Music is something that we all need in our lives. If you think about it, what is the one thing that people do regardless of how they are feeling? They listen to music. Music has the ability to bring joy in times of sadness, excitement in times of celebration, and solace in times of pain. Without music, our world would be bland, and quite honestly, a rather sad place to exist. In our times of greatest need, we often turn to music to bring us comfort and normalcy when it is hardest to find.

During this ongoing pandemic, I think I’m safe to say that many people were pushed to their limits. I know that I was. One of the things that got me through this entire experience was without a doubt music. Being able to listen to happier songs or songs that bring specific memories to mind was therapeutic in a way that allowed me to escape my life. Teaching myself how to play instruments during the quarantine was another therapeutic experience, where not only I was able to hear the music, but I was able to make it.

Being in the house for so long and watching the world seemingly crumble around you can understandably leave a person feeling pretty down. One way many people have chosen to combat this is through a non-evasive form of medicine: music. My prediction is that all this time spent at home is what will result in one of the better years of the modern era for music. Artists have been able to pour their emotions into a song in a way that most of us can’t to begin with, and times like these give way to some interesting new content.

Take one of Luke Combs’ newest songs, Six Feet Apart. The song is about Combs’ struggles with accepting the changes brought about by the pandemic, and his outlook on the entire situation. In the song, he explains how this time of year (the spring, when it was written) is normally the time he “feels most alive” with the start of summer and the return of the things that make him happiest. He then goes on to explain how everything has come to a halt with the pandemic, and he is left missing his family and the job that he loves so much. But he develops the perspective of “there will be light after dark, some day when we aren’t six feet apart” and remains hopeful through it all that life will return to normal soon enough.

The time spent at home has given artists the time they need to refine their music and put genuine effort into it, focusing on real improvement. These artists are making music for themselves now, spurred by real feelings and experiences. The music they are putting out is less of the mass-produced quality restrained by time limits and more from the heart. So, although 2020 has not been the ideal year for many reasons, hopefully it will leave us with some great music!