues to explain her uncertainness in the second stanza by saying “lost with no direction.” She finishes the stanzas by explaining how there's going to obstacles in life, the mountains, but you have to keep trying. The song is a reminder to keep trying, keep dreaming, and keep believing in yourself. Although I may not like music, I like this song, from a young age, it has encouraged to be the best I can, no matter what happens.
My next song, I was introduced to through the new Disney movie, Moana. “How Far I’ll Go”:
“I've been standing at the edge of the water
'Long as I can remember, never really knowing why
I wish I could be the perfect daughter
But I come back to the water, no matter how hard I try
Every turn I take, every trail I track
Every path I make, every road leads back
To the place I know, where I can not go
Though I long to be
See the line where the sky meets the sea it calls me
And no one knows, how far it goes
If the wind in my sail on the sea stays behind me
One day I'll know, if I go there's just no telling how far I'll go”
In the movie, the main character Moana, wishes to sail the sea, however it’s prohibited. Moana has a dream to explore beyond the island where she lives, and although she isn’t allowed to, she’s determined. The song is encouraging, it sends a message to leave your comfort zone and do things you wouldn’t except. It encourages people to chase their dreams, much like Miley Cyrus’ “The Climb.”
My last song is a little different, but portrays the same meaning, that is to follow your dreams.
“Hall of Fame” by The Script:
“You can go the distance
You can run the mile
You can walk straight through hell with a smile
You could be the hero
You could get the gold
Breaking all the records they thought, never could be broke
Do it for your people
Do it for your pride
How you ever gonna know if you never even try?
Do it for your country
Do it for your name
'Cause there's gonna be a day
When your, standing in the hall of fame (yeah)
And the world's gonna know your name (yeah)
'Cause you burn with the brightest flame (yeah)
And the world's gonna know your name (yeah)
And you'll be on the walls of the hall of fame”
If anyone actually knows me, you would know that I don’t want to be ordinary. This song has been inspiring for me, for that fact only. The encouraging tone of the song tell you to never give up, and that if you keep trying, you’ll be in the “hall of fame.” You’ll be proud of yourself. You’ll make something of yourself, as long as you keep trying, and fighting for yourself.
I hope that I see the world as you did 'cause I know
ReplyDeleteA life with love is a life that's been lived
So I'll sing Hallelujah
You were an angel in the shape of my mum
When I fell down you'd be there holding me up
Spread your wings as you go
When God takes you back he'll say, "Hallelujah
You're home" – Supermarket Flowers, Ed Sheeran
In an interview with MTV, Ed Sheeran revealed that this song was an Ode to his grandmother. The second line in the first stanza consists of consonances with the L sound: “A life with love is a life that’s been lived”. The second stanza is also an unfished chiasmus. It’s not a full on chiasmus because he didn’t mention love in the second clause of the line. In the second stanza he sings “You were an angel in the shape of my mum” to create a metaphor comparing his grandmother to an angel. An angel is usually connotated as heavenly and sweet and that’s what he thought his grandmother was. Also, the line “When I fell down you’d holding me up” is an exaggeration (hyperbole) because he didn’t literally fall down. He uses that to describe on the hard times he came across and she helped him get better. It would have sounded weird to sing something literal. Finally, the last line “When God takes you back he’ll say, “Hallelujah, you’re home”” uses metonymy: instead of heaven he uses home to make it personal.
This song just came out about two days ago and I already managed to listen to it about 50 times, not even exaggerating. Like Sheeran, I was immensely close to my grandmother. She meant the world to me and I also went to her if I needed anything. My grandpa died when my mom was 16 and she never remarried so we spent a lot of time with each other. She always mentioned how proud she was of me and how I made her life better. My relationship with her was great. When she passed away I lost a piece of me. I was devastated. In 13 days, it will be 10 months without her and I still can’t believe she’s gone. The first stanza I provided is what I want to do in life. Even though my grandpa died, she lived a wonderful life with her family and she loved it. She was the grandma that offered all my friends candy and money and talked to everyone and anyone. I want to live a life that’s been lived. Lastly, the second stanza is my grandmother now; in heaven being my angel. I miss her more than anything in this world. I wish I was biologically related to her so I could have given her some of my bone marrow. If me being in pain physically meant I could get one more moment with her, I would do it in a heartbeat.
This song also means a lot to me for the title itself. One of the last moments I had with her before she was diagnosed with Leukemia, we were at the local ACME and we admired the flowers there. They were Dutch tulips which was her favorite flower because not only were they beautiful, they came from her family’s country the Netherlands. I was having a bad day about two days ago, and when I went to my mom’s house after that day a bouquet of tulips was in my bedroom. I was in awe, I had chills, I was an emotional mess. It may sound crazy but I truly do think that was a sign from her saying she’s okay.
ReplyDeleteI love listening to music, almost as much as I love playing it. But I fail to fit the stereotypical teenager that listens to music to escape their problems and/or their reality. I don’t believe in escaping reality because dealing with it and working through the issues you might have is much more rewarding in the long run. When I listen to music I don’t listen for the possible connection I could have with the lyrics, I like to listen for the chord changes, instrumentation, the pattern in which the acoustics are played. That most likely sounds pretty eerie and strange, because I “look” that deep into music, but that’s the musician within me, and me just being a huge band geek. Although, there are songs I can relate to through their overall message.
“You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains
You raise me up to walk on stormy seas
I am strong when I am on your shoulders
You raise me up to more than I can be”
(You Raise Me Up, Josh Groban)
These lyrics give off a sense of imagery, listening to this song or just reading these words, it puts an image in your head. An image of someone you admire, someone that pushes you to do things you could never do on your own. Someone that when they’re by your side you feel like anything and everything is possible. A role model who whispers “never give up” into your ear whenever you feel like you’re about to. In my case, my guardian angel, my dad. When I first heard this song after stumbling upon it, I thought of him. He gives me strength, his strength, to do things I never thought were possible, to never give up. These lyrics contain idioms, one being “You raise me up to walk on stormy seas.” It’s not possible to walk on water, but this contributes to the message this song contains. That with the person who “raises you up” the most, maybe you can.
“I'm bulletproof nothing to lose
Fire away, fire away
Ricochet, you take your aim
Fire away, fire away
You shoot me down but I won't fall, I am titanium
You shoot me down but I won't fall
I am titanium”
(Titanium, David Guetta)
There’s a lot you could take away from this one stanza. When I hear these lyrics, sung so powerfully, the message “you’re invincible” pops into my mind. Physically, we’re not invincible, we’re human. Mentally, yes we are invincible. If you think otherwise, all you need to do is tweak your mindset and then you can be. These lyrics, logically, exaggerate a bit. The hyperbole being “You shoot me down but I won’t fall.” Obviously if that were a real life situation, you would fall, and depending where, you might possibly die. I can relate to this and most people should be able to. So many people are going to try and desecrate you till you’re nothing, hoping you’ll take things to heart. So many people are going to try to stand in the way of your successes, preventing you from accomplishing anything. You have to be invincible, preventing all negativity from getting to you. You have to be titanium.
All you sinners stand up, sing hallelujah (hallelujah!)
ReplyDeleteShow praise with your body
Stand up, sing hallelujah (hallelujah!)
And if you can't stop shaking, lean back
Let it move right through ya (hallelujah!)
Say your prayers
Say your prayers
Say your prayers
As a Christian (or more specifically a Catholic) sin is something that I believe we all have. In P!ATD's song Hallelujah he talks about accepting sin, and to stop moping about it. He begins the song with a paradox of not remembering a monument, in an unforgettable night. All of us have that day were the day is unforgettable except for that one moment you want to forget. He then tells us of his 'sins' like at one point were he was caught with “second hand lovers” as he euphemistically put it, and a time where he was drunk and insulted someone and to “ Stop thinking about The bullets from my mouth”. Then his chorus is a simple empowering assertion that tells that we are all sinners, but we still should praise the lord with all that we have.
The chorus and song came first because it can connection to all Christians whether it be Presbyterian, Eastern Orthodox, Protestant, or Roman Catholic. It reminds me that we can still bask in God’s good graces if we accept the fact that we sinned and live on our lives, because moping over the fact we sin all the time will not do anything.Also since I am a Christian/Catholic the song hit me a little more because I can get it's Christian-esque atmosphere.
“I still have too long a life ahead
ReplyDeleteJust to give up and drop all of these dreams
I just wanna try and fix all the things that I've left undone.”
I am a firm believer in that everything connects. These three lines are the opening to an anime song. It just goes to show you can find what you're looking for anywhere. The anime this song is based off of is called Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. I personally don't watch the anime but have heard good things about it. And the only reason why I even came across the song was when I saw a YouTube video of one of my favorite Youtubers performing it. If I could summarize the theme, in a nutshell, the message of the song is to live life to the fullest; accepting your mistakes and sins and moving forward in life with purpose. And that's something teens have always struggled with. And music is a gateway of freedom for teens to not think of stuff like that and this song is just another example of that.
This song defines my life because I've made mistakes in my life before like we all have and this song reassures me that maybe everything is going to be alright. Life will go on and you just have to stay positive and live with a purpose. Everybody has dreams and my dreams consist of fame and fortune and if I ever want to get there, you have to make decisions in your life that aren't going to be popular. But at the end of the day, you can really only look out for your well being. And I'm not implying that you to be a massive douchebag to get to the top, but rather work hard to earn the respect of the ones you care for or you are trying to let notice you. Life is short, so to live it to the fullest is essential.
“I've been a victim of a selfish kinda love
It's time that I realize
There are some with no home
Not a nickel to loan”
Michael Jackson’s, Man In the Mirror spreads the message of making a change in society. It's his most critically acclaimed songs because it started a conversation. The first four lines in the second verse stand out to me the most because you never know when it's gonna be your last day on Earth. And what if I do grow up to be a famous celebrity? I don't want to forget about the people that struggle with poverty everyday across the world. And it's up to us, including me, as a society to stay woke. Even when we grow up and become adults to always remember to be thankful for what we have been given, what I have been given. I'm fortunate for the life I've been given and these two songs emphasize my life described in music.
