When I was growing up, my family would go to my grandparent’s house for the weekend like any other typical family. The moment that swept me away is listening to the song “Buy U A Drank (Shawty Snappin’)” by T-Pain. It sounds crazy, but let me explain.  My grandfather had this DVD filled with music videos, and every time we would come over, he would pull out those DVD’s and we would sit, watch, and dance to these videos. He would also pull out these cameras, and record these moments so we could watch them together. One of those videos is me, probably five or six years old singing this particular song, and dancing to this song. Even now, at seventeen years old, I  can sing every lyric from that song.

This moment made me realize that this is what I wanted to do when I got older. I wanted to create a song that people could create similar memories to like my family did when I was little.  I wanted to make movies that people can listen to when they are sad or want to laugh. I wanted to make work that will inspire people for years to come. Music inspires me in more ways than one, and in this essay, I will explain how it inspires me.

Music inspires me because it helps me escape reality and takes me to new places or certain dates in history. For example, if I listen to music from the 90s, I can picture the fashion trends, the issues surrounding the music, and what my mom doing during this time. If I listen to music from the 60s and 70s, I picture Woodstock, afros, hippies, Beatles Mania and the civil rights movement. Music inspires me because it helps me feel emotions and express myself. Another example is the music I listen to in high school. My music taste has improved as I improved as a person, instead of One Direction, I listen to Queen, Nicki Minaj, or Def Leppard. Some music makes me want to dance, and some music makes me cry like Adele ’s discography or “ When I Was Your Man” by Bruno Mars.  Music inspires me because it taught me how to listen and read. Let me explain when listening to a song, you have to listen and recognize words if you don’t know the lyrics, you look them up and read them. It taught how to meet new people because you find other people who share your music taste and sing the same songs that you do. I have even met my friends from their music choice, and I have found one of my favorite artists from my friend’s choice in music. Finally, music inspires because of the artists that inspire me. It teaches me to be bold like Beyonce, how to get respect from someone like Aretha Franklin, feel like a woman with Shania Twain, feel like teen spirit with Nirvana, or write sins not tragedies with Panic! At The Disco.

I can feel bold as Cardi B, Nicki Minaj, and NWA, walk-in boots that were made for walking with Nancy Sinatra, and feel like a champion with Queen. Music helps inspires me, it helps me when I am stressed or angry, there’s a song for it when I’m happy, there’s a song for that. Music inspires me because I can express my creativity.  It also experiences memories that I can keep for the rest of my life, even when I old and gray I can still remember these memories. I don’t know what I would do without music, but I’m happy that it came into my life.