Music Porn

As a music listener, I prefer well-crafted albums from a single artist over a handful of singers. I also appreciate albums with thought-out concepts more than a whole bunch of songs thrown in together. I like to experience a record from beginning to end without interruption.

When I started to get into jazz singing, I listened to Billie Holidays for a month straight. She impressed the hell out of me, but that was the reason I tuned in for. Lady in Satin took me into the darkest corner of her world and let me touch her soul. If I was in the mood for some psychedelic rock, Jimi Hendrix’s Electric Ladyland would be my goto album. If I was in a mood for some Vietnamese romantic ballad, I would reach for Tuấn Ngọc’s Giọt Lệ Cho Ngàn Sau. Likewise, I could relax to Hồng Nhung’s Khu Vườn Yên Tĩnh or get some lyrical pleasure from Jay Z’s The Black Album. Of course I could pick out any record of Miles Davis for any occasion.

To describe my listening experience, the best analogy I could think of is an interview with a porn star. I can’t recall what her name was, but her answer to why she wanted to be a porn star struck a cord with me. She said that for the next 30 minutes or so she could leave the world behind her and just focus on her partner and the only thing that stands between them is the camera. That is exactly how I feel. Between me and the musician is a pair of earbud. I want the intimate relationship between me and the artist. So yes, from Jimi, Coltrane, Dylan, Thu Phương, Nguyên Khang to Hồng Nhung, I fucked them all.