"And know that if I knew all the answers
ReplyDeleteI would not hold them from you
One of the things that I know
Is we told each other
There is no other way
Too much silence can be misleading,
You're drifting I can hear it in the way that you're breathing
We don't really need to find reason
Because out the same door that it came
Well it's leaving, it's leaving
Leaving like a day that's done in part of a season
Resolve is just a concept that's as dead as the leaves
But at least we can sleep,
That's all that we need
When we wake we will find
That our minds will be free"
In the song "There is No Other Way" by Jack Johnson, he sings about a relationship that he knows is coming to an end, but is too hard to let go of. In the chorus, he says that he doesn't know where things went wrong, and he wishes he did, but he does know that being apart is something that they never thought imaginable. In the second verse following the chorus, he explains that he can feel the distance between them growing. This verse follows the chorus because it is here that he goes on to say that there's no point in looking for the reason that things aren't the same, because as clear as it once was that there was a spark, it is now just as clear that it has burnt out faster than our days go by. In this same verse, Johnson then uses the metaphor "resolve is just a concept that's as dead as the leaves". Here, he is saying that their relationship is beyond the point of trying to work things out. And he ends his verse by saying that sleep is the only way to ease their minds. Here, he says this to create the image of the two of them laying in bed together with all these things on their mind, but instead just laying side by side, because they are still too afraid to come to the reality of what they have become, and instead decide to just ignore the issues they have and try and go to bed.
This song has meaning to me because my entire life has been this way. I've never been in a relationship with anyone that ended abruptly, or easily. Ever relationship that I have ever lost has been slow, gradual, and painful, getting harder every day to accept that all good things come to an end. This song expressed the feelings that I never felt like I could put into words. It voiced exactly how I felt, and exactly the way that I was: I was smart enough to know that I needed to let go, but I cared too much to give it up, and instead of facing the issues that I had at hand, I chose to sleep and pretend that they didn't exist.
Personally, I listen to music almost all day besides the hours I'm in school or unless I'm with friends. I listen to it while I'm on the bus,when im in the shower, studyhall sometimes, and I have music playing all night till the moment I get up. I don't always listen to music because it has meaning, but sometimes it's because I either feel alone or bored. Most of the songs I listen to are about relationships/love. I didn't realize this till like 1-2 years ago when I was looking through my playlist and I'm like wow most of these songs are all cute and about love or about heartbreak.I do have songs that are about motivation, confidence or my relationship with some of my friends or people I used to talk to. I can't think of any songs that have super deep value to me, but the closest song that has an over meaning to me is "My Kind of Love" by Emeli Sandé.
ReplyDelete"When no matter what you do, it's never good enough
When you never thought that it could ever get this tough
That's when you feel my kind of love"
* Emeli expresses a feeling of never being enough for anybody. I can relate to this because I've never felt like I was "enough" for anyone. I have times where I randomly start thinking about how i'm a daughter,sister, friend, and girlfriend to someone and at one point I've felt like I wasn't ever enough. I'm not the perfect daughter because I'm not the most smartest and I don't dramatically help my parents reduce the stress they have. I feel like I'll disappoint them at one point because stuff that makes me happy isn't what's "right" for them. As for being a sister,friend, and girlfriend I try my best to be there whenever I could, but of course I won't always be able to be there 24/7 and some things simply aren't in my control and at times I hold myself responsible for that.
"And when you're crying out.
When you fall and then can't pick your happy off the ground
When the friends you thought you had haven't stuck around.
That's when you feel my kind of love"
* This verse expresses how you'll have times where you can't pick yourself up and you'll lose people you thought you wouldn't. As many people know, I'm usually a pretty happy person to being with, I'm always laughing or smiling and if I'm not then I seem upset. My biggest thing is not letting people know I'm upset because I don't like sympathy of any sort, but every now and then people see how I can break down. My break down moments are usually when I'm alone and that's when too many things have gotten to my head. That's when I have nobody to fall back on. I eventually learned you just have to cry about stuff and get back up because that's how you become a stronger person.Till last year, I considered so many people to be my "friends" and soon I realized those "friends" stayed till things got hard.
First of all, I would just like to point out the fact that I am extremely excited to write this blog. Music for me is a way to stay connected with people and people around me (so it’s pretty important). Now of course you couldn’t expect me to sit here and name a song by any other artist other than Twenty One Pilots. There are many songs by them that I could talk about, like Holding Onto You, Trapdoor, HeavyDirtySoul,and March to Sea, but for the sake of not becoming an emotional wreck I would like to talk about two that hold meaning in my life that aren’t as deep. The first is Message Man. I know that my meaning of the song is different than Tyler’s but I believe that’s partially what he makes music for. Not only does this song have an absolutely amazing beat behind it but the meaning for me is heavy too. My parents got divorced when I was five and I never really had a huge issue with it because I just grew up like that. Since my parents absolutely despise each other they constantly used my sister and I to communicate. This put a lot of pressure on us and although I hate saying stuff like this, it was a little bit rough on us as growing teens. The song Message Man is something I wish my parents could listen to and understand. The main chorus is, “Please use discretion when you’re messing with the message man.” In this case my sister and I are the message men. I wish that sometimes my parents would think about what they say to us about the other before they actually said it. Every negative thing they say about each other to me heavily impacts my opinion of them. There are lots of times I don’t want to call my parents mom and dad just due to what the other said about them. The next line in the chorus is, “These lyrics aren’t for everyone. Only few understand.” This line means a lot to me. For every song there are only a few people who actually understand what the song means to them. Only a few people can listen to the song and find meaning in it. This is a reason I love Twenty One Pilots so much is the fact that not everyone understands the music, it gives me a feeling of purpose. In a well rapped section of this song Tyler says, “Hope you're dead 'cause how could you sleep at a time like this? / People they rhyme like this, we're all impressed by this / They rip it, flip it but these are just triplets / Wrote this in three minutes, three words to a line / It's just poetry divided, I'm the kind of guy / Who takes every moment, he knows he can fight it / And music to use it, for others to use it / You're dead 'cause how could you sleep at a time like this?” This verse is important to me. I think it embodies a lot of pop music today. This is why I believe Pop music is fluff, it’s not real music. We care about the songs that talk about nothing and don’t take a lot of talent to create. The line about using music is also very important to me because music saved me. I give music to people to save them too. My little cousin who means the world to me is going through a rough patch in her life right now and uses the songs I show her as her survival weapons.
ReplyDeleteSince I just went on a long analysis of Message Man and what it means to me for the second song I’m going to keep it pretty short. The second song is Migraine, again by Twenty One Pilots. Last year I was going through a pretty rough time. Out of nowhere I started to get headaches. Not migraines but headaches. But I would get these headaches EVERY SINGLE DAY. They were all different sometimes it would feel like someone was drilling a hole through my eye to the back of my head, other times it would feel like someone was squeezing my frontal lobe, and other times it would feel like someone slammed a big ass textbook against the back of my head. They were pretty annoying. Now this song doesn’t only talk about migraines it talks about a lot of different things. The first verse says, “Thank god it’s Friday, cause Fridays will always be better than Sundays / Cause Sundays are my suicide days.” Pretty dismal lyrics but very meaningful to me. Sunday nights are when I sleep over my dad’s house. Every Sunday I go over for dinner and sleep there. For a while I hated my dad and his girlfriend a lot. Sundays were always my least favorite days. The reasoning behind this (besides my dad and his girlfriend) is the fact that my room is my safe space. It’s the only place in the world that I will never feel uncomfortable in and I will never feel scared to be in. My room at my dad's however is very not personalized and just very sad and uncomfortable. It got the point where every Sunday I would hug my mom bawling my eyes out because I didn’t want to leave my house and go over my dads. Long story short this line is important because Sundays were usually very bad days for me. Overall these songs are very important to me. Every Twenty One Pilots song has a story about me behind it and I like each one for a different reason I just don’t think I could explain them all tonight, maybe if we have another blog about music.
DeleteI love listening to music because there will always be something that you could listen to no matter what you’re feeling. You could be mad, sad, happy, excited, calm, or anything else and there will always be a certain song or type of genre you could listen to. Personally, I like classic rock, but I also listen to other types of music. Music isn’t always my go to when I’m feeling a certain way, but I still enjoy listening to music. I especially like listening to the stories that songs have and the meaning behind the lyrics. Some people listen to music because they like the way it sounds and so do I. However, the songs I listen always tell a story and I always look for the deeper meaning in them. I wouldn’t normally listen to Harry Chapin, but I like his song “Cats in the Cradle”
ReplyDelete“I've long since retired, my son's moved away
I called him up just the other day
I said, "I'd like to see you if you don't mind"
He said, "I'd love to, Dad, if I can find the time
You see my new job's a hassle and the kids have the flu
But it's sure nice talking to you, Dad
It's been sure nice talking to you"
And as I hung up the phone it occurred to me
He'd grown up just like me
My boy was just like me
And the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon
Little boy blue and the man in the moon
When you comin' home son
I don't know when, but we'll get together then, Dad
We're gonna have a good time then”
This is the ending of the song and it doesn’t really make sense unless you hear the beginning. Chapin foreshadowed that at the end of the song his song would become like him. At the start of the song it talks about how the dad doesn’t have time for his kid when he is young, but the kid still wants to be just like his dad. At the end this comes true and it is now the son not having any time for his dad. It is a very sad song, but it has a story to it that sounds like it could be true for a lot of people. This song showed me that I should value the time with my family and friends while I am young because it is harder to see them as time goes on. This is why I appreciate every time I see my friends and family because I know very soon college is coming and things will be different. The song goes to show you how fast time goes by and teaches you to value the time you have now with your family and friends. A three minute song goes through a father and son’s story and I think that’s pretty cool. I heard this awhile ago and I always remembered it because it had such a meaningful message to me. It also made me value the people I love more than anything because without people like that life wouldn’t be the same for me.
