Eye Opening First two weeks

From being in enrolled in this class, I have spent a significant amount of time realizing just how important music really is not only in our day to day lives, but also how much our society has developed from its influence. Music is pretty much everywhere we turn. Whether  it is strolling through a store, any sporting event or even just a long drive home, most people can say they have a lot of music constantly around them. For me, music is such a key component in my ability to really excel in the gym. It enables me to push myself to different physical limits through empowering words and fast beats. It can be the perfect medicine for any bad day. Just by listening to something positive and upbeat, it  can completely switch my feelings in the opposite direction. Not only when I am feeling sad, but pretty much any other feeling I have I can find a song just for it.


Just from being in this class for the past two weeks, I have learned a lot of American history and how music played a big role in making America the country it is today. Not only is music used for recreational purposes, but most of the time the lyrics are engraved with detailed messages, looking to touch its listeners and make an impact on them in some way.
For me, this week was filled with learning different American history that I never actually knew existed. I never knew that the National Anthem was a lot longer than what we actually recite. I discovered that there is a whole three more stanzas that we have chosen to leave out while reciting for some pretty clear reasons. In our book "talkin bout a revolution" we really got exposed to different genres of music through American history and how they touched the lives of past generations. From blues, to folk and even soul, we saw how although different types of music, all were used as gateways to peace during the 1900s.

We learned a lot about music in the black community and how it was used often as an outlet for their pain while suffering from horrible discrimination. The most powerful example for me that I looked at this week has to have been Robert Johnson's "Stones In My Pass way." This blues song was recorded in 1937 and sent a very powerful messages to its listeners.  One of the most powerful lines in his song for me was "Im Crying people, Let us be friends."  To me this lyric was a perfect demonstration of simply just wanting no harm, only peace.