“Moments In Song” asks people one simple question, “What are you listening to?” We believe that you can learn a lot about an individual and their experiences based off of the music they love. For every installment we ask someone to make a playlist of 10 songs they’re listening to, whether it be something new they stumbled upon, or a song they’ve always loved, and explain the story behind their choices. The person’s playlist is then uploaded to our Spotify account, giving them the chance to share it with others. Each post aims to profile someone from a different walk of life, whether they be an artist, a student, the mailman, a school teacher, an athlete, a nurse, your next-door neighbor, anyone with a love for music; showing that no matter where we come from, what we do, or what we look like, music has the ability to bring us together.
Kristen shares a lyric centered playlist full of songs that help put her emotions into words. The professional make-up artist tells us why lyrics mean so much to her, how going to school in Pennsylvania broadened her musical horizons, and about her love for Drake. Kristen currently runs her own aesthetics company, “Magnificently Made,” which aims to “have everyone feeling and looking magnificent” by satisfying an individual’s health, beauty and wellness needs.
Looking at your list, it’s got a little bit of everything. You got the old school Aerosmith, along with newer artists like Walk the Moon and Isaiah Rashad. Could you describe the thought process that went behind putting this playlist together?
“Alright so since I knew the songs had to be on Spotify, I literally went through every single song I have saved on my Spotify.”
Really?
“Yeah. I was very thorough. I chose the ones that I know I really love, which brought the list down to like 20, and about five of them were Drake. [Laughs] And so I had to pick one Drake song which is the hardest thing for me to do.”
What’s the theme, if there is one, of your playlist? Is it just songs you like? Songs you’re listening to right now? Songs you always go back and revisit? Or a mixture?
“In order for me to listen to a song over and over again, it has to have a certain part in it that really speaks to me. Like a part that I feel in a place that can’t be reached except for through music. And so every single one of those songs have something in it that resonates with me very personally, even if it’s kind of weird and doesn’t make sense.”
In one of your explanations you mentioned the instrumental break in “Amazing.” Would that be an example of what you were just talking about?
“Yeah. My heart starts beating all fast, I’m singing all the different instruments; it’s kind of crazy. That song just gives me the goose bumps.”
How would you describe your taste in music, and does your playlist reflect that?
“I guess you could say my taste in music is very lyric driven. I’m not one of those people that can just listen to a beat and be like ‘Oh, I like the beat.’ I really like when artists put time into the lyrics and the meaning behind a song. It means more when I can put myself in the situation that they’re trying to explain. I like seeing the story.”
So I guess I can say you prefer more relatable lyrics?
“Yeah, I guess. I would say relatable, but it’s kind of weird because sometimes it has nothing to do with anything that I’m going through. It’s just like, ‘Oh I remember that time in my life when I felt like that.’ I appreciate the artists for being able to put into words something I felt so strongly about.”
When would you say that lyrics driven taste in music developed?
“Well I grew up only being able to listen to gospel music.”
Really?
“Yeah it’s kind of funny, but it was a great way to grow up.”
I feel like that’s very lyrical powerful music.
“Yeah, so I was always very driven to lyrics, even as a child. My first real taste of secular music was like Lil Wayne…”
Ayyee! Good starting point.
“Good starting point. He’s just like all lyrics driven, so I guess that’s just where it started and it just grew from there.”
So how’d it go from Lil Wayne, to artists like Aerosmith and Lion Babe?
“Ok so, right before I went to college is when I got into Aerosmith. And when I went to college I was in Pennsylvania, so I was around a whole bunch of people, with a whole bunch of different music tastes. I started listening to Rock, Metal, Screamo, really random stuff. One of the songs on my playlist has screaming in it and it’s the best. I’ve gone to the concerts where they’re jumping on people, it’s an amazing time. So I feel like once I started to broaden my horizons I was able to really experience a lot of different music.”
So you would say that your time in Pennsylvania and the people you were surrounded by was reflected in your song choices?
“Yeah my roommates back in Pennsylvania, I’ve never heard half of the people they were listening to. Like Sleeping with Sirens, one of my roommates introduced me to them and I was immediately obsessed and it kind of just grew from there.”
Did you find when you were introduced to these new genres, songs, and artists, the ones that stuck with you went back to that lyric heavy preference?
“It always goes back to the lyrics. Every single song on my list means something to me very personally that is beyond words that I could explain myself.”
Can you pick one song from your playlist and give us the story behind it?
“I’m going to go with ‘Houstatlantavegas’ by Drake only because I feel like that’s the weirdest one. It’s like how can I relate to Drake taking a stripper home. The lyrics in that song really resonate with me, because he’s talking about a woman who feels like she’s stuck where she is and she’s not going to be able to get out from the place she’s in her life. There’s been so many times where I’ve felt like that, whether it’s a relationships, education, just in general. Anytime I’m having a hard day I listen to that song a lot. It’s so easy to feel like you’ re stuck in a place, and he puts it into words that I really like.”
Listen to Kristen’s playlist on Spotify and Apple Music.
Lifehouse - Crash and Burn
"Silence just keeps screaming back at me/ The ones I love are lost in memories /And I wish that I could take back what was done /You can only change the person you've become"
P!nk - Trouble
"I'm trouble /Yeah trouble now /I'm trouble ya'll/ I got trouble in my town"
Phillip Phillips - Home
"Settle down, it’ll all be clear/ Don’t pay no mind to the demons they fill you with fear/ The trouble it might drag you down/ If you get lost, you can always be found"
Imagine Dragons - Demons
"When you feel my heat/ Look into my eyes/ It’s where my demons hide/ It’s where my demons hide/ Don’t get too close/ It’s dark inside/ It’s where my demons hide"
Arctic Monkeys - Do I Wanna Know?
”Cause there's this tune I found that makes me think of you somehow/ When I play it on repeat/ Until I fall asleep/ Spilling drinks on my settee"
Bastille - Flaws
"There's a hole in my soul/ I can't fill it / I can't fill it/ There's a hole in my soul/ Can you fill it? / Can you fill it?"
Coldplay - Fix You
"And I will try to fix you"
Griffin House - Better Than Love
"Save me from myself / You got my back when I need help / It's no one else in the world / You will always be my girl"
Vancouver Sleep Clinic - Someone to Stay
"You’ve drunk it down / And now you’ve spat it out / Nothing tastes like the things you had / So tear it off, why don’t you let them go? / We all need someone to stay"
Lauren Aquilina - Sinners
"So let's be sinners to be saints / And let's be winners by mistake / The world may disapprove / But my world is only you"
Melée - Built To Last
"All of our friends saw from the start / So why didn't we believe it too? / Now look where we are / You're in my heart now / And there's no escaping it for you"
Kodaline - The One
"‘Cause I know / The first day that I met you / I was never gonna let you / Let you slip away"
