Music has evolved throughout the decades and has become an essential part of life. It can be heard in your home, local grocery store, mall, or restaurants. It’s everywhere, and it’s part of us. Each person has their own tastes in music. It can help stress, motivate us, and control the way we dress. But, how do people feel about it?

45 Heritage students filled out a survey discussing their music tastes. Pop, rap, and classic rock were the top three genre choices among our students. Everyone expressed their love for their particular taste, and why they enjoy it.

“I like the music because a lot of times, the melodies are just so soothing,” Caleb Hall (12) said. “It honestly feels like it’s food for my soul.”

The power of music is strong. The effect it has on the mind is incredible, as it also boosts the immune system, and can relieve pain, in a way. Each genre has a different effect on people. Heavy metal and rap can be relaxing for one person but stimulating for another. People are always meditating, and we aren’t aware of it. Listening to music is a form of meditation itself since we use it to relax, study, motivate, and stimulate our brains. Everyone receives different feelings from music.

“Music gives me a lot of different feelings,” Christian Molina (11) said. “For example, it may get me hyped before a game, make me feel relaxed after a long day, happy because I may listen to something catchy and I’m just vibing to it, or even just calm as it helps distract my mind from the harsh things in the world.”

Sometimes, people connect the music that they hear to the experiences they have had or memories from their childhood. Music is like a connector in the mind, piecing memories and experiences together.

“It has connections to my culture,” Kerriona Bradford (10) said. “It talks about things I’ve been through or feel. SZA just released a song that I’ve been listening to for days, because I can relate to it.”

Music even has a physical connection to the body, like how it stimulates the brain. Many can feel the music. Some people can see it, smell it, or even taste it!

“It doesn’t really fit into straight emotions. I just feel so strongly about my love for music that listening to a well-made song just makes me feel so inspired that I can feel it in my gut,” Katelyn Clarke (9) said. “Music stirs my soul and inspires me to want to do something I’ve never done before or create something that’s never been made before.”