A love letter to music

A beat, a single line, or simply just the artist can bring an array of emotions. Whether the day is good or bad, music is there to connect and heal. 

Since the moment I could talk, music has always played a huge part in my life. It has surrounded everything I do, from the best days to the worst days, music reminds me of all the moments I’ve lived. Music has the beautiful ability to bring one closer to themselves, the world, and even their culture. 

The sound of the song are often important in whether you will listen to it or not, but for me, it’s the lyrics that captivate me and have caused me to grow an intense love of music. Maybe it’s just because I love literature as well but essentially that’s what songwriting is. There is tone, metaphors, setting, and many of the same elements there are in writing–except in songs, what one says is sung into a sort of catchy tune. 

When I was six, Hannah Montana was my favorite singer. I would listen to her music on repeat, not so much because of how pop her music was but because of what she had to say with her music. Maybe six-year-old me couldn’t necessarily relate but I could understand what she sang about and that’s what mattered to me. 

“There’s always gonna be another mountain/I’m always gonna wanna make it move…Ain’t about what’s waiting on the other side/It’s the climb” are some of my favorite lyrics to ever be written. It is from the song “The Climb.” Six-year-old me was touched and took this in and kept it at the back of her mind. 

Who I am today understands this line more than ever and that’s the true beauty of what music can do. The ability to range from many ages is grand. This line will most likely always have an effect on me and that highlights the power of music–especially songwriting. 

As I grew older, my taste in music changed and I switched from Disney Channel singers to singers like Taylor Swift and Lana Del Rey. Their words have obviously stuck with me too. 

Their style of sound tie together into the music they sing but what truly lures me in as a listener is what they have to say in those songs. They touch upon many relatable themes like friendship, family, relationships, struggles, and so much more. 

Swift’s lyrics like, “Everything you lose is a step you take/So make the friendship bracelets/Take the moment and taste it/ You’ve got no reason to be afraid,” in her song “You’re on your own, kid,” are lines that relate to me now as someone going off to college but I know that even ten years from now these lyrics will most likely relate to what I will be going through. 

That is something so special about songs, it is timeless. The ability it has to adapt to everyone’s unique life situation is something that is so fascinating to me. 

I believe that to be the true beauty in music–it is the connection. Being able to relate to what you’re listening to can make you feel seen or less alone. All we ever want to be is understood, right? 

Music is art, and art makes us feel a range of emotions. Sometimes we search for it in others and the people we surround ourselves with but sometimes music can give us that feeling too.