The 30 Day Song Challenge

Since it’s Labor Day and there weren’t any new releases to really talk about, like with every weekend for the holiday, I decided to do something and talk about music a bit more. With that, I wanted to try out a 30 Day Song Challenge, where each day indicates a day to talk about the theme to talk. This is all in one go since this wasn’t going to be taking place all month.

I love music. Everybody loves music. I’ve done the 30 Day Movie Challenge before on social media, but this is something that would expand my love for it. Was it hard to come up one song from each day since there were so many to pick from? Most definitely. And this gives me the chance to share some of the music that I enjoy a lot more than others.

Note: My critique of music isn’t exactly strong.

Day 1- Your Favorite Song

• “Secret Crowds” – Angels & Airwaves: I first time I listened to “Secret Crowds” was last year during one late night when this came on my Spotify list. Angels & Airwaves sounded familiar, and it wasn’t until I found out Tom Delonge was the lead singer. After listening to almost every week after that, I became obsessed. “Secret Crowds” is upbeat. Its lyrics are powerful. It’s about how the world can be troubling sometimes, but we should think about building a new world with no problems and the people we love and create something better for all.

“Watch our words spread hope like fire”

Day 2- Your Least Favorite Song

• “Baby”- Justin Bieber ft. Ludacris: I mean, it’s Justin Bieber. How could I not hate one of his many songs when I hate him already? Even back when this came out, “Baby” was painfully annoying to hear on the radio, especially when Bieber had his baby voice. The fact that this has over 2 billion views on YouTube is majorly stupid. I cringe every time I hear “Baby” anywhere.

Day 3- A Song That Makes You Happy

• “First Date” – blink-182: Listening to blink-182’s “First Date” reminds me of how much I loved the band when Tom was still in. This was probably the first song that made me love them with its fast-paced track about, well, a date that one is willing to keep with them for a long time. Though I still like them now, they were the absolute best in the 2000s.

Day 4- A Song That Makes You Sad

• “Memory”- Cats: A lot of songs make me sad, and it was hard to pick which to choose. But I’ve been listening to “Memory” from Cats, and it’s one of those Broadway songs that’s beautifully written. Even if I’ve never watched the show before, this rendition of the song speaks true about acceptance and wanting to be joined again. Just look at Elaine Paige’s performance from the 1998 version of the musical and listen to her outstanding voice to feel anything. I’m hoping when this song comes up in the upcoming movie that it will be impactful.

Day 5- A Song That Reminds You of Someone

• “She’s So High”- Tal Bachman: “She’s So High” is one of my favorite one-hit-wonder songs of the 90s, and it’s one of those songs that reminds you of a girl you used to like or currently crush on now. I listen to the song as a guy with a good personality that’s into a girl that’s too good for her.

Day 6- A Song That Reminds You of Somewhere

• “Unstoppable Love”- Jesus Culture ft. Kim Walker-Smith: Out of all the songs that we’ve sung in chapel, there was something about “Unstoppable Love” that moved me. Two years after it was first performed at chapel, it gets me in a spiritual mood.

Day 7- A Song That Reminds You of a Certain Event

“Dig It Up”- from D-Tent Boys: The reason why “Dig It Up” from Disney’s Holes reminded me of a certain event is because when I was in choir in high school and our Spring Sing’s theme was Disney, me and three other friends decided to sing and perform “Dig It Up,” which was a ton of fun. We were one of the first acts and try to imagine getting out of your suit and put on your outfit for the song in about two minutes.

Day 8- A Song That You Know All the Words To

• “Radioactive”- Imagine Dragons: Imagine Dragons is a great band, and I don’t care what anyone says. “Radioactive” was really the first song that leaned me towards their sound and fell in love. Most of their songs I know all the words to in an instant second, but “Radioactive”‘s sound of electronic dubstep and apocalyptic lyrics are enough to love. By the way, a live version or the remix with Kendrick Lamar is even better.

Day 9- A Song That You Can Dance To

• “Love Runs Out”- OneRepublic: OneRepublic is a band that doesn’t get enough attention. Their 2014 single “Love Runs Out” is one of those songs that has that beat that makes me wanna dance when no one is around. You take a look at the mesmerizing music video and try not to dance like lead singer Ryan Tedder. If only I had the moves to dance great. “Love Runs Out” is also a fantastic song, in general.

