Speaking on a personal level in terms of music, I believe that people and music have an extraordinary, dependent bond. Therefore, neither can truly exist beyond the conventional confines of life without the other. Based on my personal belief, music has significantly affected my life in a positive and powerful way. Among the numerous songs I have listened to, the following three songs have had the most significant impact on my life: “Calm The Storm” by Graffiti6, “Kyoto” by Yung Lean and “Deja Vu” by Twenty88. Each of these songs, in their own unique way, has left an eternal impression on my life in one way r another.
Personally, these three songs have connected themselves to a moment in time where I was unbelievably happy. “Calm The Storm,” in particular, holds a special place in my heart because it allows me to relive a beautiful time of finding my first love. As the song begins with a simple drum pattern, I am reminded of the hesitant high school boy who was unsure how to express his feelings for a beautiful girl named Siena. I remember the countless nights lying in bed, staring at the blank ceiling, trying to find the words to express how I felt.
As the chorus “(Calm the storm) Sometimes I feel like (Calm the storm), Sometimes I want to (Calm the storm) Sometimes, I wish I could (Calm the storm) Sometimes I try to (Calm the storm),” washes over a slow, vibing harp and guitar rhythm, I am able to recall how I obtained the answer – I simply confessed my feelings while driving her home after a late night. Truth be told, she initially rejected me, claiming that best friends should not date. After continuously pursuing the potential relationship for several months, Siena agreed to finally date me.
Subsequently, ne year into our relationship we decided to separate during our first year of college. Despite this, no matter how many times I listen to “Calm the Storm,” pressing the play button makes me reminisce and fall in love all over again. Although there are far more complex love songs, this song’s simplicity is enough for me to remember our love. Similar to the timid boy in high school who didn’t know how to express his true feelings for the girl he liked, I was also unsure of my future after high school. My dream of owning my own business at one point seemed unattainable and nearly impossible to accomplish.
Without question, music has been a big part of steering my life, and in particular the rap song “Kyoto” has had a major impact on my life. It has channeled my vision from fear and doubt into confidence and determination in all my personal endeavors. When Yung Lean’s chorus plays, “Do me, I’mma do me. I’mma make her mine, I’mma make her mine.. I grind, I grind,”2 I interpret it in a certain way. First, I believe to achieve the goals I have set for myself (making her mine), I need be confident and persistent (Do me, I’mma do me) in all of my endeavors, even if the outcome is lmost always failure (I grind, I grind).
As the chorus closes out, the lyric “I got an empire state of mind,”3 is sung. I will always remember the exact moment where my volition and confidence was affected in positive way by this verse. I first heard the song while completing the writing section of Florida State University’s admission application. Like most students, the college application process was extremely stressful which caused me to doubt my future. When I heard this song, I was able to regain confidence, attain that “empire state of mind,” and eventually eceived my acceptance into Florida State University.
The confidence that flourished in me ultimately carried into every other aspect of my life. The lyrics at the end of the chorus, “Been locked up, in my own mind. My thoughts will never be shut out,”4 deeply impacts my outlook on certain situations. Since receiving my acceptance into Florida State, when doubt and failure creep into my mind, I revert to this song. Accomplishing a goal or overcoming an obstacle after listening to this song has instilled me with motivation to succeed. In spite of my goal of ecoming successful through the means of owning my own business, the most important aspect of my life are the people that surround me.
I learned this valuable lesson this past summer in July through unfortunate circumstances. While my relationship with Siena had ended half a year ago and we rarely spoke, a terrible car accident brought us back together. Obviously this is not the point that makes me happy, but the end result is. This horrific event was both a blessing and a curse because we were reunited as friends, but at the cost of severe and life changing injuries to her body. Severe memory loss and significant nerve damage in her left leg, which threatened her ability to walk were among the worst injuries.
Thankfully, through heavy medication and intense rehabilitation the nerve damage in her leg healed. Her memory, however, was a completely different story. Because of the head on car collision, Siena suffered a concussion, which drastically altered her memory. The song “Deja Vu” by Twenty88 just so happened to come out around the same time during the summer. After the accident occurred, this song had given me a newfound meaning f my relationship with Siena. Aside from the visitations with flowers and get well balloons, the specific reason why Siena and I reunited was because I acted as an anchor to her memories.
For whatever reason, Siena’s memory of me and our history had not faded. The memory loss Siena suffered ran along the lines of forgetting about particular details such as high school football games, parties and people. At times she can not recollect particular details such as important dates or people’s faces. Her memories were not completely gone, however, merely lost and fogged. Over the span of a couple of weeks and through detailed discussions and descriptions told by me, she was capable of recalling people and events.
By simply talking and being around her, I acted as trigger for her memories. Throughout this whole process, “Deja Vu” was the song I leaned on for support and guidance. Now when I hear the nostalgic chorus, “Remember all the nights we used to fall through. Wondering why you don’t fall through. On the late late nights, I used to call you. Wondering why I don’t call,”5 I cannot help but correlate it back to that time in my life. Over the span of one month our connection began to rekindle and I could not help the desire to be with her again.
How could I have broken up such a good thing? Why did I stop talking to her and just let her go? As the chorus continues “And its Deja vu, cause I been here with you. I swear it’s all Deja vu, cause we been here, and we done this,”6 I happily found myself back in her life as a friend. As the time spent with Siena helping her get back to normalcy grew more and more so did my buried feelings. By the end of Siena’s healing process, we had both come to terms with one another nd agreed to give the relationship another shot.
Fundamentally, when music is infused into everyday life and taken into careful consideration, unforgettable moments are made and feelings become alive. From total euphoria to hopeless despair, life itself breathes through song and within this breath personal growth, both spiritually and mentally, can occur. In the grand scheme of everything, life and music were created for each other. Relationships become more intimate and develop into unforgettable moments, far-fetched dreams and fantasies seem attainable, and tough times become the most joyful of times.