If you’re anything like me, you probably have 50 playlists on Spotify for the most random things. Every week I look forward to discovering new artists and exploring different genres. I was so excited for this event because even with listening to my “Discover Weekly” specialized playlist, I’m always interested in new music recommendations. I really enjoyed just being able to sit down, relax, and study while listening to new music. I found it really interesting how the genre’s ranged from classical to radio-pop, to indie, and then techno. I was in the library studying during this event so it was fun to find different types of music that I enjoyed playing in the background while I studied. Personally, I chose the song “Run Cried the Crawling” by Agnes Obel. It’s such a perfect fall vibe type of song. Overall, I really enjoyed this event and definitely saved some new songs to my playlists!

I signed up for this event with all excitement because I’m so curious to see what people listen to. Music is such a private thing and it tells a lot about people, plus I often find myself amazed by the endless possibility in options. I myself is not as creative, I go to things that I know I like and it will always work, I hardly ever go out there and explore new reigns. With this event, I get to peek a little bit into our fellow community members’ inside and personality. I was amazed by how many songs I wouldn’t normally listen to, and how that means someone who submitted this is very different from me. That always amazes me as I can’t possibly imagine all myself, and it was very interesting to get to know people past small talks and directly to a part of their soul.

During this event I heard a variety of different types of musical tastes that did not know existed among the residents of Flora Rose House. One of the songs played that surprised me the most, and that I enjoyed the most, was a Japanese song. I don’t remember the name of the song, but while hearing it, it made me feel like I had briefly travelled to another dimension. It helped me relax and momentarily forget about all the assignments and exams that I had to do. I was true bliss. But, of course like all enjoyable things, it only lasted about 3 minutes. However, I will forever remember that music (especially those of Rose residents) can drastically help with stressful times.

I really love hearing the different styles of music that others listen to. Expanding my musical horizons is something I have been hoping to do, and I found it so neat to hear everything from K-pop to disco to orchestral music. New and different notes and rhythms floated to my ears, which added excitement to my afternoon. I especially loved listening to the orchestral song, and I made a note to listen to it again later. Appreciating everyone’s musical tastes is just one more way to learn about and understand the great diversity of culture and personalities here at Cornell. This event was relaxing, interesting, and truly fun to listen to.

I was working on an assignment with a friend when the time finally came for the Rose Playlist event. I had been excited to hear a diverse range of music from my fellow Rose House residents and had prepared my earphones accordingly, eager to find new songs to add to my own playlists. As the songs rolled through, I was shocked at just how different each one was– there was classical, country, pop, KR&B, hip hop… what a wonderful cluster of genres to liven up my Sunday! And to make things better, each song came with a small description of who submitted it and why they chose it, narrated serenely as if I was listening to a lowkey local radio station. It was touching to know that each song was hand-picked for a different reason and that, regardless of my own preference of the song, it was somebody’s favorite. Perhaps it is my weird curiosity about other people’s music preferences that led me to attend this event, and perhaps it is my own weird music preferences that led me to appreciate others’. Regardless, I enjoyed participating in this event and hope it makes a comeback next semester!

I heard a lot of songs that I hadn’t heard in a long time or ones in genres that I never listen to. It was nice to hear something new. I also like hearing other people’s music tastes. I also took the time to relax and just focus on the music which is nice in the midst of prelim season.

I never take time to appreciate music anymore so I really enjoyed listening to music for an hour. I especially enjoyed this one classical piano song that someone in Rose Main chose. It was so soothing and made me feel happy. I also liked listening to songs in other languages. It reminds me of how diverse Cornell is, and also how music is different in tastes, genres, and languages! I never knew there was Korean R&B! I sat and enjoyed except when Airplanes came on, that used to be my SONGG, so I was definitely up and dancing.

Joining the Rose Playlist event was something I really needed after having a stressful week. Listening to the different songs and anticipating what type of genre or melody would play next, I realized how my attitude and perspective on music has changed a lot since elementary school. For example, I remember how in elementary and middle school, I would often turn on the radio to a local radio station and jam to the latest trending pop song (“Airplanes” by B.O.B feat. Hayley Williams reminded me of this memory) and singing along as I simultaneously did my homework. As I grow older, I find myself gravitated towards music with no lyrics (such as classic jazz music or Beethoven’s symphonies) that would improve my studying, as I find music with lyrics now to be distracting. Now that I am older, I also find myself trying to figure out the structure of the song: identifying the chorus and bridge of a song. Overall, I had a great experience listening to a variety of different songs.

 I usually have a hard time getting into new music or listening to new songs because I am very impatient. When a new song comes up on Spotify, I often skip within the first few seconds. The Rose playlist was a great way to introduce new songs to me. I loved how there were so many genres from classical to kpop. I usually just listen to pop, so the Rose playlist was a great way to give breadth to the type of music that I listen to. I also enjoyed it when someone shared a song that I love. For example, I was excited to listen to airplanes by B.O.B. because I had not listened to the song in a while and it’s very motivating. All of the songs that we listened to helped me destress. I found that because I did not know all of the songs, I was able to focus on relaxing and just listening to music. 

