Slowing Down the Tempo In These Too Fast of Times

Whenever I like a track, I ask my most musically-manic-mate, Ivan to send me songs that sound similar. Ivan is basically like a Spotify algorithm in human form, knowing the ins and outs of what makes people feel the best as soon as they press play. Lucky for me, we have pretty matched up music tastes: lots of R&B, house music, and basically anything with a good beat. But, a few weeks ago, I asked Ivan to send me a steady stream of songs that were unlike anything I had asked about before. I asked for slow moving, jazzy sounds, swapping our usual ecstasy of adrenaline-inducing tunes with ones that place more emphasis on relaxation. 

At first, I was a bit perplexed at myself as to why I had seemingly switched gears from my usual need for speedy sonic escapism. But then, I understood. As life is moving with an intensity that is incomprehensible to us all (cue election anxiety, a global health crisis, and an unprecedented digital midterms moment), I have found it important to slow down the tempo of my own relationship to time and mirror that with the music that I fill it with. Swapping out a pump-up playlist with a more lullaby-esque-lineup has been a blessing, and I invite you all to try it out too.

I sit here typing this with the greatest election of our time so close that I can taste it. It is terrifying, and it is controlling our individual inabilities to turn inward, making it impossible to be unaffected by the intensity of the current climate. Although “times like these” is hard to write truthfully, since the current state of the world is essentially unparalleled; it is within the hardest of times that impactful music has been created. So, as I take to my newfound love of jazz, I not only find my own moments of solace, but I also extend the mission of the entire genre that it was first built upon. 

Jazz, and cool jazz specifically, was birthed from families and communities of Black people in New Orleans brought together by their shared experiences and extensions of their need to hold onto their cultural expressions. It is important to remember that this style of music that still helps people slow down was strung straight from a time where this tempo brought forth the only possible moments of escapism.

So, as I called on Ivan to send me slow jams with jazzy accents, I have been able to obsess over new artists while moving through time with a necessary sense of leisure. The likes of S Tone Inc, Tall Black Guy, and St. Germain have filled not only my newest playlist, but my literal life, with a sense of excitement to sit and slow down. And, with the B-Side Jazz Playlist, I have not only had the chance to check back in with the oldies that created space for the names above, but I have also been able to impress Ivan with what I could share with him too. 

If I can leave you with anything in these uncertain and all too fast of times, I implore you to do as follows. First, allow yourself the time to slow down, starting with the sound coming out of your speakers. Second, share your adjusted music taste with the people who parallel your passion for musical escapism. And lastly, please, for the love of the music-gods… please fucking vote. 

Written by Paulette Ely