The Influencers
Photo credit: Kevin Mazur
I wouldn’t be who I am today if it weren’t for my parent’s dedication to music. The bookshelf of CD after CD, organized alphabetically by my meticulous mother. The Dolby surround sound system and 6-disc CD changer that my dad lovingly dusted every Saturday morning. I used to sit on the ground and delicately select various CDs, careful not to get any fingerprints on the covers, and listen to music for hours. I’d stare at the album art, read every line of the insert, rewrite the lyrics in a notebook.
That spot of the carpet, in front of the sound system, was my favorite spot in the house. It might’ve been my favorite spot in the world.
I put together a list of the most influential albums from my childhood into early adulthood. Listed chronologically, rather than order of importance. Perhaps unsurprisingly, my list ended up being a kind of autobiographical retelling of my youth.
They say that we really become ~who we are~ between 10 and 12. I was 10 in 2003. The albums I was listening to during that time genuinely influenced the adult I would grow up to be. For example, Ray was my gateway to blues and jazz. I didn’t know who Ray Charles was before seeing the movie Ray. That movie, and the soundtrack, introduced me to a world that, upon discovering, I never wanted to leave. To this day, few things elicit more joy than hearing soul music from that era not so long-gone.
In 2007, I was 17. My friends and I were experiencing independence for the first time. We finally were able to take part in the classic midwest past time of “going for a drive.” We’d speed down back roads, drive for hours in a single direction, with no destination in mind. All so that we could be away from our parents, their rules, and smoke our illegally purchased Turkish Royal cigarettes in peace. The albums of this time period reflect the soundtrack of that delicious, newfound freedom. Albums that sound best at full volume, in an old Camry with blown out speakers, and the windows down. Those were the days.
Each of these albums has a memory I hold dear. When I hear these albums today, it feels a lot like reading the diary of a young me. Excited, angry, confused, passionate. All of the ups and downs that came with growing up. These albums contain all of it.
*Can’t imagine life without
Master of Puppets - Metallica (1986)
Nevermind - Nirvana (1991)
ABBA Gold - ABBA (1992)
Get a Grip - Aerosmith (1993)
Dookie - Green Day (1994)
Vitalogy - Pearl Jam (1994)
Tragic Kingdom - No Doubt (1995)
Jagged Little Pill - Alanis Morissette (1995)
Third Eye Blind - Third Eye Blind (1997)
Around the Fur - Deftones (1997)
Californication - Red Hot Chili Peppers (1999)
Oops! …I did it again - Britney Spears (2000)
No Strings Attached - N’Sync (2000)
Let go - Avril Lavigne (2002)
Wonder What’s Next - Chevelle (2002)
Cmon Cmon - Sheryl Crow (2002)
Hotel Paper - Michelle Branch (2003)
Dangerously in Love - Beyonce (2003)
Rooney - Rooney (2003)
Metamorphosis - Hilary Duff (2003)
Wicked - Broadway Soundtrack (2003)
Confessions - Usher (2004)
Autobiography - Ashlee Simpson (2004)
Hot Fuss - The Killers (2004)
American Idiot - Green Day (2004)
Ray - Movie Soundtrack (2004)
Mind, Body, and Soul - Joss Stone (2004)
The Secret Life of… - The Veronicas (2005)
Saosin - Saosin (2006)
Dying is Your Latest Fashion - Escape the Fate (2006)
Back to Black - Amy Winehouse (2006)
Taylor Swift - Taylor Swift (2006)
Life In Cartoon Motion - Mika (2007)
Icky Thump - The White Stripes (2007)
A Lesson in Romantics - Mayday Parade (2007)
Across the Universe - Movie Soundtrack (2007)
Only by the Night - Kings of Leon (2008)
Sigh No More - Mumford and Sons (2010)
Man on the Moon II - Kid Cudi (2010)
Light Me Up - The Pretty Reckless (2010)
Pink Friday - Nicki Minaj (2010)
My Beautiful, Dark, Twisted Fantasy - Kanye West (2010)
Blue Slide Park - Mac Miller (2011)
Acid Rap - Chance The Rapper (2013)
