Hate her or worship her, Madonna was correct when she said music brings the people together. I like to add that it can also separate, with some songs carrying meaning to a certain portion of the population. We all have our favorites, those songs that describe and define our lives.
They say that life’s a stage, and we’re all playing our parts. Well I say if that’s true, how can we perform without a soundtrack?
What sets a soundtrack apart from most albums is that the soundtrack carries an overall theme. For example the soundtrack to “The Way We Were” might make someone cry, while “Footloose” soundtracks might make audiences get up and dance.
Lately I’ve been analyzing the track list of my life so far. When I made a list of about 21 songs, I was appalled to see the recurring theme. Anyone who has “All By Myself,” “Without You” and “Love Hurts” on their list is pretty much doomed to a life of depression.
I threw the list out and decided to think very carefully about which songs I would like to add. As I was walking outside in the 80 degrees-plus temperature, I made a mental note to put “Hot Child in the City” down.
Later in class, during a captivating, a.k.a boring, lecture I also decided to place “Rescue Me,” “Don’t Speak” and “Love in an Elevator” on the list. (I just really like that Aerosmith song.)
And then as I was sitting in traffic I made up my mind to put any Eminem song on the list to express my rage.
After considering the songs related to the day’s events (all 1,094 of them) I realized that if I made a true soundtrack it would have to focus on major, life-altering events that have made me the person I am today. Our lives are not defined by the events of one specific day, but instead by a series of events over a period of time.
Who says we have to be satisfied with one perfect compilation of songs? Maybe instead of searching for that perfect soundtrack, I should just sample a little of everything, learning as I go. And in the meantime I can also let people hear the songs that mean something to me, in hopes that they may adopt it to their personal soundtrack one day.
Dustin Barnes is a senior communication major. He can be reached at life@reflector msstate.edu.