By Kalena Reynolds | Staff Writer
While music connects us, our taste shows a piece of who we are. Find out more about who the staff of The Lariat are by reading what they have to say about their very own self-proclaimed theme songs.
“Everlong” by Foo Fighters
“While most of us have crafted lengthy playlists for every occasion, from girlboss vibes to crying your heart out, most of us have one central song that really imprints on our hearts — a theme song, if you will. Personally, my so-called theme song is ‘Everlong’ by Foo Fighters.
“I first encountered the song around 11 or 12 years old while listening to 2000s rock radio on Pandora. I have cried and lived some of the happiest moments while listening to this song. It feels like a warm friend. If I could only listen to one song for the rest of my life, it would be ‘Everlong.'”
Kalena Reynolds | Arts and Life Writer
“Wish You Were Here” by Pink Floyd
“[My] favorite song ever is ‘Wish You Were Here’ by Pink Floyd. My brother has been playing guitar for his entire life, and he would always play the beginning of the song, which is very beautiful. It would remind me of a very tumultuous time in my middle school childhood life when a lot of things around me were kind of shaky, but that song was always there.
“It’s like my childhood and my life all in one song.
“It’s definitely my cry song. If I’m really feeling it and you put that song on, I will sob. Or if I’m out anywhere and a guitarist is playing it, then I have to stop in my tracks and listen, because it makes me so emotional.”
Erika Kuehl | Arts and Life Writer
“Summer, Highland Falls” by Billy Joel
“That is a really interesting and beautiful song. It’s not something that he plays in concerts a lot. I have a tradition with my mom and my brother where we go to Billy Joel concerts.
“‘Summer, Highland Falls’ is actually about Billy Joel’s bipolar disorder, and I don’t have bipolar disorder, but one of the things he says in the song is that it’s either sadness or euphoria. To him, that means if you [are] bipolar, you’re either sad or you’re really up there, manic.
“For me, I think it speaks more to just the tumultuousness of life, you know? Sometimes you’re really, really sad, and sometimes you have better days, and the cycle just repeats. And so I think that song kind of highlights just the constant cycle of life and how we all have to deal with that.”
Luke Lattanzi | News Writer
“My Sweet Lord” by George Harrison
“That’s a song my mom played a lot when I was a kid, so it was just one of those things where that song is really nostalgic for me, even though I totally was not alive in the ’70s. It still feels very nostalgic just because it reminds me of being little, not having a care in the world.
“Now that I’m older, I feel like the lyrics connect more with me. It feels more like wanting to let go of stress and not care about the things that happen in your day-to-day life. I just really love this song, and obviously, George Harrison is the best Beatle.
“It’s one of those vague little memories that you have — you know what I mean, when you try to go as far back as you can remember. And I couldn’t remember the year or how old I was, but I just remember the experience.”
Emma Weidmann | Arts and Life Editor
“Life For Rent” by Dido
“When I was a little kid sitting in the car listening to that song, of course I wasn’t thinking about the lyrics or anything. But after a while, I came back and revisited some of [Dido’s] albums and stuff. I was fighting myself, knowing all the words, but I had never really thought about it. But I feel like that song definitely relates to my life.
“It’s about how she kind of doesn’t feel like she has a place sometimes and that she’s trying to learn to commit to things and make her life her own.
“It doesn’t really make me happy or sad. It just kind of makes me feel like I’m not alone in the sense that sometimes I don’t know what I’m doing with my life.”
Olivia Turner | Opinion Editor
“Dreams” by Fleetwood Mac
“I feel like when I discovered that song, I was like, ‘Nothing compares to this. This is so awesome.’ It can be sad but also happy, and it’s like a little bit coming-of-age-y. It’s multidimensional, and I can listen to it when I’m sad or happy or feeling nostalgic.
“The first time I heard it was in my dad’s truck. He plays a lot of oldies, and small Tatum thought all of his music was the coolest ever. I thought I was the first person to ever listen to Fleetwood Mac.
“Lately, when I’m driving around Waco at night or walking around campus, thinking about graduating, thinking about the next thing — I feel like it’s a good song to listen to when you’re in a life transition. I listened to it a lot freshman year of college, and I’m listening to it a lot now. It’s comforting.”
Tatum Mitchell | News Editor
