During junior high and throughout the beginning of high school, my musical taste was cultured by whatever music my older brother let me illegally download off his computer. With him being six years older than me, I was exposed to, not only the music he listened to while in high school, but also what he listened to during that time in college. Because of this, I unknowingly adapted the angst and demeanor of a college student, while at the ripe age of 14. For example, my iPod held the ballads of artists with greasy hair who smoked cigarettes, instead of the expected bouncing tunes of pop icons, seemingly relevant to girls my age at that time.
Although there is no evidence that this led to my cloudy, pessimistic demeanor as a young adult, my exposure to the audio creations of lesser-known independent artists did ultimately lead to my hatred for top song charts, and their cookie-cutter hits. This ultimately ruined my chances of being included in conversations about any Disney channel star’s latest hits, or being invited to any Justin Bieber concerts. Fortunately for me, all the concerts I had any interest in going to were either held in nightclubs, or dimly-lit underground clubs where you had to be at least 18 years old to get past the bouncers.
Now in college, and several hundred miles away from being able to access my brother’s computer, my musical taste has been shaped by my own very apparent angst. But due to the similar mindset, I am still able to enjoy the music I listened to in junior high, which not a lot of people can admit.
My music taste at the moment consists of songs that are adequate for studying, along with those suitable for long-distance drives home. But after rediscovering the college songs of my young junior high days, I feel certain that I will be able to fully appreciate the depth and mood of the songs, now that I am in my second year of college. Regardless of whether you have listened to these songs as an impressionable youth, hopefully you will be able to appreciate them as only an angsty college student can.