I first found this song when I was in high school the original version I listened to was by Amy Winehouse, but it was a cover of a song by a band named “The Zutons” but was popularized by Amy Winehouse. In mid 2018, my best friend passed away in a motorcycle accident. We were planning to get a open mic night together, sponsored by his company that he was starting, and me spearheading and putting it together. But he passed away before we got it put together. shortly after his un timely passing, his family was still able to get the open mic night put together. When I was trying to put together about 5 songs to play, I thought of this one that I was learning right before he passed away, and It was a style that I loved. I listened to it over and over and watched his hands to see what he was doing. Shortly before my Friend passed. We took a small road trip and I played it in a cool setting sitting off of a cliff. I hadn’t ever played the song all the way through but we had to take advantage of the cool place we were in. Looking back the timing was sloppy (and rushed) but I had not known the song for very long, but we wanted to get some content started. So I played the song and we got it recorded. About a month after the recording the accident took the one person who truly believed in my music career out of my life, and up until this point it was the hardest thing that I have ever had to endure. But I remember sitting in my room preparing for this open mic night that we were in the middle of planning. His family had decided to put on the open mic night in honor of him and I had to bring some good songs. I practiced using all the free time I had and when it came time to the open mic night, I played some songs that reminded me of him, but the last one I played was my rendition of Valarie. There was of course a lot of emotion and meaning that I had tied to this song and I think they crowd could tell. After I finished I got the first standing ovation from a crowd that I had gotten from a solo performance. Whether I played well or not, the emotion was there, the song that had helped me cope with the loss of a friend had moved everyone who had listened to it that day to cheer and be happy and in the moment. Sometimes this is all that we can ask for. Music is such a powerful thing, It can make us feel any emotion that has ever been felt. and can be our therapist, friend, or anything else we need it to be. This is why I am a musician.

Last decade hosted many very popular bands, new and old, that made very well done, popular music. There were songss for any genre, and for any occaision. One thing that I have noticed through the years is many popular song I associate with a memory, whether its a date, a late night drive, a night out with family and friends, or maybe a roadtrip or some other totally different reason. Songs, especialy songs from our youth will always hold a place in our hearts. Here are my top 10 songs from last decade.

10- Royals, Lorde

Lorde made a song in 2014 that was so unique, they made a new genre to complement it. Now known as “Dream Pop” Lorde’s hit Royals was a hit as soon as it hit the charts, with a catchy hook, catchy chorus and pre-chorus, and fantasstic layering of her own voice to make a chior made on her voice, this song defines my first semester in high school.

9-Pumped Up Kicks, Foster the People

I don’t know what it was about Pumped Up Kicks that made me want to listen to it on repeat for a month straight when I was a kid, but now looking back, listening to the clever guitar riff in the background as well as the catchy chorus that you cant help but song along to, I also have so many memories of listening to this when hanging out with my first ever girlfriend that I would secretly hang out with without telling my parents… good times.

8- Ho Hey, The Lumineers

This song was my 15 year old anthem, the crowd yelling “HO” or “HEY” on the first beat gives it such a light hearted feeling. Don’t even get me started on the chorus, I might just have to type it out it’s so catchy. Nonetheless, the folk feel to this song, ass well as most of the music being release at this time (ed sheerans’s first album, Mumford & Sons) was a folk revival, and probably my favorite time in music I have experienced so far.

7- Riptide, Vance Joy

out of every song on this list, I think “Riptide” has got to be the song that it seems like everyone will sing when it comes on. It makes a lot of scenes too, with such a light happy feeling to it, especially when adding a ukulele to the mix, this song is a double whammy of happy feelings, and one that is hard not to dance and sing to when you hear it.

6-Habits (Hippie Sabotage remix) , Tove Lo

This song is pure nostalgia for me, it came out the summer of my sophomore year and any night I would hangout with my friends, no matter what we were doing. this song was part of the night drive. with the ear-grabing effects used on her voice to give it a very ethereal feel, as well as the catchy hook with a catchy 808 added onto the chourus, this song is super well made and will probably always be a favorite whenever it comes on.

5- Do I Wanna Know?, Arctic Monkeys

This song is a little different than the other songs so far on this list, it offers a darker tone using dark bass lines and 808’s along with a bluesy sounding guitar complemented with a dark sounding tenor voice accompanied by a small choir responding to the main vocals, this song is a “going to battle” feel to it, which was really good when I was driving over to my football game.

