34: How Music Triggers Memories and Emotions

Roula (00:00)
I feel very powerful today. Okay, I'll let you know why.

Rosie (00:03)
oooohhh mmhmmm mmhmmm

mmhmmm

Roula (00:06)
Do you know these slippers that every historical religious man wore them from Jesus to Moses to Muhammad, maybe to Buddha? Yeah, you know the brand, the Birkenstock one. Birkenstock, we call them like Jesus or Moses sandals. I'm wearing it with my white socks.

Rosie (00:11)
Yeah, yeah, yeah. Like the sandals. Yeah, yeah, yeah. The leather ones. Yeah, yeah, Birkenstocks. Okay. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Roula (00:28)
that have on them huge jaw, you know jaw, the movie? The shark movie, they have the big letter jaw and the shark opening his mouth. In my Birkenstocks so I'm like you for Australia, I don't know if the surfers wear something like this. But I definitely think socks with Birkenstocks are horrible. But they feel powerful.

Rosie (00:34)
Yeah, the shark movie. Yeah!

You're a badass.

Yep.

Right? Yes. I love it. I love

Roula (00:58)
Yeah.

when I see people wearing socks with sandals, I feel these are free-spirited people. They don't give a shit about fashion.

Rosie (01:06)
Yes,

exactly. They just want to feel comfortable in whatever feels good. If you feel powerful wearing socks and Birkenstocks, you do you. I respect that. I like that. I'd be doing it if it wasn't so hot. And it took you 51 years.

Roula (01:17)
I didn't know it will feel so good. yeah, yeah. You're definitely

a burger stock with socks person.

Rosie (01:26)
See, you just know by looking at me. Yeah.

Roula (01:41)
Rosie, I do have something fun to talk about today. why music makes us feel the way we do?

Rosie (01:44)
Hmm.

I feel put on the spot. Well, it just like speaks to you. I feel like it goes straight into whatever we have inside your heart, your soul, whatever it is. It just pierces everything. It's so...

You know, you can just feel it. You feel it in the notes, in the sounds.

You cut in, what's your question?

Roula (02:20)
Hmm, yeah, then I remembered I should not go in. I should leave you finished.

Rosie (02:24)
I don't even know where I was going. Jump in.

Roula (02:29)
all right. So when you listen to music or when I listen to music, I feel transported into places, whether it's music from my childhood that my mom used to play to wake us up in the morning, or it's the music that I was listening to while I was processing a heartbreak or processing difficult time.

Rosie (02:38)
Mmm, yes.

Roula (02:54)
I listen to dark music to feel happier, which is very weird.

Rosie (02:58)
Mmmmm

Roula (03:02)
Tell me, how do you get that? Because I'm trying to untangle this.

Rosie (03:06)
Yeah, when I was in high school, like I would get bullied a lot and I was very depressed and I would listen to really dark music, a lot of heavy metal and just really full on music that I don't listen to as much anymore. Not because I don't like it, but I don't feel I need it anymore. So I was in a really dark place struggling and the music helped me feel more alive. It's what spoke to me at that moment.

Roula (03:35)
I was on your podcast, you asked me what helped me get through the times of war. And I told you music. Yeah, you know, it's so funny. We had a one station on FM radio that had English speaking music. And this one station was Radio Monte Carlo in France.

Rosie (03:41)
Eh.

You did.

Roula (04:03)
and it had like two or three songs that kept playing over and over again between shows. And one of the songs was, I think, if I could turn back time by Cher.

Rosie (04:07)
Mm-hmm.

Yeah.

Yeah, classic,

Roula (04:18)
And I can't remember, can't count the days, the afternoon that I was sitting on the couch, nothing else to do, and waiting for this song to come on the radio because I don't know why I didn't have cassette tapes at that moment. I can't remember. Or maybe there was no electricity to play the stereo, so I had to do with this little radio. And I lived my afternoon waiting for this song to come.

Rosie (04:34)
Mmm.

Mm-hmm.

Wow.

