Music is not a commodity. It’s not something that people buy, or
consume. It’s not a revenue stream, or a career choice. It’s an
expression of the depths of peoples’ humanity. It’s an experience.
Our ears bring us some of the greatest pleasure. Life is a song that
plays all the time: running water, the hum of an air conditioner or
computer, traffic, the soft breaths of our loved ones while they sleep.
And music touches, moves, and inspires people. It defines cultural
movements, joyous occasions, painful break ups – music evokes powerful
memories and responses in us. A song can forever bring us back to
specific moments in our lives, to sights and smells of times that have
passed us by. Music transcends time, and walks with us through our
lives.
We live in an era where the palette of music we can paint onto the
canvasses of our lives is a rich spectrum. Any sound we are looking for
can be found and heard. The experience of listening has no price, and
the soundtracks of our lives are personal. We listen to music with a
focus and generosity we give few other things, for music only lives in
the moment.
Music has no past, and no future. It exists only now, in the same
moment our lives are occurring. It moves with us through life, and as
we breathe in and out, music pulses and lives in the same moments we do.
We can break down music to an academic concept or a product, and we
can break down the people who listen to it as statistical information.
In the end, we listen to music because it moves us. It touches our
hearts. It adds a richness to our life experiences, and expands the
intensity of our lives. We are not numbers on a sheet, and we are not
sales figures. We are human beings, and the music we listen to is one
of our most intimate and personal experiences. Even in a crowded room
or concert, it speaks to us directly.
Music is a conversation. Spoken by one human being, and heard by
another. The listener gets to say how the music moves them. And while
we tend to describe it in terms of good or bad, ultimately only the
listener can say if a piece of music moves them, and what the
experience of it is. As long as it evokes a powerful response, any
piece of music has fulfilled its intention. It is when the listener
reacts with apathy that a piece has not touched them.
Sometimes I forget why I make music. I get caught up in trends and
analysis and perspectives that I lose sight of why I got into this game
in the first place. I lose sight of the fact that music has the power
to inspire people, and that it is a force that shapes our lives. Music
is a shared experience, and once it leaves the studio, it’s a gift to
the world, something that no longer belongs to the artist.
This is what called me into making music in the first place, and to
support other artists in sharing theirs with the world. When we are
dust, our music lives on. Many artists left this world long ago, and
their music continues to impact the lives of people today. There are
albums that are 40 years old that are discovered by every new
generation, and continue to impact people’s lives with the same power
they did they day they were released.
I don’t make music for glory, or money, or fame. I don’t seek to
release music for recognition, power, or credibility. I want every
musician to know that their art has indelibly touched someone’s soul,
and to give listeners opportunities to find the song that will forever
bring them back to those magical moments of their lives.
We have all been touched by music. I invite you to reply to this
post, and share why you listen to music, and the ways that it touches
your life.
Home 
Calendar
