Music and Family

As a field study, I was asked to interview someone of the older generation. As I did not interview a family member specifically, I did interview someone I am really close too. She is like family to us, so I thought why not. With this class having a focus on different cultures and thier musics, I did not want to do my parents as they were both born here, in Spartanburg South Carolina, and most of my other family members were also from the same areas in Spartanburg. I thought, also, that it would be more interesting to interview someone who was born into a different culture unlike my own. So, I decided to interview a rather close family friend of ours.

I have only known Stacey for about a year and this interview has really helped me get to her from a musical standpoint. Here is a bit of her background: She was born in Shelbyville Indiana where she got married and had her first born. She moved to South Carolina 26 years ago where she had her three boys. Most of her family was not musical but she had a love for music that made her an avid participant of choirs. I asked her a few questions about her childhood and her parents: (not word for word, I just kind of summarized).

Me: What kind of music did you listen too when you were growing up?
Stacey: I listened to a lot of the older rock and roll but as I got older I listened to country for the most part.
Me: Do you still listen to that type of music?
Stacey: Yes, eventhough, I prefer country, I still listen to Rock and Roll on a daily basis.
Me: Did your parents influence what you listened too in any way or did you just kind of discover that type of music on your own?
Stacey: No, not really but my mom loved Elvis Presley so that could have been some of an influence for liking rock and roll.
I then asked her "What was your first memory of music?"
Stacey: It was Elvis Presley because my mom loved him.
This is a short response, but, because of her mom, Stacey grew up with a lot of Elvis Presley influnece. So this, in a sense, allowed her to discover rock and roll and her love for it.
Moving on to her later life
Me: Did you go to any concerts?
Stacey: Yes, I think the first concert I attended was Lisa and the Cult Jam, but I have been to others.  ACDC, Blake Shelton and Willie Nelson were among those. I have been to a lot so I can't think of all the ones I have attended right off hand.
Here is a song from Lisa and the Cult Jam!

I did end up asking her how the experience was and she just said "fun!" This was a simple answer but I then asked her "Did the experience of seeing concerts help you love music more? Here was her answer:
"Yeah, but I loved music before because when I was in high school, I was in what they called a show group. I actually went to many state competitions and won many awards while doing it. I loved music and still do."
I actually didn't know this about her so it was nice hearing a story I could relate too on a personal level. I, too, competed in multiple state level competitions with the chamber choir I was in for two years of high school. Just a cool fact that i'm glad I captured about her.

Me: When you moved here, did your type of music change and if so, what did it change too?
Stacey: It did. It changed to country. I listened to country when we first moved here, I guess because we are in the south! haha!
I later learned that Indiana wasnt much of a country influence to her as South Carolina was.

I knew she had travelled some but I had no idea that she had been to so many places.
me: "Did you travel any?"
Stacey: Yes, I have been to Hawaii, Pennsylvania, New York City, Boston, Tennessee, Kansas, Ohio, Missouri and Arkansas.
I found this to be fasinating because, though only 9 states were stated during the interview, she still had numerous other states she had visited and seen. I told her that I had only been to Florida, Germany, California and Tennessee but it would have been really cool to visit Hawaii and Kansas.

Moving on to others questions.
After asking her about her travels, I asked her "what kind of music did you hear in Hawaii, specifically?" and her response was "well it was Hawaiian music and (it) was definitely much different than what we hear in South Carolina." I then asked her, to keep the conversation going, "did you see dances and things that were not traditionally done here," and she said "Yes, definitely," My goal here was to get a story but unfortunately I didn't. This was completely my fault as some of the questions were just pulled during the spur of the moment so to speak but none the less, I still learned a great deal about her travels.

With her being a mother of four, I was curious to know what she thought of thier music. Her oldest daughter is in her late twenties while her youngest son is 11. We see totally different age gaps here so I was curious to know.
Me: Thinking about the music you grew up with, do you enjoy/like the type of music your children listen too?
Her response to this really shows her personality!
Stacey: uhh, no. *laughs*
I asked her why and she simply said "because you can't understand the words."
Me: How different was your daughters music compared to your youngest sons?
Stacey: Well Cassy listened to country so I could handle her music but Colton, one the other hand, is totally different. He thinks he needs to listen too all that rap and music that is hard to understand. That crazy stuff!
I think it was important to ask this because music is constantly evolving and with me, basically, growing up as the only child, my influence of music came from what my parents listened too. However, some of it came from what my friends listened too as well. My point here is that music is always changing and each generation has a different influence in regards to what they listen too.

Me: Do you like to expose your children to the type of music you listen too?
Stacey: Yes, because I think it's better music and every one of my kids, but Colton, listens to what we do.
Me: Do you think it's important for the different generations to have thier own type of music?
Stacey: yes, I think it is. I'm not gonna hate on it but I do think it's important.

Wrapping up, I asked what I feel is the most important question. What is music to you?
Stacey: Music to me soothes my soul. If i'm in a bad mood, I can turn music on and it makes me feel better instantly. It calms me.
I don't think this could have been answered any better. Music is my everything and it definitely is my healing. I couldn't imagine a world without it!

She went on to talk about her show choir more and her singing experience. She used to compete in what I guess is considered,now, solo and ensemble, where she scored a perfect score of 7. Then she went with a trio, and they also scored a perfect score.  She talked about the many outfits of the choir world. If anyone was in choir, you know what i'm talking about. She enjoyed singing and still sings to this day. Like I said before, she didnt come from a musical family but when her parents found out she could sing, they enrolled her into chorus and made her a participant of music.

I interviewed Stacy in her house and it was a nice, calm enviroment, except for her cat wanting ALL the attention. He even one time, sat on my notes and I spent a whole minute trying to get him to move! Lol, the joys of having animals. Anyways, I think the interview went really well and we both were super comfortable through the whole interview. It was a great interview and i'm so glad I was able to talk with her more. :)

I will attach her favorite song to give everyone a break from reading! This is "Gone' by Montgomery Gentry. This would have been the song to describe her as well!