Roula (04:46)
because

that was the only song I can listen to. And I'm like, you can leave me wherever you want, but I have to have music with me.

Rosie (04:49)
Mmm.

Mm. So how do you feel now when you hear that song?

Roula (05:02)
Yeah, I still like it, but it doesn't ignite the same feelings in me anymore.

Rosie (05:08)
Does it bring back memories though?

Roula (05:11)
Not this one, not this one. I do have lot of memories listening, for example, to Pink Floyd, The Wall.

Rosie (05:12)
Mm.

Yeah, yeah.

Roula (05:18)
This one, felt, not only this one, also Pink Floyd, The Final Cut. These two represent something from growing up in the war and living this kind of life, the politics, the brainwashing. These two albums, when I listen to them, I really feel like my whole, I feel high.

Rosie (05:43)
Wow.

Roula (05:45)
really feel like in a different, totally different place. Even if I'm in a restaurant or in a shop, wherever I am, if there is a song that plays from these two albums, well not the final cut because no one plays songs from it. But if a song plays out of the album, Wall, I kind of cannot, I stop what I'm doing because I have to listen to the entire song.

Rosie (06:08)
You're just this crazy lady stopped in the middle of the shopping centre. Arms in the air. Please don't do that.

Roula (06:10)
You

Wait.

Yeah, so how about you? What kind of music you remember has an impact on you?

Rosie (06:25)
interesting, it's often memories that are difficult that I tie music with. So I remember when, because my dad's not alive, and when the day I found out he'd had the accident, I was driving to get my sister from school. And I vividly recall the song that was playing on the radio.

when I was driving. And so whenever it comes on, I'm just, for me, it just transports me to that time. So it's not necessarily a pleasant thing when I hear it. But then there's other songs, like songs I would sing or play on the guitar with mum. And it just brings back beautiful memories.

Roula (07:08)
Did you play music with your mom?

Rosie (07:10)
Yeah, she was very musical. She'd play guitar, she could play a bit of piano. She learnt how to play the drums in her late 50s. How cool is that?

Roula (07:21)
Very.

Have you taken any music talent from her?

Rosie (07:26)
God, nope. I mean, I can, I can play a few chords on the guitar. I could play a little bit of piano. Have never tried to play the drums. I would love to be a drummer. So bad ass. So cool. Yes. Yes. That'd be hot.

Roula (07:37)
with your shaved head. yeah,

well, the Foo Fighters are looking for new drummer, kidding. That's long time ago.

Rosie (07:49)
Sign me up. Songs bring out so many emotions and I, yeah, I tend to tie songs to memories. That's a big one for me. Or like, have you ever listened to a song and it just brings you to tears? Have you ever had that happen?

Roula (08:05)
like it can happen every day. Yeah I do, I do. I sometimes seek these songs just to bring up this memory. It has something also healing in it. Especially when after my mom died, or was it before even, I was listening every day to a set of songs by the Lebanese singer Fayrouz.

Rosie (08:09)
okay.

Mmm. Mmm.

Yeah. Yeah.

Roula (08:36)
And this set of songs, they were for me represents my mother because she also had a beautiful voice. She could sing for five rules. And I remember my father would be having this glass of whiskey and asking my mom to sing. And I was listening to this music and remembering her. Then my sister called me that mom come and say bye, because she's going to pass. And then when I returned, I play these songs to.

Rosie (08:42)
Mmm, mmm, mmm.

Hmm

Mmm.

Roula (09:05)
to trigger me, to help me heal from my sadness that I lost her. And these are the songs that whenever I play them, I can cry. Definitely.

Rosie (09:08)
Yeah.

Yeah.

Mmm.

Mmm.

Music is healing, isn't it? It does help you feel things. It's like when you're feeling a bit numb, you put on, Roula put on that music that makes you cry and fall like a baby. Let's go, let it out.

Roula (09:21)
Yeah.

Yeah.

There's also music that makes us so happy. If I leave the house upset and I turn on music that makes me happy, I come back completely okay. Do you have that too?

