Does Your Music Make A Difference? — A Short Perspective
Yes, your original music does matter, irrespective of how nascent it is
Yes, your original music as a musician does matter, irrespective of how nascent it is
Being a relatively unknown and undiscovered musician, I sometimes wonder: Is my music really making a difference? Is my music getting through to people? Do people have a strong response of feelings or memories or emotions when they hear my music? Do people appreciate stuff that I’ve made and does it permeate through to make them enjoy certain moments? Does it make them “chill” or “groove” or do they find it ‘peaceful’? Do people actually ‘feel’ my music? etc.
On the other side of the coin, I sometimes wonder whether my music is even good enough to produce such a response for listeners? Does it sound good? Does it even sound ‘musical’? And the second guessing goes on…..
It’s been 2 years since I decided to start producing music as an artist under my producer stage name ‘Ghost Intent’. And it’s been about 4 years since I picked up the guitar and piano; posting covers on Instagram for about a couple of years and about a year as a film composer. I’ve also been posting playlists & mixes since probably 2015 or 2016. And in the past I was the DJ of a pub during my college years. So, music has been a huge part of my life.
And music only makes a difference when it’s shared. That’s what makes it such a beautiful art form. It’s conceived based on an artist’s life but becomes something for everyone. That’s the beauty of how it impacts the collective because of the common ground felt by the experience of what it means to be human. Whether it’s love, struggle, success, or any human experience, music has its pervading way of meaning something unique to each individual even though it’s conceived based on personal experiences.
Although I have lofty ambitions when it comes to my music goals and my future in music, and I’m just at the start of my journey, I wonder about how my music fits in into something bigger, you know, the larger perspective. Of affecting human life and people in an intimate, emotional and positive way and makes them in essence, ‘feel’.
I stumbled upon this short piece by a Medium writer named Warren Brown that really got me thinking about the implications of being an upcoming musician, that sort of reassured me that my music is important, however insignificant and under the radar it might be at the moment.
Brown writes,
“There are times when we hear a particular tune or a line from a song and it carries with it so many memories. As a singer, musician, or songwriter, your music is making a difference. Someone somewhere is listening to your music; they are listening to the words of the songs you sang or wrote and it is stirring up memories and emotions within them.
“Everyone who loves to listen to the music of their favorite artist or band will tell you, that they love the songs not only because of the words and the tunes but because of the memories, happy or sad that come to the surface when they hear the music.”
“It is this subliminal quality of music to enter our minds and transports us back in time to a familiar place, person, or memory, that we were an essential part of in life, that makes music so very powerful.”
Creating music has been a very exploratory journey for me. I try to put together pieces of music that reflect on my life at the time and where I’m at with my musical process. And then there’s also the limitations of the gear I have at the moment(no excuses, just facts). It’s a combination of a lot of things, but at its core it’s a very experimental process.
And I’m yet to release that debut singersongwriter album(wait for that one!)
Anyway, it’s translated into music that is personal but also for other people. And the truth is, you never know which piece of your music touches or moves people and has a strong or lasting effect and impression on them.
Something that Brown wrote in his article, which really got through to me, was,
“Your music listeners, your fans, and your followers appreciate your music because they feel the same way, and they identify with the message in your music, about your hardships, your pains, your struggles in life, your wins, your failures, and your victories. You, my dear musician friend, are making a big difference, as you improve the human condition, with your original music, as you deliver it in every rendition, as a performer on this stage of life.”
The fact is that, despite not having a wide reach or getting millions of listeners, every drop makes the ocean whole, and despite your music not being widely recognized as yet, it takes up its own niche space in the vast ocean of music and you never know who might respond to your music positively.
For example on one of my favourite tracks I’ve produced called “A Bouquet Of Stars” there’s a vocal sample of a woman singing about walking through in a ‘graveyard’ which I thought would make people recollect their loved ones who’ve left them. And it proceeds to talk about walking through the ‘starlight’ and ‘moonlight’, which I thought would make those memories of the departed even stronger.
Another one called “Blue Waltz” reflects on love & heartbreak. There’s a bit of humour in one where I named the track “Battery Low Ok” and put in a vocal sample of the same, for you know, clicking “Ok” every time your phone’s battery is low. Haha.
Then there’s one called “Music Is The Healer” that’s full of calming hangdrum sampling that I wanted to be a track that exemplifies peace.
And a lot of my tracks draw on inspirations in my life ;)
And I’ve come a long way from my debut ambient EP ‘Transit’.
So the thing is, as an artist, you can’t tell who will feel your music, irrespective of the stage you’re at.
One thing is certain though, that your music will outlive you and who knows someone somewhere 50 or 100 years down the line or ahead of that, in whatever time or place, listens to your music and has a positive response or feels certain emotions or brings back memories for them. It’s going to be your piece of art that you leave behind, and your legacy.
It might not mean much right now, but in the future and in posterity it will be the mark you left and what you gave the world. That’s at least what I reflected on when I wrote my debut poetry book as well. I wrote about that in the prelude about “Leaving something timeless behind, before I come to pass.”
You can buy my poetry book here: https://www.amazon.com/Indian-Night-Collection-Poems/dp/B09RG3QHTY
I have learned to appreciate every single person from all around the world who has taken the time out to listen to my music or buy my book, although it’s only in the late thousands when it comes to listeners and lesser than a hundred when it comes to my book. But I hope that it matters as time goes on.
Does your music matter? — The answer is yes, it does, irrespective of the stage you’re at.
So keep at it and keep going.
So as a short rewind of the music I’ve been producing over the past 2 years, I made a short collection of the best music I’ve made since I began producing in this short playlist.
Have a listen!
“Music sets the soul in motion” and “Music is the healer”