Music and Family

 For this assignment I had the opportunity to interview my mom and get her insight on the types of music she listened to and get her opinion on music nowadays and how it has affected her life and her as a person. I will be writing out the discussion we had instead of posting the video and I hope you enjoy getting to know mama Waters and what her opinions are on music. I learned a lot of new things about her through this assignment and I am very grateful that I now know how she feels about these topics 

Me- What is your first memory of music? Mama Waters-I would say when I was in chorus in elementary school

Me- What was your first experience with music? Mama Waters-Um, probably not I think your nana played a lot of Barbra Streisand when I was growing up, I can't remember if that was before or after chorus 

Me- How did music impact your childhood? Mama Waters-Well I danced so it helped me have an outlet for exercise and for socialization because I did dance and is correlated with music

Me- How did music impact the culture and society around you when you were growing up? Mama Waters-Oh my gosh, I mean like New kids on the block was the first concert I ever went to which was an amazing experience but I think music has changed a lot leading up to now. I think it helped people bond more because they danced and sang together more than they do nowadays I feel.

Me- What did your parents think of the music you listened to as a kid? Mama Waters-They did not mind the music I listened to because it was not rap or really anything inappropriate, they listened to a bunch of old music but it was not far off from what I listened to back in the day. They listened to Elvis Presley and Sammy Davis Junior. 

Me- Were you involved in anything like band or choir in school? Mama Waters-I was not but I was in chorus in elementary school

Me- Did you play an instrument or take lessons? What was that like? Mama Waters-I took piano but I stopped after a year of learning because I did not have the patience to continue doing it

Me- What do you think of music that kids listen to today? Mama Waters-I think it is horrible, everything is sexualized or talking about drugs and not anything meaningful or profound. I feel like it is awful, it doesn't leave anything up for your imagination, they just talk about urges and nonstop illegal substances. 

Me- What is your favorite genre or artist today? Mama Waters-I listen to a lot of Pink she is my absolute favorite artist now because she speaks about real life events and sings about stuff that is meaningful, or even Taylor Swift for the same reasons 

Me- Are there any song lyrics or specific songs that have a special meaning to you? Mama Waters-Mostly songs by Pink, but it depends on how I was feeling during that time period. The song “Its my Birthday and Ill cry if I want to” comes to mind because it relates to me in a couple ways whenever I have had a bad birthday. 

Me- Did you and someone you dated/married/etc. have a special song? What was it? Mama Waters-No I did not have a song with a significant other that i can remember being meaningful

Me- How do you feel music has evolved over the course of your life? Mama Waters-I definitely think that everything now is more sexualized instead of living life or things going on during that time period and now it's not about the growth of society but instead just about desires and urges. 

Me- How have your music preferences changed throughout your lifetime? Mama Waters-I do not think that they have changed that much because I enjoy listening to the old music because it brings back fond memories for me which I like to remember

Me- How has your life affected your relationship with music? Mama Waters-I think it depends on what is going on in my life, like of I am mad or upset I listen to more heavy metal rock or when your nana died I listened to a lot of the songs we used to listen to in order to feel connected to her again and remember all the good times we shared together. 

Me- Do you think music has evolved in a positive or negative way throughout your lifetime? Mama Waters-I think very negative because of the same reasons I've mentioned before

Me- What does music mean to you? Is it expression, aesthetic, both, or something else? Mama Waters-I think it is an aesthetic but it can also be an expression of oneself, I think that nowadays you can't understand a thing people are talking about so it gives less meaning to the listener

Me- What did you use music for when you were younger? What do you use it for today? Mama Waters-Relaxation and as a distraction like when I am working out or cooking it makes it more enjoyable and helps the time go by faster 

Me- What makes you feel connected to a piece of music? Mama Waters- If they speak about something that is relatable or if I can understand what they are saying, I think lyrics have the ability to resonate with people and there are a couple songs that have helped me through some tough times.