Day 10- A Song That Makes You Fall Asleep

• “Caribbean Blue”- Enya: Enya is an amazing singer, and her music is good enough to make anyone fall asleep, in a good way. Like “Caribbean Blue” and her other songs, they are perfect to help get me into that napping mood.

Day 11- A Song From Your Favorite Band

• “Uprising”- Muse: Muse is my favorite band of all-time. They are a band I feel like doesn’t get talked about, but I consider them the best alternative band out there. The best song I’ve ever heard from them is without a doubt is “Uprising,” from their fifth album The Resistance. It was December of 2009 when I first heard it in the trailer for Knight & Day and then on SNL the next night. A song about revolution wouldn’t be my thing, but the lyrics are that captivating, from my perspective. Most fans can agree this is one of the most popular songs from their discography. When this comes on the radio and that first note hits, the grin on my face knows something anything will happen.

Day 12- A Song From a Band You Hate

• “Lullaby”- Nickelback: Nickelback is truly a garbage band. They’re one of the few musical artists that’s easy to make fun of. When there was a time when I was little and actually like them, something was wrong with me. And why do I hate Chad Kroeger’s singing voice? All that said, “Lullaby” is probably the one song from the Canadian rock band that’s kind of emotional. Yeah. Not something to add on my phone, but not terrible.

Day 13- A Song That is a Guilty Pleasure

• “I Want It That Way”- Backstreet Boys: For the record, Backstreet Boys is the best boy band that’s still around. Yes, even better than *NSYNC. I don’t even hate them, and “I Want It That Way” is one of those songs that’s dumb to admit to like, but you can’t resist the catchiness of a ballad like this.

Day 14- A Song That No One Would Expect You to Love

• “No Light, No Light”- Florence + The Machine: Florence + The Machine is a wonderful band. “No Light, No Light”‘s sound transcends you like a dream-like state that makes you want to interpretive dance in a forest. The vocals on Florence Welch when it reaches the end of the bridge is one of the best things I’ve ever heard and how long she held onto that note is astounding.

Day 15- A Song That Describes You

• “Zero”- Imagine Dragons: It’s another Imagine Dragons tune. Trying to think of a song that describes me was difficult, but I feel “Zero” is good enough to understand because there are times where I feel like a nobody from time to time. I say that because I’m in my early 20s and I feel like I’m not going to achieve anything amazing in life and stick with fantasies that would be better.

Day 16- A Song That You Used to Love but Now Hate

“I Gotta Feeling”- The Black Eyed Peas: Remember The Black Eyed Peas? Or better yet, when they used to make good music? Well, “I Gotta Feeling” wasn’t half bad when I first heard it. But then came a time where their music became irritating with its obsessive usage of autotune and dumb lyrics. That first note hits and I’m already groaning out of annoyance.

Day 17- A Song That You Hear Often on the Radio

• “Gloria”- The Lumineers: “Gloria” has been on the radio a lot when I’m driving recently. Almost twice a day at least. It was becoming a bit overplayed and have to either change the station or turn the volume down when I’m listening to the radio on my phone while at work. It’s still a good song, though, but I need some space to get it out of my brain.

Day 18- A Song That You Wish You Heard on the Radio

• “Club Foot”- Kasabian: Kasabian is an underrated band that doesn’t get enough attention. My best song from them is “Club Foot” from their debut album. Why haven’t I heard this on the radio? I don’t have a clue. This would be perfect on the alternative stations I listen to daily. This is one of those songs that has a killer bass line that’s addictive. Listen to this and picture it being set to a car chase.

Day 19- A Song From Your Favorite Album

• “Boulevard of Broken Dreams”- Green Day: There are a lot of albums I love that was hard to choose from. However, Green Day’s “American Idiot” is what I call a near-perfect album that comes to mind. The track that beats out everything else is “Boulevard of Broken Dreams,” which is a continuation of the previous song “Holiday.” Considering the album plays out like a story, it’s about the main character (Jesus of Suburbia) feeling alone with nowhere to go and feeling like nothing is there for him.