It's beauty in the struggle, ugliness in the success:
ReplyDeleteCole uses this popular phrase which is oxymoron to direct the audience's attention to a sign of hope and realization. During the process of a hardship you can learn and become stronger through it. A personal application is throughout this time period of my family going through it with my dad, I have grown and matured. My outlook on trials and tribulations have changed, rather than letting the situation control me, I controlled the aspects of the situation that I could, such as getting up every morning and focusing on bettering myself rather than worrying about things out of my control. There is nothing you can do to stop the inevitable or someone else's doings, but you do have a say on how you react and respond. So as I go through life I look to accept struggles, because in that process I can benefit.
For what's money without happiness?:
Cole uses these lyrics to bring up a truth about the world we live in. People are so money hungry that they lose focus of what really matters. Their pockets may be filled, but their hearts are empty. Money can’t buy happiness, money is nice to have, but at the end of the day we all need people to fall back on, companionship. As I become older and get a job, career, whatever, I can’t let the money get in the way of family and friends. Money is only as good as the people you spend it with, if you don’t have nobody to really depend on then you're left with money to either sit in the bank or spend with a bunch of people who aren’t really there for you, that ain’t for me. Some of the happiest people in the world live paycheck by paycheck or even less than that. God, family, money is the order of my values.
Or hard times without the people you love
These lyrics are very similar to ones I am about to discuss, they both mean the same to me.
Though I'm not sure what's 'bout to happen next
I asked for strength from the Lord up above:
His hope remains in God, he says this to reinsure who his rock is and how he gets through life. With every decision I make in life, I need God to give me strength and watch over me. As I get older the decisions start becoming much more serious and have a lot more impact, so with these I need the Lord to bless me and guide me through them for better or worse, it is all his will. If I live seeking God for guidance and perseverance, I know I will live a bountiful life.
Always gon' be a bigger house somewhere, but nigga feel me
Long as the people in that motherfucker love you dearly
Always gon' be a whip that's better than the one you got
Always gon' be some clothes
That's fresher than the ones you rock
Always gon' be a bitch that's badder out there on the tours
But you ain't never gon' be happy till you love yours:
These are the lyrics that relate to the one I pointed out before. Cole uses these examples to discuss the true values of life. All these stanzas can be summed up by, there will always be something “better” out there, but you will never find happiness until you learn to love and accept what you have in life. Everything is a blessing in life and we should treat it in such manner, whether it is our And 1 sneakers or our Jordan 4’s, our 2007 Nissan Altima or our 2016 Lamborghini. Love what you have and appreciate it. I hope I appreciate whatever hand of cards I get, whether it is royal flush A, K, Q, J, 10, all the same suit, or indifferent.
The songs lyrics connect with me on a personal level through experience and also desires. It embodies morals that I wish to apply to my life when I become a adult. I practice these morals, but in the spectrum of my youth.
Many of you will probably laugh at me for saying this, but I am a big fan of Taylor Swift. While people get aggravated with her love songs, I admire them because of how well I can relate to them. I tend to only listen to my girl Taylor when i'm “in my feelings.” Something about her “childish” music gives me a sense of comfort- a reassurance that even celebrities go through heartbreak. One of my favorite songs by her is “You are In Love.” Just like any song, you don't have much emotion towards it until you have a reason to connect with it; then, suddenly, everything makes sense and you understand the whole meaning and point of the song. When I first heard this song on the radio, I just liked the sound and lightness of it. It wasn't until I went through a pretty harsh breakup with a guy where I found meaning to it. To start off, the first part of the song I chose is something that I remember. I remember appreciating small talk, looking into each other in silence, and finally feeling like I was worth it. As I got attached, I saw him everywhere. Even when we weren't together, I just felt this strong connection. Similar to the song, I was in a car at nighttime when I realized I was in love. My favorite part of the song is towards the end- in the song, Taylor refers to letting go of her fears. This means a lot to me because I have always been someone who has kept my wall up. It has always been hard for me to get close to someone, especially a guy. With that being said, falling in love with this guy was SO scary for me but amazing at the same it. As scared as I was in the beginning, I forced myself to enjoy the moment; by doing that, I became less scared with him. I took baby steps, but eventually I wasn't scared anymore because I trusted him. I knew it would all be okay. Or so I thought- that's a whole other story I will NOT be getting into. Getting even closer to the end, Taylor mentions “fighting and talking” and I think that is really important. Relationships aren't 100% sunflowers and rainbows. I think that line contributes to why I love this song so much. There was a lot of fighting involved in my relationship- a lot of scary moments and anger. The whole beginning of the song focuses on the good and fun of relationships and that special moment when you realize you're in love. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE how it is written and makes you focus on the good, but I think it is even more amazing that there are hard times mentioned. Again, it gives me more to relate to. To me, this song shows reality. The way it is written has allowed me to picture the whole scene in my head- additionally, it allows me to remember the moments where I was in the same situation. Songs like this are so powerful. For someone who can't relate, this song has a fun sound to it and is soft (lack of a better word). But then, when you can relate, it is this emotional roller coaster that shows so much between each line. The power of this song can make you happy or sad or both at the same time. Listening to it, I have cried happy tears and sad tears. This song tells me that every good thing could have a bad side, but every bad thing always has a good side. The beginning of my relationship was amazing- unfortunately, it turned bad. However, despite the bad, it gave me a chance to learn how to stick up for myself and it gave me a hell of a lot of memories that I will carry with me forever.
ReplyDeleteSmall talk, he drives
Coffee at midnight, the light reflects
The chain on your neck
He says look up
And your shoulders brush
No proof, one touch
You felt enough
You can hear it in the silence, silence, you
You can feel it on the way home, way home, you
You can see it with the lights out, lights out,
You are in love, true love
You are in love
And for once you let go
Of your fears and your ghosts
One step, not much, but it said enough
You kissed on sidewalks
You fight and you talk
One night he wakes, strange look on his face
Pauses, then says, you're my best friend
And you knew what it was, he is in love
"Love, Love, Love.
ReplyDeleteLove, Love, Love.
Love, Love, Love.
There's nothing you can do that can't be done.
Nothing you can sing that can't be sung.
Nothing you can say but you can learn how to play the game.
It's easy.
Nothing you can make that can't be made.
No one you can save that can't be saved.
Nothing you can do but you can learn how to be you in time.
It's easy.
All you need is love.
All you need is love.
All you need is love, love.
Love is all you need.
Nothing you can know that isn't known.
Nothing you can see that isn't shown.
Nowhere you can be that isn't where you're meant to be.
It's easy.
All you need is love (All together, now!)
All you need is love (Everybody!)
All you need is love, love. Love is all you need (love is all you need)."
In the Beatles song "Love", John Lennon sings about how love embraces the life of people. He sings about how certain things can always be done as long as a person embraces the true nature of love and the power it has in a person's life. Lennon basically is telling the story of basic things that a person can do and there is no way they can't accomplish them with the help of love. When it comes down to these lyrics they speak to me in an extremely influential way. They tell me that no matter what I do I can always do it if I think about love. It also lets me know that I will always have love on my side and never against me. This song will always play a huge part and my life and that's the reason why I never stop listening to it. In the end really "All you need is love".
The music that I listen to today is not meaningful. It is usually just a trap rapper from the scrubs rapping about making it our, making money, and doing drugs. When I started first listening to music it was when I was really young and the new guitar hero game “Aerosmith Guitar Hero” came out. I loved aerosmith and almost all of their songs. But then when christmas would come around I would hear Frank Sinatra. And ever since I fell in love with his voice. But there was one song that I could not get off my mind. “My Way”. A very powerful song.
ReplyDelete“And now, the end is near
And so I face the final curtain
My friend, I'll say it clear
I'll state my case, of which I'm certain
I've lived a life that's full
I traveled each and every highway
And more, much more than this, I did it my way”
I've loved, I've laughed and cried
I've had my fill, my share of losing
And now, as tears subside, I find it all so amusing
To think I did all that
And may I say, not in a shy way
Oh, no, oh, no, not me, I did it my way
Frank Sinatra’s song “My Way”, starts off foreshadowing that every event leading up to the end is described. It is about a man that has lived a life of boredom that wants to live the life the way he wants to live it. Not under a rule or a relationship. He is stating that he has done everything to the end the way he wants to do it with very little regrets. But he also relates the way that emotions can come into play to and how we will look back on those emotions and laugh at them for being too necessary and how they have not changed the way he has dictated his life. It relates to me in a way that is the reason why I try to stay happy towards others. When dictating my life I should not let my regrets and my sadness take over the true things that I want to succeed. Do life my way with no one else to tell you what to do. Live your own life to the fullest and do not stop for anyone to fix that. Make your own path and like Bobby McFerrin said ,“In every life we have some trouble. But when you worry, you make it double”.
ReplyDeleteI am so in love with Jason Marz and the music he writes. Every time I listen to his songs I feel filled with love and joy. Every time I am stressed out he relaxes me with his beautiful music and moving lyrics.
Well sometimes the sun shines on
Other people's houses and not mine.
Some days the clouds paint the sky all gray
And it takes away my summertime.
Somehow the sun keeps shining upon you,
While I struggle to get mine.
If there's a light in everybody,
Send out your ray of sunshine.
I want to walk the same roads as everybody else, Through the trees and past the gates.
Getting high on heavenly breezes,
Making new friends along the way.
I won't ask much of nobody,
I'm just here to sing along.
And make my mistakes looks gracious,
And learn some lessons from my wrongs.
These lyrics came from the “Sunshine Song”. Now when I listen to this song it reminds me of happiness and spreading your happiness around to other people. My outlook on life has always been to be positive and to help spread positivity to other people. In those lyrics he sings
Somehow the sun keeps shining upon you,
While I struggle to get mine.
If there's a light in everybody,
Send out your ray of sunshine.
Which to me means that if you have happiness or a positive message to spread to send to others, you should. The “ray of sunshine” that you hear about in the entire song represents happiness and love. If you see someone in need of that love then you should try and give it to them rather than keep others in the dark.
Getting high on heavenly breezes,
Making new friends along the way.
I won't ask much of nobody,
I'm just here to sing along.
And make my mistakes looks gracious,
And learn some lessons from my wrongs.
