While home for spring break, the classic scenario begins. I’m in the passenger seat of my dad’s Honda on the way to an unexciting store to purchase unexciting things. As we drive around town getting dog food and toothpaste and a random motor part from Lowe’s, my dad reaches for the aux cord and turns our errand running into a concert. Everything from rock to jazz plays from the stereo.
“Don’t you just love this?” he asks, twisting the volume knob.
Driving around town, I see glimpses of my dad’s life through the songs he plays. When my friend seamlessly riffs off entire Taylor Swift albums from a decade prior, I see a glimpse of the person she was before words like college and adulting filled her brain. Glimpses of our lives are shared through songs.
It’s rare that someone will sit down with you and say, “let me tell you about my life.” But they will play you their favorite song.
Music is a means of storytelling. It preserves history and connects people. It creates bonds and influences that run deep — often deeper than we realize.
“When I was a kid, I would like to sit by my CD player and just listen to all of [my dad’s] old like, rock CDs,” senior music theory major Lucas Brogdon said as I sat down with him to learn exactly why he is so passionate about music.
He began telling stories of a home filled with music and family members who delighted in it. He described Switchfoot as one of most influential bands on his musical journey.
“I was like, raised on them [Switchfoot] for as much as I can remember. Every time they put out a new album it would be in our van playing nonstop, and we would go see them whenever they were in town.” He smiled, recalling the significance of his parent’s music taste. “That’s like some of my favorite childhood memories.”
But Switchfoot influenced Brogdon beyond a few happy childhood memories. The band’s music shaped him into the artist he is today.
“The sort of Switchfoot, alt-rock sound is what I was really marinated in as a kid by my dad,” Brogdon said. “The older I get, it seems like that’s still what’s at the center of my musical personality.”
From Switchfoot concerts to Led Zeppelin CDs, the music influences of Brogdon’s past remain prevalent as he pursues a musical career in the present. The music he consumes today will always be reminiscent of the music he consumed as a kid.
Listening to the music that played from busted speakers in your family minivan may lead to a rush of nostalgia, but the music that shapes us does more than push us down memory lane.
Our brains not only recall auditory elements, but store the sensory input we receive while listening to music.
Music holds the ability to make us laugh and cry, sometimes simultaneously. Our brains register these feelings and hold on to the emotions we experience while listening to a particular song or album. Familiar music triggers emotions from previous listening experiences.
“It’s more than just auditory cues,” Union University psychology professor Jenni Blalack said. “Regardless of the quality of that emotional experience, [music] triggers those responses.”
Beyond understanding the psychology of music, Blalack has experienced the phenomenon herself. She described the music of 70s rock artist Bob Seger as a reminder of memories with her late husband.
“My husband and I dated when we were teenagers,” Blalack said. “Our ‘riding around in his truck’ songs were always Bob Seger.”
Along with fond memories of listening to music with her husband, Blalack shared how music has created a special bond between her and her son. From rock songs to pop concerts, music has enhanced their relationship and strengthened their bond.
“Now I’m just as likely to text my son as he is to text me with some update on a tour,” Blalack said.
Whether it’s drives scored by Bob Seger’s latest hit or enthusiastic texts about album tours, music ties people together.
“It’s how we tell the stories of our life,” Blalack said.
Music is the score of our lives. It creates unlikely bonds between unlikely people. The music we listen to shapes the people we become. It shapes our understanding of humanity and the world around us.
From Switchfoot to Bob Seger and everything in-between, one thing remains true: music shapes us.
Photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash
