Hey everyone, my name is Nathalie 🙂 (My preferred pronouns are she/her). I’m a senior here studying English Literature. Some of my favorite passions include writing, illustrating, and cooking. This will be my last semester in college. I’m looking forward to applying to the area of animal rights work after graduation. I initially chose this course because I love the style of English Lit. workshop classes. I’m excited after learning the focus of this course because I am a music lover and writing is my passion. So this seems like the right place to be. I enjoy music from different eras, mainly from the 70s to early 2000’s. Some of my favorite music genres include pop, rock, hip hop, latin, Caribbean music (raggaeton, dancehall, etc.), R&B, lofi hip hop, K-pop, disco, musical numbers, electronic, and ambient instrumentals. One of my most memorable musical experiences include seeing Panic at the Disco perform their Pray for the Wicked album at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado. It was such a blast! Brendon Urie and the team of musicians were fantastic performers. I’m also a mush for musical theater and was so appreciative to see the following plays on Broadway: The Lion King, Fun Home, Kinky Boots, and Wicked.

     In all honesty, I’m expecting to be challenged by this course because I’ve never written about music before (do texts and verbal rants count?). There is going to be a lot of learning and expanding because this topic is outside my comfort zone. I’m not a musician or singer but listening to music is a part of my daily life that I appreciate a whole lot. Listening to a song can feel like having a friend embracing the emotion you’re experiencing at the moment—whether it be joy, anger, or the specific experience of feeling betrayed or falling in love. Music is also so powerful in its ability to story-tell. Sometimes I don’t particularly relate to the experience described in certain lyrics. Hell, I may not relate to the mood portrayed by sounds in a song at a particular moment. But that’s the fun. I get to travel to someone else’s emotional landscape and the experiences that make up their personal world. I get to feel what someone I’ve never met has felt by taking in their story. And let’s be real, music is simply magic to the ears. That’s enough of a reason to love music—it just feels right! Find below some of my art works, including memorial pieces for George Floyd and Larry Kramer: