10 Songs (That Define Me)

Below is the link to the Spotify playlist I created.

If you don’t have Spotify (get it…it’s free) I have listed the songs and artists below.

1. Tiny Raindrop – Balance and Composure
2. Constant Headache – Joyce Manor
3. Such Small Hands – La Dispute
4. Things I Can’t Change – The Story So Far
5. Tip Your Bartender – Glassjaw
6. Republica – Crime In Stereo
7. Sowing Season (Yeah) – Brand New
8. Where Have You Been? – Manchester Orchestra
9. If I Could Make You Do Things – Two Tongues
10. Act Appalled – Circa Survive

I struggled to pick these songs (in a good way).  I consider myself to be not only a musician, but a music junkie as well, so I had a lot of content to choose from.  The songs I picked aren’t that diverse, which is an unfair representation of my musical taste normally.  I have been into rap and electronica a lot lately (specifically Kendrick Lamar and Com Truise).  I also am not ashamed to admit that I regularly listen to Taylor Swift (she is my morning alarm ringtone) and I like classical music so much that I go to at least one performance a month.  The main point I am trying to make is that music has always heavily defined who I am and who I have been at many different points in my life.

I guess you could say the songs I picked are my favorite songs.  I’m sure a year from now if you asked me what my ten favorite songs were, it wouldn’t be the same list, but a majority them would stay the same.  Most of the songs I picked are over 5 years old.  They were with me when I was in middle school and high school and took me through some of the best and worst times in my young adult life.  Each song that I picked is directly correlated to an event that changed my life in some way, shape, or form, and no matter how my taste in music might change or how much Miley Cyrus I may listen to when I’m alone, these 10 songs will always paint a pretty accurate picture of who I was, who I am today, and how I got there.

I don’t want to divulge too much of my personal story here, but I can divulge this.  I’ve battled a significant amount of chronic and incurable illness for the past 14 years.  I’ve covered my body in tattoos to show my strength and struggle and individuality.  And I’ve carried the spirits and songs of musicians and bands with me when I needed more than just myself to get through those times.  These 10 songs have been with me in all of the waiting rooms, doctor appointments, operating tables, hospital beds, and bottles of pills I’ve had to endure.  Without them, I wouldn’t have found the strength to make it.  In a weird way, the bands above are my friends.  They get me on a level that not many will ever be able to.  I am indebted to them and that is a debt I hope I never have to pay back.