A two part blog on 2006, my philosophies and my top 10 music picks

I have been reflecting on this past year as of late, and I've been wanting to blog about it. This has been, yet again, a topsy turvy kind of year for me. 2005 was literally a rollercoaster ride when it came to my life. 2006...I don't exactly know how to describe it. Better than 2005 for sure, but at the same time, it did leave much to be desired. Looking back on 2006, I think I'm going to call it the year of getting by. Getting by is sometimes a mechanism that is necessary in life. It doesn't fully get you forward, but it stops you from falling backwards. Instead of going into all of the details of life, I figured, I would rather blog about a philosophy of life that I've obtained. It's really funny how one small aspect of your life can make such an incredible difference in it.

One thing that has always defined my life has been music. I talk about my love of music, but it really is one of those little passions in life. When I was a kid, my friends would spend their summer taking swimming lessons or playing on a soccer team, and I would spend my summer having music lessons, and going to music camp. I lived for that! Every summer I couldn't wait for the two weeks of the Summer Academy of Music. It was golden! I realized that I've been singing in some form of choir or vocal ensemble for almost 14 years now. How insane is that? I've literally been playing an instrument (my vocal cords thank you very much) for 14 years. That's more than half of my life. I've gotten the incredible opportunity to work with some of the best vocal teachers, musicians, and conductors in the country.

It's funny because music is such a part of my life, but because I don't tote around an instrument or spend my days listening to the music of the baroque period, I sometimes find it hard to actually say "Yes, I am a musician." I once was talking to a professor I worked for about spending my summers working at music camp after he saw me wearing a Blue Lake sweatshirt and questioned me about it. After a short discussion I ended up telling him about some of my experience, and his comment to me was "What a great accomplishment to have made at such an early age! You're a true blue musician, right here in my office. You should be very proud of yourself." It threw me for a loop because I found it hard to describe myself as a musician, when mostly I just tell people I "like to sing."

Last night I saw the movie Dream Girls. I was in my musical heaven. I think Motown is simply one of the best genres of music. Maybe it's because I'm from Michigan, maybe it's my African-American heritage, I don't know what it is. But tell me you can listen to a Stevie Wonder song or Reflections by Diana Ross and the Supremes and not stamp your foot or wiggle a little bit to the music. Dream Girls was able to capture that time in music. I get irritated with some of my music snob friends, as I call them. The music performance majors, the music ed majors, the people who spend 6 or more hours a day practicing, and the only thing they get out of it is a strange social awkwardness, and a declaration that "I only listen to classical music, oh, and if I have to listen to popular music, then I guess I like the Beatles." Give me a freaking break! As one of the best music professors I've ever had said "Even Mozart at one time was a popular artist." In other words, stop snubbing your nose at the music of our times! Music, like any other art form, is a expression of life. So while people snub their nose at whatever music they don't understand, (in a lot of my friends cases I find that my white friends snub their noses at R&B, Hip Hop, and Rap, and my black friends snub their noses at Rock and Country), they're missing out on a lot of life. We all have a lot in common, and music is a great way to get that message out there.

I promise I have a point to all of this ramble!

I watched one of my favorite artists on TV once. John Mayer took a famous rapper into a country western bar (I think the rapper was someone from Cash Money Millionaires, maybe Baby Boi?). John started playing his guitar, singing a slow melody, singing about how his "baby don't want me no more." All the people in the bar were nodding their heads and dancing along to the music. Suddenly, John sped up the beat, and Baby Boi starts rapping the lyrics to the song. Everyone in the bar stopped dancing and stared. John had been playing a Cash Money rap song from the very beginning. Same song, same lyrics, just thrown at you in a different way. It just goes to show that a) we all go through a lot of the same things in life and b) just because it is expressed in a different way does not make it something that you should snub your nose at. The human struggle might be different for every person, but the point is, we all struggle.