Rosie (09:36)
Yeah.

Mmm. Mmm.

Yeah. Could totally change your mood in an instant. So powerful.

Roula (09:50)
It could be also intentional,

that with intention you want to listen to songs to feel better.

Rosie (09:56)
Mmm.

Mmm. No, I agree. Yeah. Although I t-

Roula (10:01)
Do you turn on

your music in your van?

Rosie (10:07)
Sometimes I'm a bit of a podcast freak. When I'm driving in the van, I'll just have a huge playlist of episodes to listen to. But that takes a lot of brain power, right? So when I just want to, yeah, feel alive and the wind in my hair or lack of hair now. Yeah, I blast some tunes. Me and Tilly are sitting on the front seat and I'm just singing. I'm tone deaf and I don't care. I feel great.

Roula (10:17)
Hmm?

Yeah, well,

I do listen a lot of podcasts and I need a break from podcasts too. And my break is, oh gosh, now I have to listen to music. It's music time. Yeah, that's, that's for sure. And I share my daughter, so we go for a drive and they play their playlist or we play a game like each one can choose a song on and off. And it's so nice that we connect so much with the music. Even my daughter who's 21 was listening to ABBA.

Rosie (10:38)
Mmm.

Yeah. Yeah.

Mmm.

Yeah.

Roula (11:02)
And I'm like, I only listen to Abba at a party. It's not my kind of music. But listening to Abba with my daughter, it's such a happy moment.

Rosie (11:07)
Yeah!

Yeah,

and you're gonna remember that. Listening to ABBA will make you think of your daughter.

Roula (11:16)
Yeah.

isn't it? Like when we pull out pictures of long time ago, memories come back and music I think is the same.

Rosie (11:26)
Yeah. Yes.

Yes. So true. That is so true. And an example of that, there's a Tracy Chapman song.

Roula (11:38)
Talking about the revolution. First car.

Rosie (11:40)
No, not that one.

No, it might be new beginning. What is it? Startle. No, give me one reason. Give me one reason to stay here. I turn my back around. You can tell I can sing. Right. I was on holiday with mom and dad. We used to go to this apartment in this town called Kingscliff and the apartment was right on the creek. And one morning dad was swimming in the creek and I was in the apartment with mom and we were

Roula (11:46)
You be kidding.

Rosie (12:09)
blasting Tracy Chapman. Give me one reason. And we're just like jumping around, shouting. And we look out on the balcony, dad's swimming. There's a dolphin right next to him and he has no idea. And we're shouting out, I'm dad, dad, and mum's shouting out, Steve, there's a dolphin. Just oblivious, no idea. And then he comes back in 15 minutes later and we're like, there was a dolphin.

five centimetres from you. He didn't believe us.

Roula (12:42)
Wow!

See, if we did not mention this song, I wouldn't know this lovely story!

Rosie (12:48)
Right? Isn't it cool? So many stories are tied to music. You know, good ones and bad ones, or not even bad, happy ones and sad ones and in between ones. All of all of the things. Yes, that's balance. Yeah.

Roula (12:53)
Yeah.

This is life. Music helping us survive life from

all the times, from the beginnings of times. So my dear listener, I hope that this will give you a moment to think of the music that you feel like it's bringing nice memories, maybe sad memories. It's healing. And I respect people that introduce me to new songs and new music. They can be my best friends. So call in on our lovely website.

Rosie (13:07)
Yes.

Mmm!

You

Roula (13:30)
And please leave a message with a song that you want us to listen to because it makes you feel something. Yes.

Rosie (13:37)
Right. And if you're courageous,

maybe you could sing this song.

in the recording.

I don't know how Roula feels about that. She doesn't want her ears assaulted. I'm down for it. You're fine with that.

Roula (13:46)
Yeah, I'm fine with it. No, no, no, no,

I sing all the time with my songs. Feel free to sing.

Rosie (13:55)
All right, let us

know guys, go enjoy some music and let us know which ones bring up the memories for you.