Sweet Tea Talks Vol.13

Let's talk about music.

It’s Monday evening. I leave for NOLA in less than 12 hours and just finished sucking the gunk from my ceiling vent with the new Dyson I got for Christmas from too generous parents. There is truly nothing better than coming back to a clean home after a few days away.

Thankfully, the inspiration for this post struck sometime in the middle of last week when I realized that Des’ree’s, You Gotta Be, has been on loop in my head for the past month and I find myself very chipper sitting down to write to you now even though I still have yet to pack.

I’ve never been a music fanatic. Never got obsessed with albums or going to concerts. Never sought out new music or discovered new bands. When people ask me, as an ice breaker or small talk, what kind of music I like, I never know what to say. “Ummm, I like a lot of stuff?” And it’s true. I do. But it’s usually just a song from an artist I may or may not even know.

Playing one song on repeat has always been my jam. Starting from childhood when I heard Walkin’ in Memphis and thought I would never be able to listen to any song ever again because this one was perfect. Next, when my brother learned to play Canon in D on the piano, I felt, for the first time what it was to be moved by music. It was like being held by God or something. I’d never heard anything more beautiful.

My lack of musical fascination is quite odd considering my father (number one commenter here on Yeah, I’d Hang Out With Her) is easily what one would call an addict. The man has been to more concerts than you can believe. He is obsessed. With everything music. It’s incredible.

I’ve never lived down the day when, at 13, I defiantly told him The Backstreet Boys were more important than The Beatles. I knew I was wrong, but being stubborn as hell, the argument most likely ended in my tears as I desperately tried to prove my point.

He’s the reason there is anything remotely cool on my roster of all time favorite songs. Our family band is Tom Petty. We went to three concerts all together and they’re the stuff of legends. Come to think of it, you should listen to my dad’s podcast episode from awhile back, he’s VERY cool!

All of this to say, while I would never have ever considered adding anything about music to an online dating profile to illuminate who I am as a person, I did just create a nearly 11 hour playlist of all the songs I’ve ever loved and played on repeat for months over the course of my 41 years. I was shocked to see how much music I actually know.

Here are the top ten songs that highlight the billboard of my life’s soundtrack…