When I hear that I think about everyone living together in peace. It makes me think about everyone getting along and being together. Thar Jason is just loving life and whatever life throws at him. That he will make mistakes but he won't let them control him, and he will use those mistakes to his advantage rather than let them slow him down. I love that outlook on life and I love the way Jason sings about it.
You should look as good as your outlook,
Would you mind if I took some time,
to soak up your light, your beautiful light?
You've got a paradise inside.
I get hungry for love and thirsty for life,
And much too full on the pain,
Now when I listened to “You should look as good as your outlook,” reminded me to always present myself the way I wanted to be seen. How you need to look like how you want to be treated and looked at as a person. You can't expect to act like a horrible person and not be treated that way.
I get hungry for love and thirsty for life,
And much too full on the pain,
These last lyrics I’m going to talk about are the most important to me. It talks about wanting more love and living the best life but sometimes you have to much pain to do so. But after that line it goes back into the chorus that reminds you to always share your positivity so the other people who are just too full of the pain, can be happy again.
“They tell me I should fix my grill cause I got money now
ReplyDeleteI ain't gon' sit around and front like I ain't thought about it
A perfect smile is more appealing but it's funny how
My shit is crooked look at how far I done got without it
I keep my twisted grill, just to show the kids it's real
We ain't picture perfect but we worth the picture still
I got smart, I got rich, and I got b*****s still
And they all look like my eyebrows: thick as hell
Love yourself, girl, or nobody will
Oh, you a woman? I don't know how you deal
With all the pressure to look impressive and go out in heels
I feel for you
Killing yourself to find a man that'll kill for you
You wake up, put makeup on
Stare in the mirror but its clear that you can’t face what’s wrong
No need to fix what God already put his paintbrush on
Your roommate yelling, "Why you gotta take so long?"
What it's like to have a crooked smile”
In the song crooked smile J. Cole sends a message of self love. He uses his own personal insecurity of his smile being crooked as an example. He mentions that he has a crooked smile, but a perfect smile is just a perfect smile. He got to fame with his hard work his image had nothing to do with it. He continues the song and talks about self love. He sings “Love yourself, girl, or nobody will” which is true. You can’t accept someone else’s love unless you love yourself. Within this song he incorporates the pressure women have to face just because were females. The makeup and the heels we wear to try to fix what we think is “wrong”. He says that what god used to make us was a paintbrush implying that we're all works of art.
This song has meant a lot to me since the first time I’ve heard it. I used to listen to it all the time and although now I don’t listen to it as often, I still listen to its message. The self love aspect is so important. Learning to love yourself is one of the hardest things us teenagers will go through. Especially with today’s society. It’s all a matter of what J. Cole said “No need to fix what god already put his paintbrush on”. There’s no need to hate ourselves and try to “fix” what’s so “wrong” about us because we are all individual works of art. Were all beautiful in our own ways, and we should all know that.
Marshall Mathers, better know as Eminem, is an American rap artist who has changed the lives of millions around the world by telling his tale of 'rags to riches' throughout most of his songs. The reason Eminem is such an inspiration to me and others around the word is because he is a very real person. He doesn't give his listeners the vision of drugs or money, but tells a story using his rhymes and he stands for the greatness of man. He believes, like I do, that we are all capable of more than we perceive. His lyrics are filled with motivation, which is why his listeners look up to him so greatly.
ReplyDeleteOne of Eminem's most motivational songs that I know of is a song titled "Till I Collapse". Just judging from the title you might be able to tell this is a song that will make you feel like you can do anything. The song's introduction begins with
"‘Cause sometimes you just feel tired, feel weak
And when you feel weak, you feel like you wanna just give up
But you gotta search within you
And gotta find that inner strength
And just pull that s*** out of you
And get that motivation to not give up
And not be a quitter, no matter how bad you wanna just fall flat on your face, and collapse...".
Starting the song off this way gives the listener a sense of what is to come. Judging from the into you can tell what the song, as a whole, will be about. Personally, I love what this song represents. To me it represents the obstacles, the hard work, and the pain you have to go through in order to achieve your goal. And although it seems impossible, you can't give up when you feel like you just want to collapse. The reason I love this song so much is because when I listen to it, I get the feeling that anything is possible. When I listen to this song, it's as if I begin to see in tunnel vision, all the obstacles and all the pain seems to just disappear and I focus solely on the goal at hand. Which in reality is what I should do one hundred percent of the time.
I am not one to listen to music because I connect with what is being said. I usually only listen to music to fill silence, or usually to block out other noises. The reason I’ll listen to a song in general is because the beat sounds good, whether it be sad, energetic, catchy, etc. Looking at this blog made me realize that I rarely ever pay attention to the lyrics and for the most part just hum a song with the beat in my head if it is catchy enough. However, when I do listen to the lyrics of a song, the song tends to be deep and the singer is singing about things I have never dealt with like love and loss. But what I really think about is how the lyrics match the beat or rhythm of the song. Another thing I think about when listening to songs is when the song is leaning more on the ‘gloomy’ side and talking about loss, I try to think about how I would feel about losing someone.
ReplyDeleteIf you ever leave me, baby,
Leave some morphine at my door
'Cause it would take a whole lot of medication
To realize what we used to have,
We don't have it anymore.
There's no religion that could save me
No matter how long my knees are on the floor (Ooh)
So keep in mind all the sacrifices I'm makin'
To keep you by my side
To keep you from walkin' out the door.
'Cause there'll be no sunlight
If I lose you, baby
There'll be no clear skies
If I lose you, baby
Just like the clouds
My eyes will do the same, if you walk away
Everyday it'll rain, rain, ra-a-a-ain
These lyrics by Bruno Mars coincidentally came up while I was thinking about this blog and I thought about what I believed the song meant. I believe the song is about thinking about losing someone close to you and what you would go through if you lost them. When the song came up, I thought about losing some of those close to me and could automatically feel my jaw clench and a heaviness in my heart. The feeling makes me feel connected to the song because thinking of losing some people around me makes me want to be alone even more so than I usually do. It surprises me that I even wrote that previous sentence because I never tend to be emotional.
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ReplyDeleteThe song “Girlfriend” by Kap G is one of my favorites. Besides it’s catchy beat, I love the lyrics as well. In a way they are relatable to many situations in my life. Kap G uses metaphors to create a better picture for the listener. “And she thick and she pretty like Amber Rose”
ReplyDeleteHe also uses onamonapias to add to his rhymes. “Swervin' on corner like skurt, she said can I text you I'm like sure, and I got on Gucci like burr”
“I just took a flick with your girlfriend
I be kickin' shit with your girlfriend
I just smoked a blunt with your girlfriend
I think that I'm done with your girlfriend
All up in my business she be lurkin'
I've been tryna to tell her bye it ain't workin'
I think that I'm done with your girlfriend”
Kap G is telling another guy about an affair he is having with their girlfriend. He says some of the things he does with the other guy’s girlfriend, then towards the end of the hook he gives her back to her boyfriend. A lot of girls swear upon their boyfriends being loyal to them. It relates to me because a lot of guys with girlfriends try to talk to me. I would love to sing this song to some of these girls, it would save an argument and a lot of confusion.
“Well open up your mind and see like me
ReplyDeleteOpen up your plans and damn you're free
Look into your heart and you'll find that the sky is yours
So please don't, please don't, please don't
There's no need to complicate
'Cause our time is short
This oh, this oh, this is our fate
I'm yours”
“I’m Yours” by Jason Mraz is a song about letting go of your worries and living life to the fullest. He told Billboard Magazine about how he came up with the song on a whim not knowing how it was going to turn out but just let the music guide him. His work reflected what his new song’s message of “ giving yourself or your time to someone or something else”. He constantly talks about opening up which is seen in the first few lines above to signify his message of seeing things through different eyes. If you “open up your mind” you can “see like me” or see through someone else’s perspective. Then he gives the line of “Open up your plans and damn you’re free” to show that by blindly following a certain path can cage you while allowing yourself to explore can give you freedom. His next line uses the lyrics “Look into your heart and you’ll find the sky is yours” to explain that by finding love in ourselves we can accomplish anything. Mraz follows this with a plea to whoever he is speaking to. He uses excuses like “our time is short” which referring to the time we are alive, and that “this is our fate” to propose that these things were destined to happen and that neither had control over what was to come. Finished with the line “I’m yours” that leads back to the idea Mraz stated of giving yourself up to someone else.
For me, this song shows the perfect example of what life should be about. We don’t need to agree with one another but we should listen to what everyone else feels. Everyone has different opinions but a lot of people don’t want to hear those that differ from theirs. This song portrays the idea of letting go of our stubbornness in order to just love one another for who we are. While this song can be referring to a significant other I also believe it includes family and friends. It such an innocent and joyful song that can brighten anyone's day and that’s what life should be. I don’t want everyone to stop worrying about the important things in their lives but too many of us worry too much. I like to just enjoy life for what it is and when things don’t go my way I’m usually over it within a day. I could fail a test and while I might be upset at first I let it go. I know people who can’t do that and who believe that they always have to be perfect not for their sake but for others. Sometimes instead of critiquing yourself in a mirror you just need to draw a new face and laugh.
*We Are Giants*
ReplyDelete“Do you feel like you're second-hand?
Do you feel you're afraid to stand alone?
Cut away every safety net
Live your life so you won't regret the road”
Lindsey Stirling starts off with two hypothetical questions to try to connect with the listener. Next, she uses metaphors to say “go out of your comfort zone” And “live life so you won’t regret the journey”
“Feels like you, standing there so small
Just the space between the stars
Don't be afraid to risk it all
'Cause we are we are
We are giants”
Lindsey, again, connects with the listener with metaphors by saying that we feel unimportant and unseen just like the space between two stars. Then, she encourages us to take risks because we are giants. We matter and should feel big, which is in contrast with “small” from a few lines before.
“Raise your flag, let your voice be heard
Put your heart into every word you say
All your failures' a cornerstone
Build a house with the things you've thrown away”
“Raise your flag” is a metaphor that means to signal, so people can know when to listen. You need to truly mean everything that you say so it has a clear purpose. Then, she makes an analogy between making the mistakes as a foundation and building a house with everything you want to forget.
