The Sounds She Collected is a newsletter about mixtapes and mixed emotions. Thanks for being part of this hive mind for empathetic, hopeful people.
When I was five, I was obsessed with the poignant ballad “Kiss From A Rose” by Seal.
My mom would drive me to kindergarten, and for an entire school year, I’d ask for us to listen to the Seal cassette tape on repeat. Was it the lilting oboe solo? Seal’s epic harmonies? While I have no idea why I was so deeply into this song or what it meant in any way, those sweet, sweet melodies really shaped my early listening experience.
Since then, I’ve leaned into the sappy to match my wellspring of feelings. Sappy movies, emo music, you name it. If it’s sappy at all, I’m all in.
In my high school days, I got my fix from Delilah. Delilah has been an on-air radio DJ-turned-talk therapist for 40 years now. Delilah counsels fans live and on air about anything and everything, from relationship woes to family drama to all plights you can think of. Then, she dedicates a very sappy song to someone in their lives.
My friend M and I would drive around listening to Delilah’s advice late at night when the world was heading to sleep, trying to apply some of these Big Lessons to our 16-year-old selves. Last night, while driving home, I heard Delilah on the radio once more. As she dedicated a Celine Dion song to a sister duo, it seemed she was still connecting with listeners in this way only she can.
In making playlists with a variety of themes, I couldn’t help but wonder, what impact have sappy songs had on music at large? Is there inherent value in what they bring to music, or do they help us access our deep well of feelings?
In 2021, we’ve all become critics. Whether we’re writers, we tweet a lot, or we’re leading the group text talking about Olivia Rodrigo’s album, our subjective barometers tell us what’s good before any media outlet can.
Today I’m here to tell you—like whatever music you want to like. There’s a freedom and power in liking music that not everyone else likes, in blasting that one objectively sappy song out your car windows, in having your top song be something you loved in 1995. Even if it’s the cheesiest song you’ve ever heard in your entire life.
This week’s playlist, truly madly deeply, is dedicated to the profoundly sappy and embracing what we love as part of radical self-acceptance. Shuffle it up to enjoy songs that are also probably some of the top wedding first-dances of all-time.
Cheesy forever,
Sarah
Forward this to your sappiest friend who just has a lot of feelings.
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The Sounds She Collected is committed to social justice and advocacy. Each month, I’ll be matching donations to a charitable organization. This month’s organization is StrongMinds, which provides free group talk therapy to women in Uganda and Zambia with the goal of ending the depression epidemic in Africa. Share your donation receipt with me, and I’ll match.