Music has a different effect on everyone who listens to it, but every song is made the same way. The writer feels something and finds some way to put it into words, the music behind it and the tone all have an effect on what you pay more attention to in the song. Some people listen to music for the beat and just the song’s overall sound, but then you have people who listen to music for the lyrics, the hurting or healing words that they can’t phrase but someone else did. 

When you listen to a hype/party song like Party In The USA — by Miliey Cyrus, you don’t really listen to the lyrics, not just because most people already know them, but also because the song is just about having a party and being in a new place. It is very straightforward. That’s the type of song that you listen to for the beat. But a song like Mirrorball — by Taylor Swift, while is overall a good song with a good musical background. When you listen to the lyrics you can tell there’s more to the music than just the beat. 

She says, “I’m a mirrorball/ I can change everything about me to fit in” She compares herself to a mirrorball, something broken but still beautiful. That is something that a lot of people can relate to. When you move past the beautifully played piano and the slight jingle of bells you find a perfectly phrased and magically written form of poetry. If more people took a chance on it, they would find the relatability of any song they listen to. Most of the time, the beat is not the most beautiful part of a song. To find the beauty you have to look for it and it’s in everything, everywhere.

Even in songs not associated with the pop genre and even phrased in a different way, every song is still poetry and there is always something to take away from it. In Creepin’ — by Metro Boomin, The Weeknd, and 21 Savage they say, “I don’t wanna know, if you’re playing me/ Keep it on the low/ Cause my heart can’t take it anymore”. They talk about how it feels to be cheated on, something many can relate to. This isn’t really the type of song you would cry to but, like previously stated, when you listen to music for the lyrics you can find the feeling that the artist was feeling in the moment and you’d be surprised by how much more of an impact the song could have on you. 

Of course, this doesn’t mean that you can only listen to a song for the lyrics or for the beat. There are times when you just have music playing in the background or you’re just not paying attention to it. Junior Alonna Vaipulu shared, “I think when I’m actually listening to the lyrics I can fully relate to the meaning behind them. Instead of simply listening to what the artist is saying, I can put myself in their shoes and feel the emotions they felt while writing the song.” So the next time you pay attention to your music maybe listen to the lyrics a bit more than you did last time. You might discover something new about a song that you’ve always enjoyed.