Hey Mr. DJ…
Music and relationships go hand and hand. Most couples have their favorite song, or can recall their first slow dance. I finally was able to listen to Anthony Hamilton’s, “Charlene,” without getting misty eyed. I mean it had such value in my life at the time when it was released. It was “our” song. It was the lyrics and the message behind said song, that had the ability to captivate you and drawn us into it. I do not know about you but music pierces my soul. That is why I am very careful of the things I allow myself to listen to. It has to go beyond the beat, because before you know it, you are sings songs like, “you’re so vain, don’t you think this song is about you, don’t you”, not realizing that yes, the song is about YOU.
Which leads me to this concept of old school verse new school? I know for me, I dislike hearing comments that music was so much better in the 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s. I think music is generational, and it bridges gaps. If you are not seeking to learn and grow, then you will be stuck believing that “Thriller” is the greatest album ever written.Lest you forget, that “Foreplay”, is on constant rotation in households of women who grew up in the 90s. I mean, we have to understand, music can get you stuck in a time warp, just as relationships get stuck in ruts. If you are not willing to adapt to change, then you will find yourself on the outside looking in. The parallels between relationships and music are so profound.We often hear people say, they preferred Mary J, when she was in pain, as you heard it in her voice. As soon as you heard, “All the time, I was loving you, you were busy loving someone else”, you felt her pain, you were relating to your own pain. You wanted to go and just really go ham on that person who left you high and dry. Especially if you felt, they had no right to be the person who called it quits. Or better yet, you listen to words like, “my baby and I are back together again, loving is better than it’s ever been, if it wasn’t for the trials we been through, I would never have the courage to come back to you, no pain, no gain, no pain, mm,” I mean Betty Wright had a way of making you feel like, yes, he is a good man, and taking him back now is the best thing since smoking.
Case in point, I was speaking with a friend who reminded me of how much we count on music to express our feelings. I mean one of the greatest love letters written to me, encompassed music. I still want depart from that letter, because it conveyed a message that I do not believe he truly understood. Therefore, before we start judging the lyrics and music of today just think how crazy our parents thought we were, when for some may have thought, “Red Light Special” by TLC was the joint to listen too; better yet, “Dirty Diana” by Michael Jackson. It’s about preferences and taste. I may not like a short and stout mane when it comes to mate, but guess what, short and stout may just be right for you. The saying goes; do not judge a book by its cover. Well, don’t let the lyrics fool you. You will find yourself, singing, “another said love song” by Toni Braxton, wondering why you cannot get over the fool that captured your heart over Toni Tony Tone’s “Just Me and You, ooo baby”.
So what's up blogland, what song speaks to your soul?
Tactful Talk Tuesday with Taneka