So my point to all of this ramble is that, yeah, I've struggled with life these two past years. One of the saving graces I've had is my music. It's something that gives me complete freedom of spirit. When I'm in the middle of singing an incredible piece of music, whether it be a good ol' Motown ballad or something like the Faure Requiem, everything else in life becomes non-existent. The only thing that matters at that very moment is the incredible power of the music I am a part of. I like to watch orchestras rehearse, because it always makes me believe in God. Yes, watching a bow go across a cello makes me believe in God. With all my science logic and reason, I can not explain the incredible power and beauty of what I hear than to say that it has to be God. I think music is simply a gift from God, whatever or whomever he is.

I don't know what 2007 will bring, but here's hoping to great music!


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And here, is a little blog P.S.

If you have an iPod, this is a kind of fun thing to do. Since I got my iPod for Christmas last year, this works out well. According to iTunes, these are the songs that were played the most on my iPod this year. So I guess you can call this my music top 10 list for 2006.

10. Pump It- Black Eyed Peas. It was played 22 times on my iPod. I love to listen to high energy music at the gym, and the Black Eyed Peas have the best rhythms and beats to keep you moving.

9. This was a three way tie between: Behind These Hazel Eyes- Kelly Clarkson, Heard 'Em Say- Kanye West featuring Adam Levine from Maroon 5, and Feel It- Black Eyed Peas. These were all played 24 times on my iPod. Kelly Clarkson had some awesome power ballads this year, and that was one of her best. Kanye West has force yet insight behind his music, and even though I think in person he comes off as a jerk, his music really makes you think. The Black Eyed Peas, again, they just keep me moving at the gym.

8. Dum Diddly- Black Eyed Peas. Played 25 times. This is my fav off of the Monkey Business CD, and often at the gym, I'd hear this once and then immediately hit repeat.

7. This was a four way tie! These songs were each played 26 times on my iPod. Since U Been Gone- Kelly Clarkson, We Belong Together- Mariah Carey, Daughters- John Mayer, and Only Heart- John Mayer. Another of Kelly's awesome power ballads. Mariah, Mariah, you on fiah...lol I love me some Mariah and I'm not ashamed to admit it! And ya'll know I HEART John Mayer. And actually, seeing as I have more than one version of Daughters on my iPod, this song by all rights should technically be higher on the list.

6. A two way tie. Clarity- John Mayer, and Show Stopper-Danity Kane. These were played 27 times. Clarity is such a spirit lifter! Listen to it if you are feeling down. It's not a sugar coated tune, more of a "ease you into feeling good today" type of song. Show Stopper, just makes me want to shake my arse...and that's all there is to it.

5. Touch the Sky- Kanye West. This song has the big guns, great beat, great brass, throwback tune, you name it, it's got it. Including a pretty funny video to go along with it. Played 31 times.

4. Don't Forget About Us- Mariah Carey. Mariah's got game man, I love it! LOL I guess I'm showing her some mixed girl love. This was played 37 times.

3. Be Without You- Mary J Blige. This song was everything I love about Mary, the best of the R&B smoothness with all the power of the world behind her tone. Yeah yeah, I love me some Mary, too. This was played 38 times.

2. Diamonds from Sierra Leone Remix- Kanye West featuring Jay-Z. This song has the retro throw back with two of my favorite rappers going at it. Aw yea! This is a great song to listen to when you're pissed off at someone. This was played 42 times.

1. Wheel- John Mayer. It was played a grand total of 47 times. When you count how many times I listened to it in the car on CD, the total number of plays goes wayyyy up. This song just moves my heart, and I can't think of describing it any way else. And then at the end John has this a capella moment, swoon!!!

Honorable mentions need to go to: Slow Dancing in a Burning Room- John Mayer, SexyBack, Justin Timberlake, Over My Head- The Fray, How to Save a Life- The Fray. These songs were in the high teens for number of times played, and I've listened to them countless times on CD. Plus, seeing as these were added to my iPod late in the year, they deserved a mention for being played so much in such a little time span.

I wonder what all this says about my personality?