Technically, I listen to music as soon as I wake up. I put my favourite song at the moment in time as my alarm on my iPhone so I wake up in a good mood- well, supposedly. I will listen to music in the car on the way to school on the radio, which is usually on BBC Radio 1. I'll get to school early and then I'll listen to music off of my iPhone using earphones until school starts. I'll listen to music during most break times and lunch times. When I walk home I will often listen to music and when I get home I'll play music off of my iPhone as well.
The only times I won't be listening to music is when I'm in a school lesson or when I'm socialising with my friends doing an activity which doesn't allow us to listen to music. I will listen to music anywhere and at any time I can really if I can help it.
I usually listen to music on my own because it relaxes me. I also like interpreting the lyrics myself and understanding songs in my own way. I use music to suit my mood, so if for instance I was sad, I would play a different genre or a particular song or artist to perhaps improve my mood. I am quite an open minded person when it comes to music so I like to listen to Beats 1 on my iPhone as it features a wide range of music genres and is on air 24 hours a day with songs that I enjoy listening to.
I follow websites such as HipHopDX, Complex and Bluntiq to see what new music has been released. I use Soundcloud frequently to stream music for free and I compile all of my favourite songs into playlists which are open to the public.
An example of one of my playlists can be seen below:
Uses and Gratifications Theory
Personal Identification: is when a song expresses how you feel and you can relate to it and it makes you feel better about yourself. For instance, when I get frustrated with something I will listened to a mellowed song to chill myself out.
Information: is when as song teaches you something which you didn't know before. For instance, by listening to Meek Mill's diss track "Wanna Know", I learnt that Drake was urinated on by fellow rapper, Q-Tip.
Entertainment: is when someone listens to music for self satisfaction because of the particular song, album, genre or artist that they're listening to for instance when I listen to a new song from an artist I like, I am usually very happy.
Social Interaction: is when songs are played and shared at social occasions such as when I'm with my friends and we're playing music from a speaker via Bluetooth and then I have found a good song so I tell them about it.