As I grow, I’m learning to gain more confidence. I don’t feel as small as the song is implying, but I have some issues. I’m trying to step out of my comfort zone, like the song says, because life is short and if I don’t do it now, then I never will. I regret a lot of small things that still haunt me, but I’m in the process of turning those into my “cornerstones”. As I live by these lyrics, hopefully, soon, I will start to have a solid house to go off of and I won’t be afraid to do anything or regret some things.
A lot of people listen to kodak, kayne or 21 savage and think it's good until they're asked the simple question "What is appealing about that kind of music?" Many may answer with, I like the beats in the back or I just like the way it sounds, but in reality they do it bc others are and it's what's in. When you look deep into the meanings of the songs you can't find much else but drugs, girls or "trapping." I'd be lying if I told you I don't listen to it but what I feel most relatable to the question, "What speaks to you?" I can only think of one song. Moonlight Sonet bye Beethoven, yet this song has no words. Music can be inspirational in many way, but it's mostly how it is interpreted. Beethoven can say so much more than any rap song without even speaking, it's incredible. Just listening to it you feel at home. It's relaxing, exciting and like any good story has a twist in the middle. Moonlight Sonet is so relaxing, I even listen to it before I wrestle. It makes me feel at home and a wrestling mat can be described as my home. In a weird way, it pumps me up. Many listen to some crazy rap song or just whatever is on their playlist, but for me Moonlight Sonet does all those same things to me. Although there are no words, it's saying a lot. The song starts off smooth and a lot of nice keys are being played. Throughout the song Beethoven incorporates some rough or deep keys to contrast the soothing keys. It's almost as if you just got married in the beginning but a couple months later all you do is fight. But in ever good marriage, they'll always forgive each other. As the song starts to close the music is no longer dull and gloomy. It comes back around full circle and they forgive each other. I don't know exactly why this would be the song I choose to listen to before a match or how I even started listening to it, all I know is that it works for me. It's a beautiful song and still with no words moves me in ever way.
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DeleteMusic has been a part of my life ever since I was born. I’m the type of person that could jam to any type of music. Whether it be R&B or Pop or Country, I’d still sing along. Among all the genres of music, I find myself listening to K-Pop. For those of you who don’t know what K-Pop is, It’s Korean Pop music. The only thing I don’t like about this label is the Pop part. K-Pop although has a lot of bubblegum and electropop involved, also has songs with roots in rap and R&B. The hard part about this blog is that all these songs are sung in Korean (obviously). Of course, I could just use the translations but like every language there are idioms.
ReplyDeleteWhen deciding the songs I would use, I picked three. All three of these songs are K-Pop and two of them are ballads. The other song hip-hop based song with elements of R&B and a ballad in it. These songs have been a huge part of my life ever since they’ve been released. I checked my phone and these songs have a combined 1,337 plays on my phone. The messages inside the songs have connected very well with me. The first of these songs is a Korean ballad released back in late 2016 by a rookie artist named Kim Sejeong (김세정). Sejeong rose to fame back when she was featured in a Korean survival show that would make a girl group called Produce 101. She rose to even more fame when she had a solo debut. She’s known for exhibiting so much emotion in a song that it would cause someone to cry. (Here’s an example of her singing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6pS4yo4OXE). She released a song called Flower Path/Road. Listen to it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKLKDJ1QsLs
The world is so cold
Colder than when I lived in you
You gave me enough love and when I felt
That it was too much I became an adult
To raise a single flower
How much rain fell in your eyes?
Oh rewind, the more I think back, the more I’m sorry
So I won’t give up
You gave up your youthful and beautiful season
Look at me, I have bloomed prettily
Even if I fall to the ground
I will make you walk only on flower paths
When I looked at your lips
There was a smile but there were also wrinkles
You gifted me with life
I’m so thankful for the words, I love you
The song in its whole is basically a metaphor. She is comparing herself to a flower which essentially had another flower as one who took care of her. She goes back and forth from comparing herself to a flower and to her as a human being. By using words such as “bloomed”, “rain”, and “season”, she adapts to the metaphor as flowers bloom and go through seasons. You can obviously tell that she is referring to a guardian figure by the phrases. “You gifted me with life” is an example of her being thankful that her mother gave birth to her. “You gave up your youthful and beautiful season” means that her mother gave up her happiness for her daughter. This song has always hit me hard. My mom and I have always had a very tight relationship. She is one of the five people in the world that I fully trust. Because my mom’s done so much for me, this song really connects with me.
One of the other songs I’ve picked out is Yanghwa Bridge by Zion.T otherwise known as Kim Haesol( (김해솔). Zion.T is a Korean solo artist that debuted back in 2011. He has been known for writing very powerful songs with lots of meaning in them. He has been a pioneer in the hip-hop/R&B scene of Korean entertainment and is also known to be a very gifted producer. He’s what we call a digital legend in K-Pop because of how well his songs do on the Gaon charts (Gaon is basically the Billboard of Korea). Yanghwa Bridge is a bridge in Seoul, Korea and was made up of two former bridges that connected the north and south sides of the Han River. The song Yanghwa Bridge was released in late September of 2014. Since then, it has received massive commercial success and is one of Zion.T’s greatest hits. Zion.T dedicated this song to his family and he even wrote it in half an hour. The song encapsulates Zion.T’s childhood and his emotions regarding his family. The song is a full circle and shows how Zion.T’s childhood helped him grow as a person. You can listen to the song here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLUvHUzd4UA (Kim Sejeong covered this song too! She’s the one in the hat. Watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOC72-AgV7M)
DeleteI was always alone at home
My dad was a taxi driver
Whenever I asked him where he was
He’d answer, the Yanghwa Bridge
Every morning, he’d leave me
candy and ramen
My dad would end his shifts at dawn
always waiting for his pocket,
I remember the young me
Mom, dad, my two older sisters
I was the baby of the family, the cutie
I remember those days
I remember
Let’s be happy
Let’s be happy
Don’t be sick, don’t be sick
Let’s be happy, let’s be happy
Don’t be sick
I’m making money, I’m making all the money
I used to ask my mom for ten cents
My mom and dad, even my dog
They all look to me now
I’m getting a call, it’s my mom
Ring ring, “Hi son, how are you?”
She asks me where I am
I’m at Yanghwa Bridge
Mom, let’s be happy
Don’t be sick, don’t be sick
Let’s be happy, let’s be happy
Don’t be sick
Back then, when I was young
I didn’t know anything
The feeling of walking across that bridge
Whenever I asked him where he was
My dad would always be at
Yanghwa Bridge, Yanghwa Bridge
I’m standing there right now
Let’s be happy
Let’s be happy
Don’t be sick, don’t be sick
Let’s be happy, let’s be happy
Don’t be sick
Let’s be happy Let’s be happy
Don’t be sick, don’t be sick
Let’s be happy, let’s be happy
Don’t be sick
The song often refers back to times where Zion.T would be at Yanghwa Bridge and when he asked where someone was. The song goes from when Zion.T was a child to when he has grown older and has more responsibilities. One of the lines or you could say bridges of the song (Get it? Bridge. Like in Yanghwa Bridge. I crack myself up.) that gets me the most is the “Let’s be happy, don’t be sick” Zion.T repeatedly tells his family members to be happy and don’t get sick. He does this four other times in the song. This particular part hits me hard because my family is always sick and my parents never go to the doctor. For once, I would like for my family to healthy and for us to be happy.
My final song is the Korean ballad I by Kim Taeyeon (김태연) featuring Verbal Jint. Taeyeon is a member of a very popular Korean girl group called Girls’ Generation otherwise known as SNSD and romanized as 소녀시대. Girls’ Generation is South Korea’s representative girl group and has achieved huge domestic success. In the K-Pop world, they are what you would refer to as legends. They are also my ultimate bias group but I doubt any of you care enough. She debuted back in 2007 with SNSD as the main vocalist and is often regarded as one of South Korea’s best singers. Taeyeon rose to even more fame back in October of 2015 with her solo debut of I. She achieved huge success with the song and the music video has 100 million views on youtube making it the most watched Youtube video of any Korean solo artist. The song is an upbeat ballad that demonstrates her vocal abilities very well. One of the hardest hitting parts of her song is a rap in the very beginning by producer and rapper Verbal Jint. You can listen to the song here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4OrCA1OInoo
DeleteA story I’ve heard often somewhere
Ugly duckling and swan, a butterfly before it flies
People don’t know, they don’t see your wings
A new world you’ve met could be cruel
But strong girl, you know you were born to fly
Tears you’ve cried,
all of the pain you’ve felt
for the day you’ll fly even higher,
It’s to prepare you. Butterfly,
Everybody’s gonna see it soon
This part is the rap. The song, in general, is basically another metaphor of Taeyeon comparing herself to a butterfly. A butterfly starts off as a caterpillar that is unable to do anything but squirms around but eventually, it becomes a beautiful creature with wings. The song symbolizes Taeyeon’s growth as an artist and as a person. The parts such as “they don’t see your wings” symbolizes the people around Taeyeon who don’t see her potential or her abilities and the people who have looked down upon her. Another part that is very powerful is “A new world you’ve met could be cruel”. The world in itself is a terrible place. Emotionally, the world sucks. I’ve come to the reality that life sucks far too many times to even express my connection to this lyric. The rest of the rap is also very inspiring. The ending of the rap encourages Taeyeon and explains that all the tears that you’ve shed and all the pain you’ve gone through has made you grow is to prepare you for the world and that you will fly above everyone and prove the haters wrong. It’s inspirational because that’s what I intend to do. I’ve gone through so much in my life and one day I will fly high and prove everyone who doubted me wrong.
Flower petals wilt
I had difficult times, but followed a small light
Distant day, let it go far, faraway
I fly splendidly
This part is one aside from the rap. This part is probably my favorite out of the whole song (And it’s right before she hits an E5) It expresses the same meaning as the final part of the rap. Basically, she states that she had a difficult time but she still managed to rise and fly.
