Music Memories #1

Growing up, music has always been a very important aspect in my life. From composing lyrics, to listening to music; music has always been a way for me to set my mind free and let my thoughts and feelings run wild. The types of music I listened to, different artist, genres, etc, seemed to evolve over time. As I grew older I acquired different preferences and started searching for different qualities in songs I listened to. These qualities reflected upon my maturity, my experiences in life and my interests.

Around the age of 5 I listened to a lot of Nigerian music. My whole family is originally from Nigeria so I was somewhat accustomed to their taste in music. The music was very upbeat and always seemed to make everybody around me happy and make them start dancing. I remember my favorite song was called, "Sweet Mother" by Babatunde Osunde. This song talked a lot about the Nigerian culture and how mothers are highly respected and valued in society. I never really understood the words at that point in time but I knew it always put a smile on my mothers face.

Around the age 10 I became I huge fan of pop. Along with the cultural Nigerian music my family listened to, they also listened to a lot of Michael Jackson. He was a huge icon in our culture and to my family as well. I can still remember the first time I heard a song composed by Michael Jackson. The was called, "Scream"and featured Janet Jackson. My sister and I always used to sing along to this song; she would sing Janet's verses and I would sing Michael's versus. After hearing that song, I fell in love with Michael Jackson and his music. I wanted to be just like him and dance just like him. It even got to the point where my family members would refer to me as young Michael Jackson because I was the one to always do his moves when his song came on in a party. He was like a role model to me at that age and although he past away, his music still lives on inside my heart.

Around the age of 16 I was into a lot of rap and R&B. During this time period I started composing my own songs and started listening to music and paying attention to the actual lyrics and not just the beats. I became a huge fan of Lil Wayne and Mario. I like Lil Wayne because of his lyrics and how he says things that requires the listener to think outside of the box and pay attention to his style or "swag". He used alot of metaphors, similes, personifications and a wide vocabulary. Every time I wrote a rap song, I always referred to him and tried to say things that I thought he would say as well if he could. I also was a big fan of the singer mario because of the things he said in songs and how they related to my situations and experiences. These two artist made a song together called, "Crying Out for Me", which became one of my favorite songs of all time because it was like the best of both worlds together on one track.

Over the years, my music preferences seemed to correspond with my age. Now, at the age of 18, I have a interest in all of the different things I used to listen to and still enjoy songs I enjoyed when I was younger. The music I liked and the type of stuff I listened to never really changed, it just expanded. Today, I am interested in music with nice beats and meaningful lyrics. Music has always been important to me and always will.