Elsa Fuentes-Virabyan is a content writer for KCPR. The opinions expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of Mustang Media Group.
If you consider yourself a fan or an avid music enjoyer in any capacity, you should re-evaluate that identity if you’re only listening to songs from the English-speaking world.
This statement might seem harsh but please bare with me as I explain myself. I’m not here to shame any one specific music taste. Rather, I want to emphasize the importance that exploring different genres, styles and scenes has on your overall listening experience, no matter your preferences or background.
For those of us living in the U.S., it’s easy to forget just the sheer amount of media that is in English and geared towards American audiences. It forms a cultural bubble where people primarily interact with and gravitate towards art that is palatable for what they are used to. Many people in this bubble aren’t encouraged to seek out forms of creative expression that don’t align with what is familiar.
However, if you’re able to break out of this pattern, you’ll truly see just how much more music there is to offer. There is a whole entire wonderful, exciting world you are missing out on.
I credit my early exposure to a diverse scope of music to all the songs my parents loved to play, sung in their native languages and often accompanied by traditional folk melodies that were a unique reflection of the cultures they came from. It made me fall in love with music.
Whenever I kept my dad company while he was lounging around at home, he’d always end up playing some of his favorite songs, reminiscing about his memories back home while we listened to cumbias and salsa together.
Although I didn’t speak Spanish like he did, I was enthralled by all of the funky and striking arrangements of beats and rhythms that my ears were taking in. As I grew older and began expanding my own musical palette, it made me appreciate all of the diversity found in music.
But I don’t think it’s necessary to have a preexisting background of exposure to international music to be able to enjoy or appreciate songs from different countries. While people have argued that you cannot become fully immersed into a song if you’re unable to understand the lyrics, there are plenty of other ways a song can convey an intended emotion or message to an audience.
Hearing the ways international artists have innovated existing genres through their own unique cultural understanding and lens has led to some of the coolest musical creations that are available for us to listen to and enjoy. In fact, I think it is particularly the language barrier present that makes the listening experience for international music so much more stimulating.
The absence of a message understood through lyrics makes you rely on only the sounds strung together to make sense of what you are tuning in to. As you start paying closer attention to the intricacies of the instrumentals and the tone in an artist’s voice, it makes you appreciate the artistry being put into all of the other music you listen to.
Part of the beauty of music is its unique ability to unite people across borders and cultures. In a world that seems to grow ever divided by the day, it is more important than ever to listen and engage with the artistic expression coming from all the little corners of the world.
If you feel inspired to explore the vast worlds and cultures represented through international music, feel free to check out the playlist below to help you get started. It includes some of my very favorites of international music, in no particular order, which I hope you will grow to love as much as I do.