Music has been a huge part of my life. You can probably tell by the length of this blog. I believe music is like poetry. It can be perceived in many different ways. That’s one of the great things about music. It’s not the same for everyone and it brings out emotions and some of the best in people.
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DeleteWhen I initially looked at this blog, I was so excited: a simple blog about my favorite topic.
ReplyDeleteAs the majority of us, I absolutely love music. Agreeing with the blog, I believe music is my reality escape button that sums up my life, and it is the way I can express my emotions. I listen to music whenever I can. It is mandatory to have my earbuds and my cell phone containing all my playlists on the checklist of things I need before I go to school. In fact, I play seven instruments very well.
Many people I know have asked me the simple question, “Bernice, what kind of music do you listen to?” I hesitate and respond, “I listen to a lot, almost everything in fact...”
This is very true. I know and listen to a plethora of disparate songs and genres, and selecting a single favorite summary of my life is not so simple. For some reason, it is easier to memorize songs than an SAT vocab word itself (Sorry, Ms. Bunje). Call me a "goody-two-shoes", but I listen to music with a nice melody or beat, a purpose, good meaning, and profanity-free.
So I am going to reveal another secret about myself. The majority of music I honestly listen to hands-down is Congolese music. That’s what I was raised with, and I love and am proud of it. If one ever sees me with earbuds, I am most likely to listen to that. I also listen to a lot of Nigerian music, South African music, even Ghanaian, etc. Then simultaneously comes everything else: gospel (a lot), r&b, pop, contemporary- everything. When I was younger, the MTV Jams channel was always on (that was quickly stopped...).
For the sake of AP Lang, my songs needs to be in English, so my two songs that adequately encapsulates my life are from my favorite artist:
#1.
She's just a girl and she's on fire
Hotter than a fantasy, lonely like a highway
She's living in a world and it's on fire
Feeling the catastrophe, but she knows she can fly away
Ohhhh oh oh oh oh
She got both feet on the ground
And she's burning it down
Ohhhh oh oh oh oh
She got her head in the clouds
And she's not backing down
This girl is on fire...
This girl is on fire...
She's walking on fire...
This girl is on fire...
(Girl on Fire, Alicia Keys)
I love this song, and I absolutely love Alicia Keys. I grew up listening to her, and her songs are so inspiring and relatable. This song in particular means so much to me and encapsulates my life. In this intro verse, Alicia Keys introduces a girl and attaches the characteristic to the girl through a metaphor, “she’s on fire” to creatively emphasize the effect of her invincibility. Describing the girl as “fire” creates the concept throughout the entire course of the song on how the girl employs the power of her inner strength in all situations despite living in a seemingly collapsing world with all of its issues and despairs. Then, the pre-chorus continues with the metaphors, explaining the instance of how despite she may be faced with obstacles that may try to block her, she conquers it with the “fire”, or the power hidden within them. Alicia Keys elevates the girl in the song which empowers women to live their passion, control who they are, and let nothing hinder them from their goals. This also solidifies the tone of vivacity since “fire” as mentioned is literally a juggernaut with it being juxtaposed to the girl with her strength and power. I have experienced that same despair, pain, fear, or self-doubt such as my bullying experience or school struggles. However, realizing this power I have regardless of what anyone may say allows me to have more confidence and inspires me to not quit on my dreams despite arduous circumstances or the chaos of this world (like our current political situation... *rolling eyes*).
#2.
DeleteI keep on fallin'
In and out of love
With you
Sometimes I love ya
Sometimes you make me blue
Sometimes I feel good
At times I feel used
Lovin you darlin'
Makes me so confused
I keep on
Fallin'
In and out of love with you
I never loved someone
The way that I love you
Oh, oh , I never felt this way
How do you give me so much pleasure
And cause me so much pain
Just when I think
I've taken more than would a fool
I start fallin' back in love with you
(Fallin', Alicia Keys)
I remember this song was very popular in 2004 as a four-year-old. It became my favorite song then, and I have loved it ever since as I still listen to it today (right now in fact). First, I love it because it brings back good memories of my early childhood, her voice, and the entire melody. Secondly, I love this song because it explicitly displays the reality of a relationship. This song particularly discusses a romantic relationship with its vicissitudes. Regardless of the ups and downs of this relationship, she still finds a way to love the other person even if the pain that person has caused signifies that she should not do so. It also makes her question why does the person hurt her so much yet make her so happy, and it causes her to love him anyway. Personally, I have never been involved in a romantic relationship, but this song is relatable in the sense that I feel the same way about the general relationships between my family (especially my siblings), friends, or even some of my teachers. My siblings can hurt my feelings sometimes in a way they will not care for. However, I still love them so much and am grateful for all of them. They confuse me in my they have the need to act ridiculous, like how my younger sister is sometimes so rude. This song allows me to feel supported with these feelings.
Yeah, You could be the greatest
ReplyDeleteYou can be the best
You can be the King Kong banging on your chest
You could beat the world
You could beat the war
You could talk to God, go banging on his door
You can throw your hands up
You can beat the clock
You can move a mountain
You can break rocks
You can be a master
Don't wait for luck
Dedicate yourself and you gon' find yourself
This song opens with some repetition for effect. The Script continuously says “you could... you could… you could… you can…. You can…” This sets up the whole meaning of the song. In a way, it “Gases you up” or makes you feel great about yourself. It almost inspires you to go and do one of those things.
Standing in the hall of fame (yeah)
And the world's gonna know your name (yeah)
'Cause you burn with the brightest flame (yeah)
And the world's gonna know your name (yeah)
And you'll be on the walls of the hall of fame
After telling you everything you COULD do, they express how great it feels after you accomplish them and all the good things that come from it.
“Hall of Fame” by The Script is a great motivational, inspiring, song. It delivers a good message that applies to everyone and about life. You can do so much but only if you get up and dedicate your life to it. So many people just wait around and hope to get lucky. People think they have so much time to do what they want in life. But you don’t. Every day not trying to move forward to something you strive for is a day wasted. So many people are lost. But if you get up and dedicate your life to something you love you’ll find yourself. Life is full of I could, I can, and what if. That’s all they will ever be but you have the power to change that. If you “Dedicate yourself and you gon' find yourself” somewhere great (hall of fame).
Music to me is always my go to thing when I'm feeling a certain way whether it be sad or happy. My whole life I have always loved to listen to music, specifically classic rock. My dad would always play classic rock in the car and grew up loving it. I always loved to learn the meaning behind these songs as well which to me give the song more of an emotional feel. All of these songs always told a story whether it be big or small. Sometimes the meaning is hidden and sometimes it may be in your face about it. No matter what classic rock always had it. This isn't the only genre I listen to but it is mostly what I listen to hAlf of the time.
ReplyDelete"I understand about indecision
But I don't care if I get behind
People livin' in competition
All I want is to have my peace of mind"
This is an excerpt from a song called "Peace of Mind" by Boston. This song does not have a lot of lyrics but has a good message behind it. The song is about someone who just wants to have his peace of mind. He does not care about getting behind while the world worries about getting behind in life. People are always competing with each other trying to be better then each other in life. But this man just wants to worry about himself and have his peace of mind. This is a song that I think a lot of people can relate to including me. People in life always want to be one step ahead in life and not worrying about the state they are in in doing so. People always compare each other, competing with each other trying to be more successful then the other. But they never worry about themselves and they never try to focus on their well being. I used to do this a lot during my first couple of years in high school. Always trying be one step ahead of people and comparing my self to them. My grades always controlled who I was by competing with other people. Now I try to forget about other people and try to focus on what is good for me. This has made me less of a stressful person and really does take the weight off of my shoulders. I think everybody should do the same and everybody should always have their peace of mind.
苏运莹 - 野子
ReplyDeleteSu Yunying - Wild Child
吹啊吹啊 我的骄傲放纵
Blow, blow, my pride and indulgence.
吹啊吹不毁我纯净花园
Blow, blow, [the wind] cannot destroy my pure garden.
任风吹 任它乱
Let the wind blow. Let it throw things into chaos.
毁不灭是我 尽头的展望
What cannot be destroyed is how I look ahead [into the future] at the furthest edge [of the present].
吹啊吹啊 我赤脚不害怕
Blow, blow, I'm barefooted and unafraid.
吹啊吹啊 无所谓扰乱我
Blow, blow, [I] don't care [if it] disturbs me.
你看我在勇敢地微笑
Look, I am bravely smiling.
你看我在勇敢地去挥手啊
Look, I am bravely waving my hand.
This song is about courage. No matter what and where the obstacles are, grit your teeth and continue to go on because nothing can stand in your way when you are determined.
Su Yunying uses “wind” as a connotation for obstacles. She repeatedly says “吹啊” in the chorus as if she is challenging the wind to try harder because it cannot stop her. I choose the chorus as the representative for this song because Su Yunying strongly expresses her feelings in those words. She pushes her message in the chorus and adds imagery in the lyrics to give others an idea of what she mean by “吹啊吹啊”. Blow as hard as you can because it cannot destroy my garden. Turn things into chaos as much as you want because I will still move forward.
This song speaks to me because it encourages me that all my hard work would become something. That what I am doing would not be wasted effort no matter how much I think of it; no matter how much I am losing my way; no matter how much people by my side says it is pointless. “Do not stop. Keep on going.”
A major reason I am the way I am, is because of my medical history. I know a lot of people went through the same struggles as me, but didn't make it out alive. Because of this, I experience survivor's guilt. I get caught up in the question "Why did I make it, but not them". A song that analyzes this question is "His Pain" by BJ the Chicago Kid, Featuring Kendrick Lamar. the first few verses are Kendrick describing stories of when he did something wrong, and somebody else had to pay the price, and wondering on why they were punished and not him.
ReplyDeleteThe second verse of the song, is this.
