You may be humming a different tune after reading this article.
Can you think of your favorite song at this moment? What story do the lyrics tell? Is this a situation or feeling you have experienced in your life? For most the answer will be a resounding YES. That is simply because the we are magnetized toward the type of lyrics and music that reflect the conditions of our hearts.
I once met a guy who complained that all of the songs being aired on the radio were about heartache and pain. To which I replied, "Nope, those are only the songs you connect with and that is why you hear them more vividly than the others."
When we listen to music or a particular artist we are drawn to the energetic vibration of their artistic style because it reminds us of ourselves. For a time I couldn't go an hour without humming Kanye West's Touch The Sky because during that time I had visions of making my dreams come true.
Then I found myself being energized by rap artist Trina's verse on Trick Daddy's Na'an Ni$$a. It was because at that time I was becoming more open about my sexuality and sexual desires and hood upbringing. I was becoming more in tune with where I came from as both Trick Daddy and Trina were raised in my neighborhood.
A couple of weeks ago I was introduced to Wildflower by The New Birth an old group from the 70's and I felt so connected to the song that I made this video of my life.
The lyrics seemed to represent me.
She faced the hardest times you can imagine
And many times her eyes fall back the tears
And when her youthful world was about to fall in
Each time her slender shoulders
For the weight of all her tears
And a sorrow no one hears
Still rings in midnight silence in her ears
Chorus:
Let her cry
for she's a lady
Let her dream
for she's a child
Let the rain fall down upon her
She's a free and gentle flower growing wild
And if by chance that I should hold her
Let me hold her for a while
And if allowed just one possession
I would pick her from her garden to be mine
Be careful how you touch her for she'll awaken
Sleep's the only freedom that she knows
And when you look into her eyes you won't believe
For the way she's always paying for a debt she never owed
And a silent wind still blows that she can only hear
So she goes
Repeat chorus 2x
She's my free and gentle flower, growing growing growing wild
She's a free and gentle flower
growing growing wild
She's my flower,
growing growing growing wild
Growing growing growing growing wild
She's my free and gentle flower
You can guess how I feel about myself from reading the lyrics to this song and you can guess how you view life from studying the lyrics from your favorite song. If the lyrics are laced with fearful thoughts and heartache you can choose a new song to sing in your head and in your heart.
It's up to you to shift your focus. What you focus on will be magnetized to you in your life AND on the radio.
What song are you singing?
2 comments:
And now for a different point of view: I would suggest that one's favorite song might have very little to do with lyrics that speak to a situation or feeling of one's own experience -- or for that matter, not much to do with the lyrics at all -- depending on how one listens to music. (Of course, I say this as someone who stands a better chance of being able to hum a song's entire bass part than knowing all the words, if that's any indication of how I listen.)
One of my very favorite songs is one called "Wooden Ships", written by David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Paul Kantner and recorded in 1969 both by Crosby, Stills and Nash and by Jefferson Airplane. The lyrics are about sailing away from the horrors of the aftermath of a thermonuclear war, with verses that contrast the beauty and the ease of being out on the sea with watching people die of radiation poisoning back on land. I cannot say that these lyrics have much to do with a situation or feeling I have experienced in my own life, since I have very little experience with sailing, and even less experience with the horrors of thermonuclear war.
But what really underscores my point that it really isn't so much about the words or a personal connection to them is the fact that I have a decided preference for the Jefferson Airplane version over the better known CSN version. What makes for the difference? Not the lyrics, obviously; the differences are relatively minor. It's more a matter of the arrangements, the performances, and the overall atmosphere created by both. The CSN version, despite the dark subject matter, is actually quite jazzy and mellow musically, something particulary highlighted by Stephen Stills guitar soloing as well as the perfect vocal harmonies. Jefferson Airplane's version, on the other hand, is darker and more anguished. The vocal harmonies are fiercer, more raw and more urgent. Jorma Kaukonen's guitar work ranges from mournful in the beginning to screaming with anguish. And bassist Jack Casady contributes to the dark color with his occasional use of open 4ths, especially in some of the quieter passages. Not only does this seem to be a better fit for the words -- when I think of thermonuclear war, words like "jazzy" and "mellow" generally don't come to mind -- but it just resonates with me. I don't mean to seem like I'm criticizing the CSN version; it's still good music and a fine recording to listen to. But there's something about Jefferson Airplane's version that resonates with me at a deeper level.
So it may not simply be a matter of the story the lyrics tell.
My favorite song is Carmen by Lana Del Rey; I'm not and never have been addicted to meth and I don't stay up til morning partying every night.
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