In his own words...
Long before I realized its hold over my imagination, I intuited music’s role in forging relationships--with my peers, with my parents, with myself. I first became aware of music’s place in my life during preschool. My dad, a huge Beatles fan, made sure that his son listened to a healthy dose of the Fab Four. The first CD I owned was my dad’s copy of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. The lyrics, the lush and quirky sounds, the experience brought me and my dad closer together; now, we know how many holes it takes to fill the Albert Hall. My dad made me my first mixtape. Shared with me my first music themed movie, The Yellow Submarine. Took me to my first concert (not the Beatles).
Initially, I never took music for anything beyond its face value. I was just happy to spend time with my dad. In time, I understood music to be my avenue for connecting with others. How did I become best friends with Sid in preschool? We were the only two kids in the class who listened to the Beatles. “Goo goo g’joob” was our common language, a gateway to the word games and secret experiences that bind us to this day.
Music helped me connect with people I never would’ve been able to connect with otherwise.
Music also helped me connect more with myself. It tethers me when I feel anxious, isolated from the world. During my sophomore year, I reached a point in my life when I’d skip school or social events that felt threatening. On those days, when nothing could bring happiness, when I felt most alone, music was always there. I could always count on Mac Miller or Frank Ocean, the people who made me know, who made me feel that I wasn’t so alone. Their songs are a compass that helps me navigate my own life and understand why I am the person I am.
Over the past two years, I’ve become increasingly involved in social change advocacy; in particular, I have fought for safe and equitable opportunities in my inner city school district. This new orientation was a sharp pivot from my previous, more inward-looking obsession with fitness and health. Around this time, my musical tastes took a similarly drastic turn: I went from an infatuation with modern rap to a newfound appreciation for jazz. As I consider my paralleled appreciation for both jazz and advocacy, the world makes more sense. When I became obsessed with fitness, I also became obsessed with critiquing what I felt like were my flaws. I sometimes weighed myself constantly throughout the day just to see if I’d gained weight. This unhealthy fixation didn’t allow me to see myself as someone who was beautiful. It took a long time, but I slowly learned to be kinder to myself, and to those around me.
My newfound love of social justice advocacy and jazz helped me to understand the beauty that can be found in imperfections. Jazz like Oscar Peterson’s Now’s The Time, a song I absolutely adore that is full of accidentals, mistakes, and
Music captures me because it helps me understand the world and my place in it. It lets me see a part of myself that I can’t see without its help. And everyday, regardless of where I am in life, it helps me connect and grow so that I find meaning and value and beauty in myself and in others.