"Yesterday, I invaded privacy of a home
The day before that, my partner had fronted me a zone
A week before, I had loaded bullets inside that chrome
Two weeks before that, I shot them bullets and he was gone
A month before that, I cursed my mother then slammed the door
Six months before that, I hit my woman, she hit the floor
I stormed out, then seen a black Honda Accord
Them hollow tips missed me then hit that little boy"
After this verse, the hook, also sang by Kendrick, chimes
“I don't know why He keep blessing me
I don't know why, I don't know why, I don't know why”
Although kendrick says he was shot at in retaliation of his crimes, a little boy died in the cross fire. Later in the song he asks God how come the boy died, and not him. He needs an answer to why he keeps being blessed, when everyone around him is cursed.
Kendrick raps "So today I laid in my bed, stared at the ceilin'
Closed my eyes, then asked myself how I was feelin'
I analyzed on how a saint can play the villain
Is my life coincidental or just God willin'?"
He is confused on the type of person his is, and what his role in society is. He's trying to come to grips with society, and he still doesn't understand why the little boy died and not him. Is there a god given reason for his blessings, or is he just getting lucky? The next lyrics sang by Kendrick and BJ the Chicago Kid reveal what kendrick believes is the answer.
“Now I know why He keep blessing me
Now I know why, now I know why, now I know why, So I can bless you, So I can bless you, So I can bless you”
Kendrick says the reason he was saved, and other people didn’t make it out, is because he was put on earth to save people, and help others. In my case, I hope I can help others. I hope the reason I’m here is to elevate people to be better humans, and save my people than I hurt. The rest of the song is BJ the Chicago Kid sarenating over a soft piano melody, and full of mind boggling lyrics such as
“I never know
What happened the night
I wasn't there
Something told me leave so I left
News the next morning
Three guys shot after the club
Awwhh, listening to that small voice
Oh it saved my life”
I believe there is a reason and purpose for everyone. I’m not as religious as BJ and Kendrick, but I think they’re onto something. Everything plays out in the end, and you have to trust the course you’re going, use your gifts to help others, and never forget that things could always be worse.
Now, for the Lang side of things. The song purposely uses a soft Piano beat to draw attention to the lyrics. Kendrick is practically crying while talking over the soft piano hum, and you can hear the pain, sorrow, and regret in his tone. When BJ comes in with a little bit more hope, the drums kick in. The beat kicks up a little bit. Although the tone is still sorrow and regret, it shows glimpses of hope and trust. Pathos is also used a lot, by using deaths and abuses throughout the song to get the listener emotionally attached to what the 2 grammy winning lyricists have to say.
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ReplyDeleteShoving my ear phones in my ears and turning the volume up until I literally tune out the world is my greatest escape. I love all genres of music from country love to rap hard core every curse word in the book kind of rap. The kind of music that I don't realize how profound it is till I accidentally blast it to loud and my grandma hears it. One of my favorite songs would have to go to Janine & Mixtape with " Hold me." Chorus: " Baby don't let me down I got alot going on right now and I need you to hold me," Favorite verse:" Baby if I open my mouth and all my darkest memories come out I need you to stick around," This song brings back memories or then, anything to when I was inlove with my bestfriend. I started going through some shit and he just stepped out of the relationship. I wanted him to be there for me I guess but, I guess after 2 years that was too much to ask for. As, I move forward on to music for better vibes or motivation I have to mention the goat Drake on his hit single with Future " Used to this." The song tells a story about coming up from the bottom and how to manage your sucess without changing yourself. The song begins like " Mexico, Mexico I'm working like I'm from Mexico." This simile has a positive connotation putting a emphasis on the fact that Mexicans have a driven and hardworking work ethnic. Which general society perceives them as breadwinners a person who earns money to provide or assist their family in anyway possible. Drake comes in on the verse " I know you never see me out in person I'm always working." Which describes me 100% I work hard so, my family will always be live a good life and I know I can't do as much at 17. But, I get things done because, everything I do now is for the benefit of my family. So, when people complain that I never go anywhere I don't dweel on it because, just like the song I'm trying to " beat the odds, do numbers and remain humble!" Music soothes the heart and put some people at peace with themselves.
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ReplyDeleteI put a lot of thought into this blog because I listen to all types of music. The most powerful song to me would be the song “Kitchen Sink” by Twenty One Pilots. I love every lyric of this song because I can relate to it on a very personal level. I also love how this song speaks to me on some levels. Especially when he says,
ReplyDelete“Are you searching for purpose?
Then write something, yeah it might be worthless
Then paint something then, it might be wordless
Pointless curses, nonsense verses
You'll see purpose start to surface
No one else is dealing with your demons
Meaning maybe defeating them
Could be the beginning of your meaning, friend.”
Tyler is saying everyone has their own demons and the only person that can defeat them is you. He suggests that a way of getting rid of your demons could be finding purpose in something. Maybe finding purpose in something could be a start to something new. It could be your motivation to keep going in life. Everyone needs to find a way to tell their demons to leave them alone. One thing I love about all their songs is the fact that I can connect and understand them so well. Tyler and Josh are artists that make all their music have a deep meaning behind it. They use a bunch of different kind of metaphors, imagery, anecdotes, etc. in each and every one of their songs.
I suffer with anxiety problems that hold me back from doing a lot of things. A lot of people may not suspect this from me because I hide it well. I deal with an unhealthy amount of stress on a daily basis and have no way of coping with it. The most I do to try and help me relax is listen to bands like Twenty One Pilots because it makes me feel relieved that I’m not the only one suffering and that other people in this world go through the same things as I do. I guess you could say it gives me hope that I can get through any obstacles that come my way.
"When you see me look, don't touch
ReplyDeleteAll my shooters ballin' playing for the bucks
(They shooting all for money now)
Keep your circle small, be careful who you trust
They gon' love you when you down, not when you up"
"I'ma break every box they try to put me in
I got a lot of enemies who used to be my friends"
"I remember being a kid my teachers told me I wouldn't be sh*t
Diamonds in my pinky, look like water, make me seasick
Never had no help so don't approach me on some free sh*t
Did this by myself so why the fu*k would I do a remix?"
"Know some people in the 6 that dissed me for no reason
Sending shots, they sendin' shots, on road I never see them
Taking Ls, they takin' Ls, I never wanna be them"
In these four quotes from the artist Nav he explains how people didn't believe in him throughout his life but now that he has money and is famous people want to act like they're the best of friends. All of these quotes don't exactly relate to my life right now but I feel like the road is ahead. People constantly tell me what I won't and can't do but honestly they have no idea what I can do or know what things could happen in the future. From teachers to "friends people have told me I couldn't do certain things and I just brushed it off simply because they don't know what I can do and if they don't believe in me I don't need them in my life. I've picked these lines by Nav because I believe he had the same mindset as I do now and that's why he made it big because he doesn't care what the haters in his life have to say.
This kind of music has a big toll and inspiration on me because when I tell people my goals in life some just laugh or try to make jokes about it when they have no idea what I can do if I put my mind to it and work for it. I hope that my life turns out for the better as I keep grinding to complete my life goals so I can laugh at them just like Nav does in his music. I thank him for being one of many inspirations on my life to keep grinding and make my dreams and goals come true.
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ReplyDeleteMusic is always kind of hit or miss with me. Sometimes I'll be so into the music that my mind will be completely just lyrics and music, while other times songs just seem to be annoying noise in my ears. However, there is always one song that I will listen to for the fond memory it reminds me of. It has no lyrics which I can interpret from a "purely lang-intellectual standpoint" however I don't believe that songs and music is all about the lyrics. The song "Dearly Beloved" by Yoko Shimomura holds the spot of being a meaningful song to me. It brings me back to a time where my brother and I were very close; I was basically his shadow (as younger brothers are (I was about 7)) and I would always watch him play games. One of the games I most clearly remember is Kingdom Hearts (this is where the song is from), and besides being a rated 'E' for everyone game with possibly the longest plotline (and actually fairly complicated), it was a game which I enjoyed watching with my closest friend : my brother. And although as the years have begun to pass and we are not as close as we used to be, the song Dearly Beloved always makes me think back to the years when we were close, and to me, those memories are some of the most precious ones which I will always hold in my kingdom of hearts to be dearly beloved.
ReplyDelete"Bucket full of tears
ReplyDeleteBaby, know I'm here
I'm here waiting
Close your precious eyes
And just realize
I'm still fighting
For you to be with me
And sit under this tree
We can watch the sunrise
We can watch the sunrise..."- AJ Rafael, "Without You"
The singer writes in a way as to talk to a girl who isn't really there, which is an apostrophe. He uses pathos and utilizes words that would appeal to a reader's emotions. He uses the phrase "bucket full of tears," which is a hyperbole, in order to create a sad feeling and show the reader the tone of the song. Personally, to me, I think it's really simple. The reason this song really means a lot is because AJ Rafael talks in a way as to say "I can and will give you the world." He states in the chorus "I won't go another day without you” and then says "hold on I promise it gets brighter" and these lyrics really hit. I am, as people call it, a hopeless romantic. The way Rafael talks is the way I feel towards love, no giving up even in the darkest times and being there for someone. This also explains how I feel, like I'd do anything to try and make the person I love happy. He also talks as if he needs that person in his life which is maybe creepy, but it's how I feel towards love. The words are really put in this specific order to show the person that he is upset about not being with her, then he will do anything to be with her, and then he states what happens when he isn't with her. He sings in a way that's like a cause and effect.
"I remember when you were all mine
Watched you changing in front of my eyes
What can I say
Now that I'm not the fire in the cold
Now that I'm not the hand that you hold
As you're walking away
Will you call me to tell me you're alright
Cause I worry about you the whole night
Don't repeat my mistakes
I won't sleep 'til you're safe inside
If you're home I just hope that you're sober
Is it time to let go now you're older
Don't leave me this way
I won't sleep 'til you're safe inside."- James Arthur, "Safe Inside"
This song is again, an apostrophe, because he addresses a person who isn't really there. He uses a rhetorical question asking if the person will call him. He utilizes an idiom and a juxtaposition saying that he "isn't the fire in the cold." He then uses pathos by using phrases that appeal to the emotions of a listener. He uses phrases like "I won't sleep til you're safe inside" and "will you call me to tell me you're alright." He uses the lyrics in these specific ways to create a rhythm and rhyme pattern within the song. The chorus is specifically there because it ties in the whole concept of the song, which is wanting the person to be safe. This song means a lot to me particularly because it really brings out my true intentions with the people I love. I want to make sure that everyone I love is just safe. I want them to be healthy, and happy, and safe. I live life like this too because I just like making sure people are okay. I like this song particularly, because it talks of worrying about a girl and he talks about being able to say these things before but now he is in no right to say it. He says that now that they are broken up, he can't really say these things anymore and that really punctures my heart. I still care about… and I just wanted/want to make sure that she was/is alright. Now that I'm not the fire in the cold, I have to let go, as he says in the song, but for a different reason.