I really enjoyed hearing all the songs that other residents of Rose House submitted. I was actually walking from the Commons to campus to move in while I was listening to the playlist, and it was a good way to pass the time during the hike and to get myself settled down in my dorm and to have a calm moment after all the stress from quarantine and prelims. It was interesting to see the range of genres of songs that people submitted, especially from pop to Korean to classical. I submitted “she likes spring, i prefer winter” by slchld (pronounced Seoul Child). It’s an all English song, but created by someone Korean after I found their music from a Korean vlog, and it was nice to hear that someone else submitted “Adios” by Hoody (a song I also listen to often) also enjoys Korean music, especially korean r&b (also one of my favorite genres).

Music has always been a big part of my life.  I grew up to my parents listening to tunes from their childhood while they do literally anything.  My mom always listens to the radio as she washes vegetables, cleans the house, or folds laundry.  My dad puts on his favorite songs as he works, plays cards, or drives to work.  When my parents were listening to their music, they shared their favorite memories and songs.  Their faces would glow when they heard a favorite song, remembering something special that they associated with the song.  As I grew up, I began placing favorite memories with favorite songs.  I cannot help but think of the fun I had in the stands as a marching band member when I hear Queen’s “Crazy Little Thing Called Love,” feeling the vibrations in the bleachers from the tubas blasting the walking bass.  Music defines a lot of my memories and hearing the music that others enjoy or was meaningful to them was a treat because it made me wonder what they were thinking of when they heard their selected song.  My song, “Islands in the Stream” is meaningful to me because of my love of disco and how it reminds me of watching a BeeGees concert on TV with my mom and aunt, dancing and singing to all our favorite songs.  I hope everyone was happily reliving a fond memory and created new memories with roommates, friends, or family during the program.

Having been sitting in the Physical Sciences Building all day studying for prelims it was really nice to tune into the “Rose House Radio” and listen to the song recommendations of my peers. I discovered so many new songs and added them all to my playlists (thank you to whoever suggested Run Cried the Crawling, I now love that song). It was so great hearing songs from a bunch a new genres (and I loved that some classical songs were suggested to). Overall, it was a great blend of songs to listened to for something different while studying and I’m super glad I got to participate! 

Yesterday I had the pleasure of listening to a playlist developed by my fellow Rose House residents. There was an extremely large variety in genre, from pop to country to classical. I really enjoyed listening to songs that speak to people so much that they chose to request them. It was especially interesting because most of the students in the group, I didn’t know. Yet, here was this very personal piece of them that we could listen to and enjoy, and that made me feel like I knew them. Listening to this playlist added some pizazz to my studying for sure. I would love to do another round of that, or perhaps we could even make a playlist on Spotify or something, where all the members of Rose House can add their preferences. This would definitely expand my music knowledge, which is something I love to do even by myself. Knowing my peers picked the songs would make those discoveries even better.

Today, amidst some problem sets, I tuned in (over zoom) to listen to music with other Rose residents. GRF Tom had earlier taken requests from everyone  and compiled some of our favorites to play for the hour. While sitting and working in my lounge, We listened to a variety of amazing tunes, some of which were already my favorites, others were old favorites that I had forgotten about, and some were entirely new and I was hearing for the first time. I really liked the range of genres we ended up hearing and it was a lot of fun seeing what my fellow housemates had picked as their favorites. After each song, Tom would give a small snippet of what the person who picked the song had said in their email which was a nice glimpse into why their pick was important to them. This event was a soothing and relaxed hour and I did not even realize how quickly the time had passed until it was done. Music is such a nice way to connect with others and during the hour I felt close to those there despite us being physically far and not seeing them.

While I was taking a nature walk Sunday afternoon, I joined other Rose House Scholars in a brief 1 hour jam session of what Rose is currently listening to. I was surprised at the diversity of genres that were covered.  From Vivaldi’s “Four Seasons” to early 2000s classic “Airplanes” and recently Swift’s “betty”, the playlist had something for everyone.  I enjoyed the laidback vibes from the event; everyone was logged on listening to the same tracks while they did their own thing. There was a sense of community and togetherness despite the quarantine we are going through and limitations on social events. What I took away from this session was not only does everyone have great musical taste, but that we all share an appreciation and love for music. No matter how distant others can feel from yourself, we all have something in common. Coming from someone who is prone to being a loner, it is a comforting feeling. Thank to GRF Thomas for hosting the event and for announcing the song requests. I added a few of my fellow scholars music to my own playlist.

On this chill Sunday, the Scholars and I shared our favorite songs that we could listen and relax to, while reflecting on how the song made us feel. I am going to share my reactions to a few of the songs played.

Islands in the Stream by Dolly Parton: This song gave me really relaxing but passionate vibes. I got that the premise of the song was about uniting in love and wanting to sail away with someone. This song made me feel very empowered after listening to it.

Stuck with U by Ariana Grande ft. Justin Bieber: I love this song because it came out exactly when quarantine started, and I listened to the lyrics and realized that it was referencing quarantine as well, which I thought was funny. I like this song because it makes me realize that celebrities like everyone else on this earth is affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and everyone has to quarantine regardless of your status.

Hey Look Ma I Made It by Panic at the Disco: This song is a classic, and I particularly love this song because it inspires me to keep working for my dreams. My end goal is to get my dream job and be able to sing this song (not literally) but metaphorically to my mom or my entire family to celebrate that I have accomplished my goals.