Day 20- A Song That You Listen to When You’re Angry

• “Coma White”- Marilyn Manson: I don’t know if there’s a go-to song to listen to when I’m angry. “Coma White” or any Marilyn Manson song is probably the closest to feeling mad. It’s definitely my favorite song from the controversial singer. I believe his music is designed to make its listeners anger or uneasy.

Day 21- A Song That You Listen to When You’re Happy

• “Don’t Stop Me Now”- Queen: Many of Queen’s classic music never seizes to not make me happy whenever I hear them. “Don’t Stop Me Now” is that song that literally makes you wanna have a good time.

Day 22- A Song That You Listen To When You’re Sad

• “Wise Up”- Aimee Mann: Aimee Mann doesn’t get enough credit for being a phenomenal songwriter. A depressing song “Wise Up” might sound, but its message about not giving up and making the best choices for you is what matters. It was used best in Paul Thomas Anderson’s Magnolia where each character is singing the song, and it was an emotional moment that made the film even better.

Day 23- A Song That You Want to Play at Your Wedding

• “Holding a Heart”- Toby Lightman: Is it weird to already think of a wedding song when you’re not even married yet? Yes, yes it is. But “Holding a Heart” is a lovely song. First hearing it in the forgettable Anna Faris comedy What’s Your Number?, its lyrics about being yourself and trying to with the person who you choose to love. Honestly, this is like a really good song that has a first dance feel to it.

Day 24- A Song That You Want to Play at Your Funeral

• “Heroes”- David Bowie: Kind of seems hard to know which song to play at my eventual funeral. Well, I decided to go out with my favorite David Bowie song “Heroes.” Bowie was one of the greatest musical artists of our age and it was a sad day when he died. I also love this more when it was used during the finale of “Regular Show.”

Day 25- A Song That Makes You Laugh

• “Amish Paradise”- “Weird Al” Yankovic: It would be impossible not to include a “Weird Al” song. A lot of his parodies are outstanding, and my favorite of all-time is “Amish Paradise.” Being a comedic take on Coolio’s “Gangsta’s Paradise” (another one of my favorites), “Amish Paradise” tells the daily life of someone in the Amish community and made it hilarious. I think this was the first exposure to his music and I believe he’s keeping parody alive.

Day 26- A Song That You Can Play on An Instrument

• “We Will Rock You”- Queen: Kind of a cheat since an instrument doesn’t come in until later, but I can’t play anything. At least the best aspect of “We Will Rock You” is the stomping and clapping in a way of contributing to the song. So, yeah.

Day 27- A Song That You Wish You Can Play

• “Ball and Biscuit”- The White Stripes: Any song by The White Stripes would be perfect to play. But the simplicity blues sound of “Ball and Biscuit” floors me every time I listen to it. The reason it’s a song that slaps to this day is Jack White’s guitar skills with his solos are electrifying. He’s just an impressive guitarist that’s music to my ears.

Day 28- A Song That Makes You Feel Guilty

• “Could Have Been Me”- The Struts: First off, if you haven’t heard of The Struts, do yourself a favor and feel amazed. Secondly, regrets are what I feel guilty about a lot of times. Listening to “Could Have Been Me” again made me realize this past year of school was when I totally regret not telling someone how I felt due to, and I’m still in that situation currently. Just like the song said, ” I wanna live better days. Never look back and say. Could have been me”.

Day 29- A Song From Your Childhood

• “Dirty Little Secret”- The All-American Rejects: The All-American Rejects is one of those rock bands I still listen to this day. But between “Dirty Little Secret” and “Move Along,” the former stayed with me a lot more. The reason why this was a part of my childhood was that as this song became more popular, my sister and I would record the chorus on an MP3 player and just make up the second verse because we didn’t know what it was. I still consider “Dirty Little Secret” the best song from AAR.

Day 30- Your Favorite Song at This Time Last Year

• “White Flag”- Bishop Briggs: “White Flag” by Bishop Briggs was my favorite song of 2018 and stayed in that position when I first heard back that April. It was after listening to it five times in a row that made it my jam. Briggs became one of my favorite female artists afterward that I wished more people talk about with a track about never backing down and willing to fight for whatever means daily to yourself. Songs like that are inspiring when her voice makes it 10x better. This is one of those songs that would fit perfectly into an action movie like Mission: Impossible. I can see it now.