The Sound of Feelings

Without music, the world would not be as colorful as it is. I think the reason for my taste in music has a lot to do with the fact that I understand people express themselves in different ways. For instance, not everyone can sing as soulfully as…let’s say Stevie Wonder. On the flip side, not everyone can rap like KRS-One or play like Hendrix. However, most of us, if not all of us, have a desire to express ourselves in the best way we know how. People are closed off to different music genres, claiming that one is better than the other. Of course it’s fine to have preferences, but ALL OF IT is considered MUSIC. We all have our opinions, but as for my own…I don’t think anyone has the right to say one genre is not as “real” as another. What I’m referring to is the old joke that “rap music” is an oxymoron.

Like I said, people choose to express themselves the best way they know how and with what they are most talented in, to show people how they feel or to voice their opinions. I remember telling a friend of mine that people should not denounce rap. Rappers are people who may not be able to sing, but like sharing their thoughts through music, the way they know how.

I listen to everything, whether it be rock or country or reggae. It all depends on how I’m feeling on a certain day, or what I am doing. For instance, Bob Marley is the best to listen to on a warm day when you’re driving for a while (like on a stretch of the Garden State Parkway) with the windows down and the wind blowing through your hair. Keith Urban is the only country artist I really listen to, but he’s also a Parkway favorite, as well as Maroon 5 and John Mayer. Once the evening hits, R&B and acoustic is on rotation. I could listen to old and new R&B, from the Temptations to Ne-Yo. Cousins in the Philippines got me listening to Boyce Avenue’s acoustic covers, which is my newfound love! In the morning when I need to wake up and coffee can’t do the trick, I blast some rock music or turn on a Christian radio station. When I’m working out, I listen to dance mixes of my favorite songs and upbeat hip hop.

Basically, I cannot listen to only one genre of music. Life is too diverse, and it needs an eclectic soundtrack to go along with it.

And now for your viewing and listening pleasure, Alejandro Manzano of Boyce Avenue...check out the whole band on YouTube. I am now a fan!