4- Take Me to Church, Hozier

Hoziers “Take Me to Church” for me, is a pure masterpeice, the lyrics of this song have me still captivated, this song has such a catchy chourus and has a bridge to back it up, alkong with the minimal guitar and piano added in the song, but his voice makes sure to make this song feel very full. Hoziers voice in this song I think is one of the best voices from the 2010’s. but that with a well written song with catchy hooks, gives you a classic for years to come.

3- Ultralight Beam, Kanye West,

This was one of the first christian- based songs that I have ever seen on the charts, with good reason too. This song is the frist song of Kanye’s that features Sunday Service choir, (if you listen to Kanye, you probably know who that is.) along with the soulfull chior, this song also features a rap from Kanye and Chance the Rapper who do phenominal jobs at bringing the pure emotion and soul from a gospel song so a rap beat. This song will forever been one of my favorites. It should also be a crime that “Hotline Bling” (although a good song) won a Grammy over this masterpiece.

2- I Spoke To The Devil in Miami and he said Everything Would Be Fine, XXXtentacion

This song is probably the least well known song on this list, but that does not mean it is any less significant. This song is very unique, it offers a soft piano that plays about four chords on repeat, with everyone in a while there is a flute- like sound playing five notes on repeat, While X sings almost like spoken word. The lyrics and tone go together so well with the beat, creating a very unique feel any time I listen to this song. not to mention that this song has such a deep meaning, along with some of the most creative writing I have heard in a song. if you haven’t already, This song is worth the listen.

1- Burning Man, Dierks Bentley

The most important thing in a song that makes you like it is emotion. Thats why Burning man is my top song of the decade. It has a great message and not to mention two of the greatest voices in country music. But the real reason this is my favorite is back when this song released, it was my best friends favorite song, about two months later, he passed away in a motorcycle accident. Now every time I hear this song, it reminds me of all the fun memories I had. In the end, music can be so many things, fuel for a party, a way to get anger out, or provoke any emotion, that is what makes music so great. and that’s why this was my song of the decade.

something to prove, but everything to improve

I was 14 Years old, I had been playing Guitar for about 6 months, and being the cocky 14 year old I was, I thought I was Jimi Hendrix reincarnated. This was false, but not at the time for me.

A few weeks into the summer I had heard about a improvisation competition for guitarists to be able to preform and have a good time at a local music store. I thought to myself “hey, there is nothing to improvisation, better sign up to become a rock star!” so I went onto the website to apply to the competition. At the time I couldn’t decide where I was a “expert” or a “Intermediate” (I was neither, I could barely be called a beginner.) but, I decided that I wanted a “easy win” in the competition, so I put intermediate. and because each class was designed to be judged different, intermediate I would surely rock the judges socks off with my off brand guitar and a Beatles riff that I had ripped off and slightly changed for my improvisation.

After countless hours of practice, the day was here. I was headed down to a local theatre called “Angelus Theatre” to go win some prizes. as me and my parents arrive to the theatre we are greeted by familiar faces that were either hosting or participating in the event, including my old guitar teacher. as I am tuning up my guitar, and making sure to get some last minute practice in, trying to not look like I was shaking in my boots ( I was) I notice a kid similar in age and even equipment and style. After he tuned up, I learned what Improvisation was. this was not a rip off of a Beatles song, this was art. and he was in the beginner group, not even the intermediate. After watching a 13 year old Musical modern Picaso, in front of a full house, I was up on stage, staring at a crowd stiff as a board.

After the host introduces me, and says a little reminder something along the lines of ” this is a scary thing for some people and most people don’ have the Cojones to even get up here.” this was directed at the crowd more as a “get ready, he’s a beginner and over his head.” and a thumbs up to me. and my backing track started and it was time to play.

It was nerve wracking, almost humiliating at the time, and the performance may not have had the most energy and stage presence, but I played exactly what I practiced, without one mistake, after the song ended, I heard a roar of applause from stangers I had never met before, It was so loud It actually hurt my ears when a few people whistled. Most people in the crowd were happy to see a young face passionate about music and willing to try something way out of his comfort zone.

