Singing is the PERFECT RELEASE! or The Story of How Music Saved My Life

Does music actually heal the soul, and transform energy, emotions, and... people? Buckle up! We are going on a singing adventure into my past to find out how powerful music truly is!

I grew up as a 90's baby, in a time when I felt that music still had meaning... At least more than it does in today's age. In this week's Psychology class, we learned about multiple intelligences. The basic premise of this teaching, is that everyone learns differently, and should be taught in a way that works well with a student's abilities. That guy who's moving around in his seat non-stop, he doesn't need an Adderall prescription, give him a hands-on project or lab!

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Smart at Music

The philosophy behind this is that everyone has areas that they excel in to far greater degrees than their other abilities. What sparked this topic on singing was that our class had to take an assessment/test, and although I always found myself to be a highly logical individual, my highest score was in music!

_{On my way to Karaoke! C:}

Let's fast forward to last night, while myself, boyfriend, and a couple of our friends headed out to a karaoke bar to celebrate my birthday. I used to sing a lot, but haven't been doing it as much recently. I didn't see the correlation at first, but I was becoming more stressed out daily, and losing focus on myself and feeling frustrated more often.

I had a conversation about my negativity last week with @melbookermusic, and he suggested that I turn my energy to my passions, like how he did with his guitar. This struck a chord with me, as I have all of this pent up energy welling up inside, and realized that I needed to release it somehow, with something that I loved to do, instead of allowing to manifest as hate and regret.

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Earliest Influences

Remember me mentioning I grew up in the 90's? In Elementary school, the teachers and staff took singing to heart, having all grade levels learn different songs for events and graduations. My childhood was spent learning songs like "If We Hold on Together" from Land Before Time, and "You'll Be in my Heart" from Tarzan. In 4th grade, we learned Michael Jackson's "Heal the World" to sing for the graduating class ahead of us. This may sound strange on your ears, but these are the kinds of things that don't leave you in life.

I came from the generation where the music held meaning of aiming for your dreams, and helping others as best as you can! There were so many songs of strength and never giving up, that it internalized itself and set the basis for how I see and understand life now. I won't get into how I came into singing here, but instead wanted to share my song from last night's karaoke. All of my pent up energy got released in my singing.

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When I Was Lost, I Turned to Music

You ever feel small, or helpless in the face of all your problems and worries? I do, and sometimes it drowns me. What I do realize, is that there were people that came before me, who have faced their challenges, vanquished their fears and accomplished things most people wouldn't even try. Many singers wrote songs to inspire others to keep going. Whenever I felt that my world, and chances were bleak, I made it a goal to find the song that would wake me back up, to know that someone else climbed past this very struggle, and to remind myself that I could too.

I clear my mind, and think to myself that the solution to my problem is already written somewhere in a song. Then I start browsing music that I really like but don't know why, and without fail, one of the songs I play turns out to be that remedy my heart was searching for. I feel that no matter how big the problem may be, whether it's writing something to Steemit, a project I am working on, or something personal, by looking inward, I can find the answer.

Last night, I felt the world crashing down around me. I am keeping up with my studies, friends, and efforts that I set out to do, but felt that my presence may just not be enough. Everything was getting more difficult to do, and I felt alone in my struggle. It is a strange feeling when everything seems to be going right, and you don't know if you have the courage to climb new heights.

This difficulty that I face sometimes in life, is one that is enigmatic to grasp, that is not as easy as ending a toxic relationship, or finding a new job. It's a fear from giving something your best continuously, and scarily whispering to yourself; what if I fail? What if I let everyone down? What if I give my best to the world, and let myself down?

It's one of the most terrifying thought loops that I have ever had the pleasure of coming across, appearing to be immune to everything. Everything except music. I realized when I was a kid, that the power of singing, and listening carefully to the words could break any curse, and any negative thought loop.

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The First Memory

When I was 8 Years Old, I remember being in a classroom on the second floor in a building on campus hearing a song for the first time. Being a hard one to land, we didn't practice it; but I will never forget it. Maraiah Carey's "Hero". I'm sure that everyone here has memories that dear to us, which we associate with music, and I cannot remember one before this song. Back to last night.

With my classes, responsibility, goals and projects all looming over me, I ended up feeling really sad, having the types of thoughts mentioned above that come, even if nothing is noticeably wrong. I found myself at my boyfriend's house, sitting on the floor in his bathroom alone, trying not to cry. I caught myself, and thought that I needed a song right now. I went to my Youtube page, because I thought I had uploaded it, but I was mistaken. I scrambled through my videos just hoping that it was still saved to my phone. I found it, and was so happy that I wouldn't lose this memory.

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The Concert

Last year, my manager and his fiancee at the time (now married) couldn't attend a concert, and I was asked to attend in his place. I was given two tickets, and panicked thinking of who I was going to ask to go with me. Luckily the first friend I asked obliged, and picked me up to go to the show. Now, I don't know many of her songs, but the event was very fun and was filled with wonderful music throughout. I recall it like it happened recently, without realizing it, tears started streaming down my face, because I couldn't believe it. She chose to sang it as her encore song, one of the first songs that ever had me believe in myself. I reached for my phone so I would have a reminder for when I was feeling down that there is just so much ahead, and to keep moving forward.

Both of these videos were uploaded today, and are unlisted. What I can say is to never give up, whenever I almost did, I listened to the people who made it first. They know where I am, because they were there and overcame. Music is the reason why my life turned out the way it did, as who I chose to listen to didn't just tell me what to do, but sang it from their own hearts and experiences to inspire others.

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Other Amazing Songs

Whose messages have shown me, that I can be anything I set out to be. There is a level of appreciation that goes beyond the artist to anyone who has ever looked up the actual words to a song.

• Britney Spears - Stronger
• Celine Dion - That's the Way it Is
• Hilary Duff -What Dreams Are Made of

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Music has taught me more than any class ever has.