I was introduced to Spotify this weekend. I learned how to create a playlist on Friday and spent time Friday afternoon searching and adding songs to it. I've been listening to my new playlist ever since.
This morning I had it playing while I was in the shower, my best thinking space, and I began to think about what our music choices say about us.
Yesterday, as I was exploring Spotify, I checked out the playlists of some friends. One friend in particular has a selection of songs that are off my radar. They just aren't from the genre of music that I usually listen to. I remember thinking that while her playlist isn't something that I would choose, it fits her perfectly. It's a little out of the box. She is a creative, out of the box thinker, which I love, and her music fits that idea as well.
Then I started thinking about the songs that reside in my newly created playlist and wondering what those songs say about me. Does my song list fit me? I have a little bit of a lot of things in my playlist. I have everything from the Frozen soundtrack
for my daughter (Who am I kidding? I love it too!) to Pink to Josh Grobin to Michael Buble to The White Stripes. I have beautiful songs like Hallelujah and Can You Let Me See Beneath Your Beautiful and Love Me Tender. I have songs just for fun like The Cup Song and Call Me Maybe, a touch of Inde-pop with Ingrid Michaelson's The Way I Am, a little pop with Brave by Sara Bareillis, and even Tiny Dancer by Elton John. I have songs that I love right now like Blake Shelton's God Gave Me You, Elvis's Can't Help Falling in Love With You, which was the first dance at my wedding, and songs that remind me of the past like Billy Joel's Piano Man.
I guess it could be said that my playlist is a bit out of the box too! I wouldn't necessarily call myself an out of the box kind of gal, but my music choices are quite eclectic. This has been the case for a long time, although I may not have always admitted it as easily (ugh...middle school).
It was even true when I was the one performing the music. As a violin player in the high school orchestra, I played and loved classical music, performed in the pit orchestra for musicals and enjoyed the big band music and show tunes, and I was a member of the fiddle group where I played and had fun with bluegrass music.
Thinking back, I wonder if it was because of this experience of playing different types of music that I have such an eclectic taste now? My orchestra teacher was a pretty eclectic guy who appreciated all sorts of music and wasn't afraid to be out of the box with his choices of songs for us to perform. We played a little of everything from classical Bach and Brahms to the 60's song Twist and Shout to the Star Wars Theme song to November Rain by Guns 'N Roses, my all-time favorite performance.
Is it my friend's background that makes her playlist seem out of the box? Is it my background that makes my choices so broad? Would my playlist seem out of the box to someone else? What exactly is
in the box? What is
in the box for a 35-year-old wife/mother of four/kindergarten teacher?
Is there even a box? And if there is, who says what should be in it? Why does it even matter? I like what I like whether it is in or out of the box, and I hope you do too!
If you want to check out my playlist, click below.
http://open.spotify.com/user/1229028585/playlist/2mUMmqlBjhJiG0ZhaUJtKO