By Delaney Willson
Sally Anscombe via Getty Images
Sometimes life doesn't go the way we want it to. We get knocked down. It happens to all of us. It's what happens next that defines us; do we get back up and keep going or do we give in? If the former is to be true, and I hope for all of us that it is, we have some work to do. Smile as you might, we all know that this process isn't going to happen over night. There are steps, five to be precise.
You've probably heard this in your high school psychology class, but according to Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, a person must navigate five stages of grief in order to properly heal. First comes denial, then anger, followed by bargaining, depression, and ultimately acceptance. Those first four sound like the antithesis of "getting over it" but jumping to acceptance too soon can be dishonest and bad for our health. So why is this on a music blog? Well, if you're anything like me you turn to music after a tough time. Your favorite album. Maybe that punk rock album from high school that just gets you like nothing else can. You may not realize it, but that mental playlist you built said a lot about how you were grieving.
So if you're in that dark place right now, or you think you might be one day, and you don't know where to start in that old cassette collection, I've got a starter pack to jog your musical memory. Take a look and take a listen. Take a breath. It's going to be okay.
Denial
- Pop: Not Over You - Gavin DeGraw
- Hip Hop: Flashing Lights - Kanye West
- Alt/Indie: How To Disappear Completely - Radiohead
- Classics: I Don't Want To Know - Fleetwood Mac
- Wild Card: End Of The Road - Boyz II Men
Anger
- Pop: Cry Me A River - Justin Timberlake
- Hip Hop: Dead Wrong - Biggie Smalls
- Alt/Indie: Gives You Hell - All American Rejects
- Classics: Mississippi Goddamn - Nina Simone
- Wild Card: Leave The Pieces - The Wreckers
Bargaining
- Pop: Stay - Rihanna
- Hip Hop: how you sell soul to a soulless people who sold their soul??? - Public Enemy
- Alt/Indie: Anthems Of A Seventeen Year Old Girl - Broken Social Scene
- Classics: I Want You Back - Jackson 5
- Wild Card: Please Do Not Go - Violent Femmes
Depression
- Pop: Say Something - A Great Big World
- Hip Hop: Until The End Of Time - Tupac
- Alt/Indie: Atmosphere - Joy Division
- Classics: Hurt - Nine Inch Nails
- Wild Card: Lost It All - Jill Andrews
Acceptance
- Pop: Stronger - Kelly Clarkson
- Hip Hop: Finish Line - Chance The Rapper
- Alt/Indie: Aphasia - Pinegrove
- Classics: Don't Think Twice It's All Right - Bob Dylan
- Wild Card: I Forgive You - Renn