I chose the song “Vertical” by T-Squad from the movie “Jump In!”. The song is about reaching your goals and not being held down by anything. In the song the line “I won’t be held down, stuck here on the ground” is repeated several times. To me this line is about not letting anyone get into your way when you are set on a goal. This shows how the group is opposed to vertical movement, although they does not literally mean that they are stuck on the ground, the low point. Also, throughout the song they repeat how “they are rising up” and how they are constantly trying to improve. The movie “Jump In!” is about Izzy Daniels (Corbin Bleu) who starts jump roping, even though it was considered a feminine sport He sings this because he does not want anything to stop him from achieving his goal.
Tag Archives: vertical
I Stand Up Straight and Tall
Now before you jump to any conclusions about my choice of song, hear me out. The song I have uploaded, I Stand Up Straight and Tall, was on Sesame Street, a show for young children. This song associates the letter “i” with “standing up straight and tall.” From a quick glance at the song, it may seem like it is just silly and nonsensical, but once you look at it past the superficial level, you see that it is trying to shape children so that they share the American value of verticality. From the sky-high buildings to the Oscar awards, everything seems to have a value. Think of soldiers and officers of high rank, they too are told to keep a proper posture. All of these are constant symbols of verticality. We, as a nation, associate up right positions with success and pride. It is deemed proper and thus we teach our children the same. When children are young are helpless, they crawl and as the elderly age, they start to hunch over and may need support from a cane. Therefore, it makes sense that we value standing up straight just as much as we value youth and strength.
Going Through Changes
In this song by Eminem, he mainly talks about how he is at a low point in his life because of drugs and other complications in his life and how he realizes who he is, helping him recover. In his lyrics, he tells us of his story about his addiction to drugs and how it is affecting not only him, but also his family, which includes his daughters. In the line “But life keeps on complicating an’ I’m debating on leaving this world, this evening, even my girls…” he conveys how his problems bring him to a point of contemplating suicide. “…you can’t stop with these pills and you’ve fallen off with your skills, and your own fans are laughin’ at you.” tells of his problem with drugs. Eventually, his line “Wake up in the hospital, full of tubes, plus somehow I’m pullin’ through swear when I come back I’ma be bulletproof.” shows how he has overcome his difficulties, and has decided to not run away from his problems, but face them. His journey of recovering from his addictions to drugs and other problems shows the idea of progressing from a low point.
Not Afraid
The song Not Afraid by Eminem is from his album Recovery. Eminem talks about his long and hard road to recover from drug addiction. The song starts off by saying, “I’m not afraid to take a stand.” This shows vertical movement from the low point of his life to the time he will rise above it all. Toward the end he restates, “I’m standing up, I ‘ma face my demons… Time to put my life together right now.” This song gives hope to many people who are addicted and can’t find the way out. Eminem tells them, “Come take my hand we’ll walk this road together, through the storm.” Sometimes knowing others have been to where you are and have still been able to recover, can give you the motivation you need to give it a try. This message can even be taken to people who are not addicts. Knowing that others have gone through the same struggles you have on a daily basis and have come out on the other side, can give you that boost to do it yourself.
On Top of the World
“On Top of the World” is a song by Imagine Dragons that motivates listeners to not give up even if they don’t succeed at what they are trying to accomplish. It might seem difficult and unreachable, but hard work can lead to a positive outcome. A line in the song says, “I’ve had the highest mountains/ I’ve had the deepest rivers/ You can have it all but life keeps moving,” which tells us that there are two different ends of the emotional spectrum in life and we have to accept both the positives and the negatives sides. Other parts of the song that stood out to me are “Try to take the easy way out/ I kept on falling short of something/ I coulda gave up then but/ Then again I couldn’t have ‘cause/ I’ve traveled all this way for something,” and “And I know it’s hard when you’re falling down/ And it’s a long way up when you hit the ground/ Get up now, get up, get up now.” These two sets of lines encourage the listeners by telling them that there is a reason for us to work hard to get back on our feet: to succeed. Even though feelings of hopelessness and dreadfulness may arise, we should keep working towards our goal because there is a possibility that we will reach our goals if we keep pushing ourselves to keep trying.
Skyscraper
The song that I believe best configures itself around the vertical is “Skyscraper” by Demi Lovato. In her famous ballad, Lovato is telling the listeners to believe in themselves. No matter how hard things may get, you must stay strong and believe. Lovato explains that you can break everything she may be, but she will not let it take her down. She will remain standing tall like a skyscraper. As I listened to the song, the two most important phrases that contributed to the true theme and meaning of the song are: “Would it make you feel better/ to watch me while I bleed? / All my windows are still broken/ but I’m standing on my feet” and “Go on and try to tear me down/ I will be rising from the ground/like a skyscraper/ like a skyscraper”. Both phrases are true depictions of what Lovato is really feeling throughout the song. She wants those who relate to stop feeling the hurt and the pain and to believe. Even though people may make her bleed (both physically and emotionally), she is standing on her feet and not letting it get to her. By comparing herself to a skyscraper, Demi is showing that she is high up and standing taller than the rest. In addition, throughout the song Lovato paints a picture that she may break like glass (“You can break everything I am like I’m made of glass”), but that won’t stop her or get in the way. She wants to make a change and let everyone know that everything will be okay- as long as you stand tall and remain hopeful.
Vertical
Along with the vertical commuters, the dorm community would benefit if the commute to and from the dorms is addressed. Dorm life has been a quintessential trademark of the college life for a long time. Dormitories encourage students to make friends, to be more independent, and to be more productive by living together. The principle purpose of dorms is to create a sense of a community and of a second home. The location of the Baruch dorms become a huge barrier to this ideal. The college is located on 23rd street and Lexington, while the dorms are 70 blocks away on 97th street and 3rd, which equate to a half hour commute if the students are lucky. Unfortunately, sometimes the 6 train is delayed or has planned work.
A plausible solution would be implementing a shuttle bus service from the dorms to Baruch, similar to City College of New York. The shuttle bus service would create the feeling of closeness while not physically making the dorms any closer. These buses would be going in both directions, making the commute easier to and from Baruch. Events can then be hosted at the dormitory where the entire student body can share the dorming experience.
Although implementing shuttle buses would help make the dorms appear closer, instituting a bus system carries a financial burden. The cost of buses could be incorporated into the tuition. Currently, each member dorming spends about $800 a year on subway fare. Each student could pay about $500 more as part of their tuition, and this would cover the cost of the buses, gas, bus and bus driver salaries. Along with simplifying the commute from the dorms, this would also minimize the cost that students had to pay.