Music often exposes our emotions through a varied range of styles. Rock, hip-hop, R&B, and country are among the world’s most popular genres. The music industry has been one of the most successful commercial industries. Talented artists and their catchy songs have been praised and passed down through generations after generations. The influence of music can also be seen in our Hill community.

Elle Molyneaux ’23, the lead singer of Hill’s student band 28:24, talked about her relationship with music. “I think that music is really powerful in a sense that it can alter your mood in any way,” she said. “There is always a hype playlist you listen to with your friend, and there is always a playlist you listen to by yourself during the night as well.”

Similar to Molyneaux, 6th former Grant Deshishku ’22 also felt that music is very influential because it carries peoples’ memories. Deshishku comes from a southern family, and, whenever he listens to country music, it brings back childhood memories for him.

“When you hear the music, you can actually feel your emotions. You smell whatever you smelled, see whatever you saw whenever the first time you heard the song,” Deshishku said.

When it comes to our favorite artists, the meanings of the songs and lyrics often strike a chord in our hearts.

Noah Macielag ’23 was born in a fisherman family, and “Terrapin Station (medley)” by The Grateful Dead has a unique place in his heart. “There is one line in the song that goes ‘The sailor gave at least a try, the soldier being much too wise, strategy was his strength, and not disaster’ that I relate to a lot,” Macielag said. “The sailor giving a try, took a risk, due to his natural ability to avoid disaster. As a sailor, I really relate to that style of life by taking risks.”

Deshishku has been a huge fan of the band Metallica. He said that the song “Master of Puppets” is really meaningful to him. “This song is about fighting addictions, and, for me, it acts as a reminder that there will be something that could control me, but I have to glide my way out and shrug things off and to fight that urge of making those bad decisions,” Deshishku said.

Music can have many social psychological impacts and meanings for people, especially teenagers. Just like Deshishku said, “Music really brings people together.”