“Some legends are told
ReplyDeleteSome turn to dust or to gold
But you will remember me
Remember me for centuries”
Ha, if it’s going to be any song, it has to be this one. “Centuries” by the Fall Out Boys is one of the songs that comes to mind when talking about songs that have meaning to me. This specific part of the song talks about legends, or stories, that are repeated throughout generations. When the song mentions turning into dust or gold, it is not actually referring to the stories turning into these physical objects, but rather it is talking about the popularity of the stories. Some legends are forgotten, or become unpopular, so they turn to “dust”. However, some legends become very popular, to the point where they are constantly being recreated, or brought up, therefore turning into “gold”. The song then says that “you” (the audience) will remember him (the singer) for centuries. This is the chorus because it is the main message the singer want to push. This song resonates with my purpose, my goals in life. I want to be remembered, and going places without attempting to leave a mark is unacceptable. To be forgotten is one of the worst things that can happen to a person, at least in my opinion. I feel as though if I can do something remarkable, I can “live on” in the minds of anyone. I don’t know if I’m being self-centered, or just an because I want attention, but I always try to make an impact wherever I go.
Don't tell me not to live,
ReplyDeleteJust sit and putter,
Life's candy and the sun's
A ball of butter.
Don't bring around a cloud
To rain on my parade.
Don't tell me not to fly--
I've simply got to.
If someone takes a spill,
It's me and not you.
Who told you you're allowed
To rain on my parade!
-Don’t Rain On My Parade, Barbra Streisand (Funny Girl)
This song contains metaphors that compare life to sweet foods and happy parades. These things generally have a positive connotation, just like how I approach life. I tend to view myself as a happy person, or that’s how I love to see life in my eyes. The singer is saying how her life is happy just like a parade and how nobody else should determine how your emotions. If someone else is mad or angry, they shouldn’t affect you if you don’t want them to. This song is about saying that your emotions should be independent and the negative of others shouldn’t bring you down. You should follow your own aspirations and dreams no matter what they are, despite what anybody else says. Furthermore, I picked this song because I love musicals and this is a song I have adored since I was about ten years old.
A drop in the ocean
A change in the weather
I was praying that you and me might end up together
It's like wishing for rain as I stand in the desert
But I'm holding you closer than most 'cause you are my heaven
-A Drop In the Ocean, Ron Pope
Ron Pope uses metaphors and analogies to convey his feelings that he wants to be with someone, but he knows it’s highly unlikely and near impossible. He’s saying that he’s not giving up on this person, even though his chances are slim to none. The last line is a metaphor that states, “you are my heaven” which means that this person makes him feel hopeful and happy, so he doesn’t want to let go of her. In my life, I have experienced this feeling twice, and both times hit me really hard. I know this sounds crazy and creepy, but I had one single crush for three years of my life, mainly because I had this stupid thin line of hope and it was hard to let go. My life is basically a sad hopeless romantic story that still lacks a sappy scene, therefore there’s no plot to the storyline. This song is still relevant to me today because I’m on the second round of “Brittany you have no shot...Get over it”. Moving on from my nonexistent love life, I love this song because of the piano, it’s simplicity, and of course because it’s a ballad. I’m not a huge fan of songs with a high instrumentation and synthesizers. Also, as a musician I can hear every melody, harmony, and chord change in a song, and this particular song was arranged beautifully.
Music is an outlet for many teens including myself. Music is just simply a way to take a step back and just sort of chill out. I myself listen to music out of the enjoyment, and the fact that it just calms me down. One of the songs that I listen to on a daily basis is Proud Of Me Now by A Boogie. This song although somewhat repetitive kind of sums up what I look for in life. The song generally repeats the lyrics “are you proud of me now”. Those 6 words sum up what i look for/ want in life and that is approval from my friends/parents/family. Now I'm not 100% sure why that is, but I just do. I get that satisfaction from knowing that I make my family proud. This song also motivates me. It keeps me grounded and it allows me to think about my day and reflect back on it. It also makes me wonder whether or not I make my parents proud. I know that I am not an all out student and I think that lets them down. In fact I know it lets them down. I'm constantly compared to my sister Haley and how she's an all “A” kind of student and how she's going D1 for sports and how she's so mature and how she's this little perfect image in their eyes and i'm just kind of this kid whos not an all “A” student, who most likely won't go D1 for a sport and who sometimes isn't the most mature one. So this song makes me think about my life and how i am perceived by others.
ReplyDeleteWhen I first read this blog, there was one minor setback that I had when I was thinking of favorite songs; most of the music I listen to are instrumental (not just classical, though I do listen to that too whenever I’m studying).
ReplyDelete“I'm through with playing by the rules
Of someone else's game
Too late for second-guessing
Too late to go back to sleep
It's time to trust my instincts
Close my eyes and leap!
It's time to try
Defying gravity
I think I'll try
Defying gravity
And you can't pull me down!
...
As someone told me lately:
‘Everyone deserves the chance to fly!’
And if I'm flying solo
At least I'm flying free
To those who'd ground me
Take a message back from me
Tell them how I am
Defying gravity
I'm flying high
Defying gravity
And soon I'll match them in renown!
And nobody in all of Oz
No Wizard that there is or was
Is ever gonna bring me down!”
Here is “Defying Gravity” from the renown musical Wicked and this was sung by Idina Menzel. Here the wicked witch, Elphaba, is finally making it known that she will defy the influential figure, the Wizard of Oz, and go against everyone else if she has to. She uses a metaphor of how no one can stop her, not even gravity, which she later proves by flying off of her broom at the most iconic part of the song. The song keeps bringing up how Elphaba will fly freely to emphasize the metaphor. Elphaba is making the message of how no one is limited by someone or something, everyone is free to do whatever they want and no one can tell them that it is wrong to do so. She directly states it at the end with how no one “is ever gonna bring me down.” The songwriter is effectively telling us Elphaba is finally making the decision to leave Oz and go against the Wizard, defying him no matter how many opposes her. By using the diction, “defying,” this exemplifies her will, making her determined to defy gravity and get the enjoyment and a more exciting life. Furthermore, every time that Elphaba/Idina is about to get to the chorus, there is a gradual buildup of how strong her will is going to be. At the beginning, she just realized her wishes and she learns to just “close her eyes and leap!” And the chorus is just her singing proudly how she wants to try defying gravity and she later does in the song. She repeats her message of how no matter what happens, nothing will ever bring her down.
This song taught me that it is okay for me to go against what others say and be myself; I do not have to follow what others tell me I should do. It is okay for me to outwardly express my opinions even though they go against what others say. Instead of quietly agreeing with something that I do not approve of, I am able to go against someone or something without any form of consequence. For instance, I do not have to listen to my family or follow every one of their expectation since I am my own individual.
While searching through my song list on Spotify, I came across the fact that most of my songs, through different genres of music, is mostly about love. Under the Hip-hop genre, one of my favorites is “21 Questions” by 50 Cent where one’s love through troublesome events is questioned if it would remain. Majority of love songs from my list falls under the genre of R&B. R&B music is one of the top genres of music in my opinion which I believe that others would agree on as well. With big hit artists, although some of them have retired or not as active, such as Usher, Mario, and R. Kelly, R&B was and still is a party favorite. As times turn more modern, R&B branches off into many different subgenres. One such genre is contemporary R&B. And under this category do I pick my song. By Australian recording artist Guy Sebastian and American rapper Lupe Fiasco, the song “Battle Scars” was produced. One part of the song goes:
ReplyDelete“Hope the wound heals but it never does
That's cause you're at war with love
You're at war with love, yeah
These battle scars don't look like they're fading
Don't look like they're ever going away
They ain't never gonna change
These battle…”
Similar to war with terrorism, the war with love is neverending. Love doesn’t always go the way you want into and thus the wounds that occur sticks forever.
“Never let a wound ruin me
But I feel like ruin's wooing me
Arrow holes, they never close from Cupid on a shooting spree
Feeling stupid cause I know it ain't no you and me
But when you're trying to beat the odds up
Been trying to keep your nods up
And you know that you should know
And let her go
But the fear of the unknown
Hold another lover strong
Sends you back into the zone
With no Tom Hanks to bring you home
A lover not a fighter
On the front line with a poem
Trying to write yourself a rifle
Maybe sharpen up a stone
To fight the tanks and drones of you being alone”
The artist uses an extended metaphor in this verse where love and war are similar. I always try to stick to my ideal of not having regrets. Regrets way people down. It affects the mood of a person in a negative way. But then the second line of this verse, “but i feel like ruin’s wooing me”, always gets me. Discussing a heartbreak in this metaphor of ruin, the “ruin” is always there bringing me back to it. The extended metaphor continues on the next line with “arrows” being “guns”. Each “arrow” wound is a shot to the heart and by including Cupid, the “arrows” deal with love. The next line talks about one person doing so much for nothing which kind of relates to me in the fact that it’s one sided. I haven’t put in much effort as of late. The next three-four lines are about moving on which I can never do. There is a fear of the “unknown”, the future, that I can’t bear to witness. In the line after, Tom Hanks is mentioned where he can’t save the person from the war as Hanks did in Saving Private Ryan. The last four lines of the extended metaphor gets me the most. While the phrase “the pen is mightier than the sword is true”, in a war, there are lots of advanced weaponry such as tanks and drones. That’s not a fair match. And talking about the “tanks” and “drones” of loneliness shows how much of a pressuring force loneliness is.