This is not something I ever thought I'd share with others, but I am a huge fan of music. Be it for fun or for motivation, listening to music always seems to positively impact my day. This being so, when I got to college my love for music evolved into something much deeper. It became a slate upon which to carve all of my life's memories.
The idea came to me when I began to realize how vividly I remembered time periods in life by the music I listened to at the time. Hearing a certain song would trigger all of these memories and emotions. A song could ensure that I never forgot some of the best or worst times in my life.
An example of this before college was Joe's entire Ain't Nothin Like Me album. I think this is one of the best R&B albums I've ever heard, but it makes me sad to hear it because at the time I listened to it there was a girl I really wanted to be with. Even though that girl and I hate each other, listening to that album still brings back painful memories.
It can even be happier songs. For example, Lupe Fiasco's The Cool album makes me kind of sad at times because of that same girl. It was also a sad time in general. However, most the songs on that album are very upbeat and encouraging.
So there's a couple examples of this "musical memory" as I like to call it. What I did with it at college, though I'm not sure at what point I decided to, was to actually document these songs for each semester. Each semester, I assumed, would basically be a new chapter in my life with its own adventures. The music I listened to that semester would be made into a sort of soundtrack with the song that stood out the most being named the "theme" of the semester. So far it has turned out to be a neat and fun experience.
One thing I have tried not to do is pick the song before I actually experience the semester. This has happened once, but it worked out for the best. So far I have lived through 4 semesters of college. Each has its on theme and when I hear them my story basically tells itself. Ok, I'm going to try and write them all along with a link to each. They should all be on youtube.
Semester 1: Get Up- Beach Crusaders
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBacJJ_Tpl8&feature=related (hard to hear live, found song originally by mistake)
Semester 2: Eye of the Tiger-Survivor
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cf45I1ZI__w
Semester 3: Don't Stop Believing-Journey
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rfUYuIVbFg0 (i used itunes to cut out the whole 1st minute in my version)
Semester 4: Go For It-MC Breeze
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x36_GZgoAIc
I also had to let summertime be a part of the experience. Here's the themes from the two summers I've experienced while in college.
Summer 1: Indestructible-Exile
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prDVEQ4DfOc
Summer 2: I Hold On-SLASH
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_n3662vgJw
That's it so far and the college experience is far from over. There will hopefully be many more stories to tell in the future. As you can tell, the themes didn't always sync up with the type of music I listened to at the time. However, themes were always picked to be motivational and uplifting. This means that many of them sound corny as hell, but they lit some of my darkest hours while at school or at home for the summer. Maybe this exercise will do some good for you if you are looking for extra motivation or a way to look back on your experiences in life. Glad I could share this.
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