Face it!

What makes us like certain songs?  What draws us in to making a song as a part of our top ten list?  Is it the message of the song?  The way the lyrics are put together?  The drum beat?  Or maybe the melody it carries in the chorus?  Whatever it is, I’m sure there’s a good reason why a song stood out and all of a sudden became one of your favorite songs.

I have to admit though, when you really pay attention to lyrics in songs, most of the time they don’t even make any sense.  Sometimes they are ridiculous, most of the time they are cheesy, and maybe on an occasion, here and there, the words have a really deep meaning to it, that you think, “Man, this song really speaks to me and I can totally relate to it.  This is my SONG!”  Either way, music should be always left to one’s own interpretation.  For all we know, the songwriter had a totally different message from what you thought it was really about.  Imagine what it would be like if people really “whooped that trick”?  Actually, I take that back. Of course there are exceptions and there are people who would “whoop that trick”, although I’d hope it’s only a very small percentage.

With that in mind, do you think that music influences us to act a certain way?  I remember as a child, my parents forbade me to listen to “secular” music.  Anything that wasn’t a hymn or a praise song sung in church or sung by a Christian singer was called secular by my mom and dad.  They believed that hip-hip and rap music were evil, ungodly, and a bad influence.  I don’t mean to undermine my parents’ choices in raising me, but it reminded me of the time when society saw rock and roll as the devil’s music, back in the 1960′s.  I believe that music touches us and influences our lives to an extent, but to think that depriving anyone from any kind of music will make you have a better life has got to be some kind of brainwashed idea.

Have you ever been to a wedding wondering why the happy couple isn’t dancing to Harry Connick Jr. or Air Supply?   I’ve heard Evanesence’s, “My Immortal” played at weddings.  Wasn’t that song about a break-up?  And how about The Police’s “Every Breath You Take”?  Did you know that’s about a stalker?  (I just learned about that recently ) How about those song dedications you hear on the radio?  Would you dedicate Rhianna’s “Take a Bow” to your boyfriend, whom you love very much?  I’ve heard it done!  That’s another break-up song, right?  Well, for all we know, she dedicated that song to her boyfriend because that was the first song they made out to at their high school dance.  I’m not here to judge, but this goes to prove that lyrics don’t really matter, but they do?  Ha.  You can dedicate a “break up” song to your boyfriend or even dance to a “stalker” song with your new wife.    If we (others) can do that, why couldn’t we (I) listen to anything else without thinking that the devil will instill evil plans into our heads and turn us into heartless, puppy-killing humans?

If there should be music out there that would be considered the devil’s, it should be that of Justin Bieber’s.