To say that music plays a big part in my life would be an understatement. Even glossing over my younger years as an aspiring singer and my time spent in the local festival circuit (which, believe me, I'm as eager to forget as anyone), music has been central since I was a kid. When I was in school, my mom was a teacher in a school 45 minutes from our house, so our daily commute was filled with sing-a-longs. The soundtrack to every family reunion was relatives playing instruments and singing gospel songs. Some of my fondest memories of my grandmother involved me lying on the kitchen floor, face pressed to the cold linoleum, listening to her sing old songs while making dinner. I even befriended my favorite band in high school, and spent many evenings helping them load out after shows. Our wedding favors? CDs with a playlist of songs from our wedding and dating period.
Even now, my brother and I can't seem to be in the same room for more than 15 minutes without picking up some guitars for an impromptu duet. I drive a lot between schools for work and spend some time in my office as well--there's always music in the background of my workday. The first thing I do most days when I get home is to put on a record and unwind. I get a ridiculous amount of joy out of making playlists for different seasons of my life and revisiting them months or years later, and for that reason, this post is always my favorite every single year: my favorite songs released in the past 12 months.
