Music and Memory

 When people think of songs from their childhood, they usually think of what they may have heard on the radio or perhaps on their favorite show. However, for me, it's entirely different. Many times, this was just a family thing, but instead of watching normal TV, we would watch music videos on On Demand. My two cousins, my brother, and I would gather around in the den and watch different music videos from various artists, ranging from Chris Brown to Lady Gaga to Michael Jackson. Some of the earliest memories I have of music are from watching music videos. The first song is one that really left a big impact on my friends and family. One of the main reasons I remember this song is due to the dancing. The more entertaining a video was, the more we would watch it over and over again. New Flame by Chris Brown was like the starter every time we turned the TV on. No one ever complained about your choice if you picked this. As a child, I would watch the whole video and sing and dance along. As an adult, I always skip the rap and move on to another song. 



The second song is a song that I forget about a lot, but when I come across it, I am instantly placed back into the first day I heard it. It all started on Christmas when my brother and I got a Wii as one of our gifts, along with Just Dance. The next month, we begged our mother to buy us Michael Jackson: The Experience.  As soon as she bought it, Orrin and I played almost every day. We constantly fought over who would be Michael and who would be the background dancer. In this particular song, I always wanted to be the bunny (I think it's a bunny or a goat; I can't tell). Orrin would always let me (mostly because he loved playing Michael). At this age, I was already a Michael Jackson lover, but this game opened my eyes to so many underrated songs that he has. The video below is the actual game that we played to help you imagine the dances. 

 



The last song is by an artist who got me through many, many hours in the car. My dad's side of the family mostly lives in New York, so anytime we had time out of school, we would drive up there and stay until the break was over. The drive is around 12 hours, but without music, it would probably feel like 24 hours. Our car was always packed from the front to the back with five people in all the seats and luggage between everyone's legs. My grandmother would be the driver, and she was a big one for listening to CDs down the road. My brother always sat in the front seat (he was the only boy), so my grandma would let him play music for a little while, and then she would put in her CDs. She had so many artists in her CD case, and a lot of them I didn't like, but if it was The Best of Sam Cooke, I always sang along. This song is one of my favorites that she would play, and when we all sang together, it would be really entertaining and help pass the time. 



Comments

  1. Emily PinkhamJanuary 15, 2026 at 10:08 AM

    So I fear you have some great music taste. The memories you shared are very personable, and almost have that melancholic feeling to them. I really appreciate you sharing them with us. I also like how you remember some moments, even if they are simple, they stay in your heart. That's how music is for as well, and I can see that for you also.

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  2. Jared RosenJanuary 15, 2026 at 11:34 PM

    Hi Nirro, My siblings and I would also pass time watching music videos on MTV and CMT, I remember not always liking CMT cause I did not like country as much as my sisters but I still enjoyed spending time with them watching music videos. We also would do our sibling Just Dances and there were four of us so you can imagine the troop of dancers we had. Sam Cooke is the best choice of an artist to include on here, his music is timeless and I think I could listen to him in any setting or mood.

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