Photo by Caz Tanner
I don’t even want to think about where I’d be without music. It provided me with a reliable source of relief from all the ugliness and disappointment and confusion. It gave me so many beautiful moments in between, for my soul to get a glimpse of its own light. Without it I’d be beyond psychological repair, probably addicted to heroin, if alive at all. I cannot overstate the importance of music in my life.
The power of music is that it can create feelings within you. The creator of the song has a specific effect and meaning they’re going for and when it hits right- it hits GOOD. There is nothing like it. That deep feeling of resonance. There is definitely something of the cosmic order happening there that science can’t explain yet. It’s like your soul knows it belongs here somehow.
It’s such a beautiful experience to know that you’re not alone in the world, even though you might feel alone in your life. It cuts through all your bullshit about being the only one who’s felt like that, which can often really add a layer of heaviness to an already terrible feeling. It’s so kind of every artist who shares and offers us respite in their alchemy. Art is alchemy. You took something and made it another thing that someone else can feel. Being on the receiving end of that is fucking amazing.
For many of us, it’s the most kindness and understanding that we receive during times we most need it. If you’re one of those people, I’m right there with you. Sometimes it can feel lonely but I like to think that it is not lonely, it’s just beautiful and loneliness is an illusion of the ego.
It’s incredibly powerful and I’m grateful everyday for this magical thing we call music. My becoming a songwriter started with me simply loving songs so intensely. As I’m discovering through the conversations on the Self-Help Songwriter Podcast, that is the case for many.
