As the seasons shift from cold winter jackets to sunny tank tops, media consumed can shift to match the changes. Students and teachers alike may begin to reach for different music playlists, or add new shows to their current watchlists.
During the summer, senior Janae Ruwethin listens to both pop and Brazilian funk music. She finds that the specific genre can have a positive effect on both her mood as well as her day.
“It can put me in a better mood, or just get me motivated,” Ruwethin said. “They make me sort of romanticize my life, like it’s my background music for living.”
Summer breaks can be a reminder of childhood memories or past experiences, and music that individuals listen to during the summer can be reflective of that. Senior Dylan Ng’s choice on music is tied back to what his past self would listen to.
“A lot of the songs, like nostalgic songs from my childhood, I would listen to,” Ng said. “A lot of the pop that we grew up with, like on the radio, on the car, that’s definitely what dominates my music taste over the summer.”
Many noted how TV productions during winter are oftentimes more related to horror and mystery while shows released during the summer may center around romance and comedy. Music teacher Johnny Erdman pointed out the setting relevancy in the movie “Jaws.”
“If you’ve ever seen ‘Jaws,’ it’s a big scary shark movie that takes place during the summer cause you don’t really think about going to the beach and swimming during the winter,” Erdman said.
Similarly, senior Minseo Kanota finds that rather than setting a new scene, movies and shows are often made to fit the mood that is already present. Kanota observed that a movie’s genre can have an effect on its popularity during the time it is released.
“Some shows and movies are released around the season that they’d be best watched in, like usually horror is released around Halloween, or the more autumn wintery months,” Kanota said. “In the summer, it is usually comedies and movies like ‘The Summer I turned Pretty’ and ‘To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before,’ so indefinitely the movies released around summer time are more lighthearted.”
Whether it is a song or a movie, certain media can directly affect how a person gets through their day. Some have noticed that the song they choose to listen to or the show they watch can either change or strengthen their current mood. For Ruwethin, summer media aligns with her more positive feelings.
“I like warm weather and it makes me happier. I need the sun, so it (summer media) just tends to compliment my mood rather than try to change it,” Ruwethin said.
Likewise, Ng mentioned that how a person acts is reflective through the media they choose to consume.
“People say that you are what you listen to, so if I listen to certain media online, that’s going to reflect how I’m acting,” Ng said. “If I listen to more upbeat music, then I’m obviously going to be in a happier mood and vice versa. If I’m listening to depressing music, then maybe I’m not having such a good time.”
There are many types of media readily available to everyone. Whether a person chooses to indulge in sad notes of a song or laugh at the comedic lines of a show, they are given the opportunity to make that decision.
“If you want to be happy, you can find happy music that makes you feel happy. Sometimes you want to feel sad, and so you can find sad music to embrace that,” Erdman said.