Music Is Life...

There’s a reason why people say that the kind of music you enjoy listening to shows the kind of person that you are. If someone can go through your playlist, they can have an idea of what’s going through your mind when you’re listening to such songs. They might not be 100% accurate, but they will very well be as close as possible to it.

Why is this? Because we all connect to music on a very deep level, in a way that we don’t connect to anything else. I don’t think there’s anyone in this world who doesn’t like listening to music. There are people who don’t like watching movies, there are those who don’t watch sports… but there is no one who doesn’t like music. No matter what, music is very important, and that’s why we see it in every facet of our lives.

Music is everywhere, even in events that have nothing to do with music. In football, they pay good money to artists to come and perform and even sing original songs. In games and even in movies, music has become such an integral part of it that without it, no film will be interesting. Music is what dictates the tone and pacing of a film. Just by the soundtrack alone, you can know for sure if the scene you’re about to watch is a suspense-filled one, action-packed, or a romantic one. That’s the power of music.

Someone once made a comment, telling people to try replacing a soundtrack from a movie scene and see just how much the scene would be transformed. Maybe take out the sound from a horror scene and replace it with the soundtrack from a romantic comedy, then you’ll see how a scene that was once intense becomes less so and more lighthearted. Just because of music.

And all this goes to show just how important music is to us because, whether we accept it or not, we can’t do without it. And for me, I’m actually careful about the kind of music I listen to. Many times, I use music to fill my head when I don’t want to think. I simply just want to get lost in the moment and enjoy the rhythm. And that’s why, to an extent, the lyrics don’t matter to me. The way I enjoy songs in English would be the same way I enjoy songs in Korean or Japanese. The way I vibe to a Yoruba song is the same way I will vibe to an Igbo song.

What matters most is that it’s a song that I enjoy. But then, there are still some kinds of songs I don’t like, and I don’t really enjoy it when people play them around me. Songs that are only about heartbreak, I find them annoying, and I really don’t see what people see in them. If your heart has already been broken, why make yourself feel worse by listening to songs that remind you of that? These sad and depressing songs are just not my style at all.

Back in school, I had a lodgemate who was a fan of such songs, and even worse, he was one of those people who can listen to a song on repeat for hours. Like a bloody disease! And even worse, he never did this on his own; he would be blaring it on his speaker and opening his door wide, so everyone else would join in the sadness with him. At first, we told him to listen to his sad songs in the privacy of his room, but he refused. In the end, whenever he started playing his, some of us with speakers as well would bring out our own and be slamming hip hop. It was crazy! A cocktail of JBL, Zealot, and DJack speakers… all of them booming at high volume, drowned out his sad songs instantly! He didn’t try that nonsense again.

Everyone has a right to listen to whatever song they want, but that should be a personal thing, and it shouldn’t disturb everyone else. Another type of song I do well to avoid is those that constantly sing about haters. I know haters are real, but come on… they shouldn’t be the focus of your music career or the focus of your musical taste.

Well, I guess everyone does what they feel is best for them in the end. As far as I’m concerned, music is and always will be life!