Remember Itunes? yeah… me either, it feels like there is now an entire generation that does not understand the struggle of convincing your mom for some Itunes card so you can buy your Favorite artists album, later in Itunes life you could convert a link from YouTube. but past the fact that it was illegal, I always wanted to support artists that I liked. that all changed in about 2014 when Spotify started to gain a following.
Now all you need is ten dollars, a family account, or maybe even somewhere closer to five dollars a month if you are a student for unlimited downloaded music with nearly every artist and every artist’s song are at the tip of your fingers at almost any time you want it. this did not happen without consequence though, both positive and negative, Spotify and other streaming services seem to be here for the foreseeable future, and are not going anywhere, this has caused something I like to call the “Spotify Effect”. The Spotify effect is just how streaming services have affected the music industry. it has shifted the music industry, and in many ways, it has shifted a lot of the power in the music industry from the large record companies to the artists instead.
Let me take you back to the early 2000s, the music industry was suffering heavily due to pirated music and have cut the music industry by nearly 66% due to this, in the 2000s there was not much experimentation in the music industry, many artists that were considered “middle of the road” artists that played music that was already very well established, such as Adele, Ed Sheeran, and Mumford & Sons, I love these artists, but you can tell their early 2000’s music is playing it safe, although still very good music and very well put together. But now with Spotify, that has become a thing of the past, obviously, artists still make music that is defined by genre, but much more experimentation can be used and the labels are okay with that, why? because with Spotify royalties, the record label gets more of a cut (and has rebounded from the early 2000’s record label recession.) this has also given artists who are not well-known opportunities to put out their music on Spotify and other streaming services (such as SoundCloud) and they can become viral, and put their songs on the charts, artists like Alyssa Clara, Post Malone, Swae Lee, and nearly every artist that has “made it” since 2014 had something to do with some kind of streaming service that gave them a platform to put out their music onto the internet.
If you are an artist today, take advantage that has been given to you, you have the luxury of doing everything that is done in a high-end studio in LA right in your room in the computer, this is prime time for musicians, put your music out there, and be heard. Good luck, and strive to create.

Before I started to make and perform music. I was first a fan of music. I bounced from generation to generation of artists learning more about their past and learning more about music and what is that “it” factor that makes albums so great. music can add so much energy into your life and when you find an entire album you can vibe with, its not only a very rare occurrence, its something you should keep in your mind like that trophy you won in a sixth grade track meet.

10- Broken Social Scene By Broken Social Scene

Broken Social Scene is a self titled album that the band released in 2005. This record featured a lot of experimentation, the band also claims that in this album they had up to 19 people working on one song, which does explain the spontaneous feel to this album. It features tons of unique melodies, drum patterns, and guitar rifts that I had never heard before listening to this album and earned tons of praise by Indie music fans and critics for being so successfully experimental.

9- Nevermind- Nirvana

Nirvana shaped 15 years maybe even more of the music industry. And it all started with their first album, Nevermind, with the classic 90’s attitude and the get up and move energy embodies everything 90’s with overdrive and distortion being used to perfection on each of the tracks the alternative rock scene was born. Even to this day its hard to walk down the hallways of a Jr. High without spotting a Nirvana shirt or two. even though only making three studio albums before the death of the lead singer Curt Kobain, Nirvana still proves to influence musicians still today.

8- Kanye West- The Life of Pablo

This is the first album from the 2010’s- present to make my top ten list. and it is well earned. this is the first album where Kanye features Sunday Service, a religious choir that sing in the first track “Ultralight Beam” this song sets the whole tone of the album, providing a chart topping christian rap song (never though I would ever say that until this album released.) but still has a little spice of 2008 old Kanye that takes the mic away from Taylor Swift while showing glimpses of the Kanye we know today that prefers to sing gospel and perform Sunday Service. and Implementing gospel into popular music today.

7- good kid, mA.A.d city

This album is regarded as one of the best conceptual albums of the decade as well as in music history. It tell the story of a young Kendrick Lamar dreaming about becoming a superstar and getting into legal trouble along the way. The lyricism on this album is on another level as well as using songs to display incredibly detailed stories, such as hanging out and being obnoxious with his friends to being peer pressured into doing things that he would normally not do, as well as consequences of those actions. I highly recommend everyone listening to this album.

