Music is everywhere. Most of us have our favorite song or genre, or that erfect playlist on Spotify or Pandora radio. The music industry is huge, with all sorts of genres and subgenres to satisfy a wide range of tastes.
We pick songs that fit our moods and make us want to listen with our whole bodies. Tapping our foot or nodding with the beat. A great song could be a little pick-me-up on a bad day, For just a few minutes those lyrics you have always loved take you to a happy place.
It can unite people from all over. Traveling miles to see their favorite bands in concert, people get there and it doesn’t matter who you are or where you’re from. You are all there for the same love of that music.
Beyond listening to it for pleasure, for centuries we have played it at occasions of all kinds; weddings, funerals, birthdays and any number of celebrations. All because music is such big part of our lives, even if we don’t notice it. The radio in your car, restaurants and grocery stores, doctors offices; the list goes on. It’s hard to go anywhere without hearing a tune playing in the background.
Now imagine the world without it. Replace every time you hear music with silence. Like the soundtrack in a movie, you may never notice it till its goes away.
As humans we tend to feel uncomfortable with vast silences. In that way, music acts as more than just an enjoyable pastime, but as a way to fill the void of loneliness we all face.
So I’ll ask you this: what does music really mean to you? Do you pick your favorite songs based on popularity, or because they make you feel something? Do you listen to the words and find their meaning, or tap your feet along with a groovy tune.
Music appeals to us all in our own way, and will always be an integral part of our culture.
Cerridwyn Kuykendall
Reporter