“Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything.” So said the great philosopher Plato.

Music has definitely evolved from what it was in ancient Greece, but still it brings life to the lives of us students and staff alike. The feel of a beat can course through our veins, springing us out of bed and into the beyond. Lyrics of songs we all know bring us together to sing, laugh, and come together as one.

Music as an art form has and will still be a bringer of smiles, joy, and an entire spectrum of emotion that the human mind can process for years to come. The platform is one of the very things that will never change through the course of time for sure.

But, with all of the philosophy behind us, we can all bring together the one true feeling of song and dance: the feeling of being FUNKALICIOUS! Well, maybe not that. But there is always that special feeling we get when listening to a tune that we cannot truly describe. This feeling we generate fills our minds with such euphoria that we feel as if we were on top of the world! Feeling groovy, rockin’ ‘n’ rollin’, even headbanging has all pulled us toward a way of life that pushes us to feel great, has it not?

Which brings me to why I am expounding upon this: the “musical minute” in our school. I really love the idea. A minute of music that lightens the load off of students backs? Lovely jubbly! The idea can definitely improve a student’s work ethic, and can really bring a smile to his or her face.

There is, however, one problem I can see with the minute as of now: the songs being played. From what I have gathered from student interviews, others also feel the same way.

“The music played doesn’t have the same kick as it used to when it was first released,” said freshman Tommy Holczynski, one of the many students I have talked to recently.

But how is this the case? Was he the only one who thought about the songs this way?

“Oh no… Not ‘Let It Go’ again,” moaned freshman Keith Overbey when the song started up as he spoke.

From these discussions, I learned that the general student feels the same that I do — that the current music being played does not motivate students to feel happier or fulfill their need to achieve as much as the administration would like it to.

So, in order to overcome this, I made up a list of music to potentially replace the current mix by collecting songs that I know have brought me joy from my past experiences of studying, working hard, and of just looking for something to put a smile to my face. After introducing this list to the students I interviewed, the response was surprisingly positive.

“Yeah, those are pretty good,” freshman Amanda Hall said of my song mix.

“You’ve put a lot of thought into it,” freshman Sam De Leon said when showed the same list.

I believe my list does what the current mix does not: touch on various genres of music. The songs currently played are primarily one genre: pop music. My list, however, dives into many other genres, including the roots of disco music and even some classic rock.

I acknowledge that every single one of us has our own likes and dislikes (I even glorify this as something that makes all of us unique), but I will try to express the feeling for each song that we could all share.    

Here is the music I’m suggesting to form the GROOVOLUTION our school needs.

CLASSIC ROCK:

1). “Don’t Stop Believing” by Journey (A song we can all agree is VERY motivational)

2). “”Walk This Way” by Aerosmith (Perfect for WALKING to class)

MODERN POP

3). “Can’t Stop the Feeling” by Justin Timberlake (I really can’t stop feeling the positive vibes from this one)

4). “Cheap Thrills” by Sia. (A very thrilling song)

OLDIES BUT DEFINITELY GOODIES

5). “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go” by Wham! (This song is guaranteed to get you Go-Go-Going)

6). “Never Gonna Give You Up” by Rick Astley. (Apparently being Rick-Rolled is still in fashion)  

DISCO… GROOOOOVY 🙂

7). “Boogie Wonderland” by Earth, Wind and Fire. (I, for one, would love to boogie in the halls)

8). “We Are Family” by Sister Sledge. (We Trojans ARE family, aren’t we?)

LASTLY… ANTHEMS!

9). “Rock and Roll All Night” by KISS (We need to to make our day a bit more rockin’)

10). “Rocket Man” by Elton John. (To wrap things up, I added a lament; a lament that rocketed up the charts and up our feelings.)

That’s my suggested mixtape for the musical minute. Like what you see? If not, email your own ten-song playlist to Mr. Hester at [email protected] to submit your own and see if you can change the soundtrack of our lives!