Finding Empowerment, Energy, and Mindfulness Through Music

October 22, 2024

Migyu Kim (she/her) is a Senior at Phillips Academy Andover. She is passionate about teen and athlete mental health, involved in the Kevin Love Fund Youth Council and Morgan’s Message. Her favorite subjects are Statistics and English. Outside of school, she enjoys playing squash, going out to restaurants with her friends, and reading.

This story took place in United States

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I’ve been participating in the Kevin Love Fund’s Youth Council program for about a year and a half now. As part of the youth council, I am one of several high school students around the country helping with the development of new lessons for the foundation’s social emotional learning curriculum, which is shared to schools to help decrease stigma around mental health through activities and lessons.  

After a relaxing, restful summer, the start of my senior year has been hectic and overwhelming. It took some time to settle back into a routine and figure out how to balance my schoolwork, extracurriculars, athletics, and college applications. I felt like I was constantly moving from one thing to another without a moment to breathe—classes then sports practice then club meetings then homework then sleep then wake up and repeat. I was overwhelmed by the infinite list of things I had to get done.  

Thankfully, I had the opportunity to set aside all my other stresses and solely focus on my self-care and mental health during the Kevin Love Fund and Born This Way Foundation collaboration meeting.

During the virtual gathering, we first introduced ourselves and were then given the space and time to create playlists for the new school year with songs that resonated and are meaningful to us. We also created a cover for the playlist. At the end of the meeting, we shared the top songs we chose for our playlists and what we created or found for our cover art. It was so interesting to hear about the different ways that my peers engage with music, from listening to genres that resonate with their culture and family to connecting to meaningful lyrics. I also got so many great new song recommendations!

I knew that this fall was going to be very busy and chaotic for me, so for my playlist, I decided to include songs that are upbeat and empowering that I could listen to when I needed a boost of positivity. Some of my favorite songs in my playlist are “Beaches” by Beabadobee, “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” by Tears for Fears, and “September” by Earth, Wind, and Fire.

For my cover art, I chose a picture I found on Pinterest of Elle Woods studying from Legally Blonde. For all those that haven’t watched the movie before, Elle Woods is the definition of a girl boss, who exceeds all expectations and gets into Harvard Law School through her hard work and determination. I selected this picture as a small form of inspiration to study and work hard to achieve my goals. 

The picture I used for my playlist cover!

I loved this activity because I now listen to this playlist almost every day. Music has always been such an amazing way for me to take a moment for myself. There are so many different genres, songs, and artists that I can listen to depending on my mood and emotions. Music is so easily digestible as well—I can listen to a single song as I walk between classes, have it playing in the background as I finish my homework, or get through an entire album while running. Listening to music is one of my favorite ways of taking care of my mental health. 

The Kevin Love Fund x Born This Way Foundation’s gathering was a great way to start the school year with others who share my love for music, especially as a form of self-care. 

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