6- 2014 forest hill drive, J. Cole

In 2014, It seemed like J. Cole was a part of any drive to anywhere. J. Cole’s 2014 Forest Hill Drive was not only very popular, but much like good kid, mA.A.d city, Cole used exceptional lyricism as well as some of the best hooks that I have ever heard constantly throughout the entirety of the album.

5- Brothers, The Black Keys

This album is a alternative rock master piece. Unlike a lot of alternative rock, This album does such a great job of harnessing blues and turning the roots of America’s music into a alternative rock sound that was pioneering its time. the album shows off both a dark side where it really digs into the roots of blues, with songs such as ten cent pistol, and also implements modern era (for 2011) music styles into their Chicago- blues heavy music.

4- IV-Led Zeppelin

It’s hard for me to figure out what album from led zeppelin I should put, there are so many good options and so little spots on a top ten list. but the IV album stands out among the pack. with some one the most recognizabe songs of led zeppelin on this album like Stairway to Heaven and Black Dog, rock and roll, and going to California among others, this album sports a all star list of chart topping songs that continue to make headway almost fifty years after it’s initial release in 1971.

3- Live at Foldsom Prison, Johnny Cash

You probably didn’t expect a country album on this list, but I grew up on country and it will always have a place in my heart, honestly, county is still one of my favorite genres. But this album has to be one of the best live performances in the history of music performance, and the fact that they recorded it for a album is even more satisfying, let alone in a prison. hearing announcements in between songs, the cheering after the songs, and what is a very cool feeling when listening to this album, is the near silence of these men in Folsom Prison, when johnny is performing, I can only imagine what it was like to be there.

2- Blonde, Frank Ocean

Frank oceans blonde was highly anticipated, after his huge success from his 2012 album Chanel Orange, his fans waited four years for this album. and it was worth the wait. with his phenomenal use of minimal guitar chords and dreamy sounding effects that complement the pure creativity of his lyrics that are complemented by a beautify voice, what is there not to love?

1- Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, The Beatles

Other than being a huge Beatles fan since I was 14, this album is often regarded as the most important album to music as we know it. This album was the first ever album to use synthesized sounds using a computer. This added a whole new dimension and has helped develop nearly every song on the charts today. If that isn’t deserving of every single number one spot on lists like these, I don’t know that is.

honorable mentions

Alabama shakes- Boys and Girls

Marty Robbins- Gunfighter Ballads

Chance the rapper- Acid Rap

Pink Floyd- Dark Side Of The Moon

I was fourteen years old when I was watching the Grammy’s in my basement. I noticed a band which I had heard a few songs from. they played a couple songs including there most recognizable, “lonely boy” and that’s when I first thought that I would make music, that I will one day play in front of people and listen to a crowd cheer for me, maybe even get a few Grammy’s along the way. When listening to speeches of the artists who had won Grammy’s, there was a similar theme in quite a few of the speeches. That theme was “if you work hard your dreams can come true.” or something to the same effect. Most likely, you have heard something similar to this. so I took this to heart, and with my six months of guitar training, put my nose to the grindstone and started to work. Through out the years I had many different inspirations, from the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, The Black Keys, to more modern artists like Frank Ocean, Kanye West, Post Malone, Khalid, and many other artists. Every artist is usually inspired through some kind of art of past musicians, for instance the Beatles were heavily influenced by Bob Dylan and Chuck Barry, and every artist always had someone they looked up to. it is a necessary step to find what artists you like as well as the genre’s that you like and want to incorporate into your own style.

If you play an instrument, are a avid fan of music, write, or produce music, chances are you have already thought about some artists that you are inspired by. If you play a instrument, maybe it is someone who also plays that instrument on a master level (for me, Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughn among others.) or someone who’s music you have connected to in the past. Even though many of you most likely have artists you look up to, it is always important to branch out. While in high school, I resisted the new wave of music as much as physically possible, with a few modern bands and songs slowly growing on me, I realized that the world that I once though “lacked talent” and though music after the year 2000 for the most part wasn’t worth the equipment it was made on. But the biggest break though I had so far in my music career was that was completely wrong. even though the song may be made on a computer, it was just as good as many songs throughout history. so remember, always look for inspiration, don’t tie yourself down to one genre, to one instrument or to one style. explore options and you will surprise yourself with how much content is out there that will inspire you. It will help you incorporate more sounds into your music and broaden your horizons.