It's the smallest section in a records store, and it's the section I visit most: the world music section.
For as long as I can remember, I've been fascinated and drawn to language. When I was in 4th grade, my friend Bonnie gave me a Celine Dion CD- in French. It totally annoyed me.
"French? Why'd you get me a French CD?" I asked.
"I don't know. I just saw it and thought it would be cool!" She said, giggling.
That annoyed me even more. How could she get me something I couldn't even use?
For weeks, it just sat there. I didn't want to throw it out, but I sure as hell didn't want to listen to it. Until one day...I did. I don't even know why. I'm pretty sure it was due to sheer boredom and lack of options. I mean, you can only make Ken and Barbie have sex on your front porch for so long. (Sorry, Mom.)
I had no idea, prior to listening, how captivated I'd be. (And that's not just the post-Barbie coitus talking.) I was really, genuinely fascinated. The words became a puzzle for my mind...I liked listening to the different sounds and seeing how they compared to the written text. I liked wondering what they meant, and trying to piece together sentences based on the similar-to-English words I had already seen. So there I sat, in the corner of my room, next to my gigantic, shitty RCA stereo, memorizing as much French as I could. I remember vaguely switching from that cd to the casette single of AC/DC's "Highway to Hell" and Ugly Kid Joe's "I Hate Everything About You." (Not much has changed)
In high school, a French boy named "Nicholas" (Neek-Oh-Ligh) studied with us during senior year. He was from Quebec. Not only was I facsinated he spoke French, but he was gorgeous, so of course I wanted to hit that shit. But all I could do when talking to him was ask for lyric translations.
"So what does "Cherche Encore" mean?" I asked.
"Cherche Encore? It means "Keep Searching. Why do you ask?"
"Um, I don't know. I just love this song but have no clue what I'm actually saying." I blurted out.
That was the end of our union. He wound up dating Sabrina H.; a beautiful, exotic classmate of mine that was just as talented as she was pretty. I eventually got over it, but always wondered, deep down, if he knew how worldly I was, despite my Caucasian exterior.
My fascination for language only continued to grow. I took 5 years of Spanish, attended Peace-Corps meetings, and eventually planned to relocate to South America. But I was caught in between a love for two things: performing and entertaining, or complete cultural immersion. What should I do? Make a difference to those less fortunate in third world countries....or push buttons?
Looks like Nickelback won.
But that didn't stop me from singing "Bakit labis kitang mahal" with my Filipino friends during karaoke, or writing for "Nirvana Woman" Magazine about my love for all things bhangra. Nor did it keep me from taking belly-dancing lessons and buying every single Natasha Atlas CD available.
Most recently, I reached out (via youtube) to a Corsican band that is very near and dear to my heart, I Muvrini. Their passion for humanity and justice (and beauty, overall) resonate so strongly in my core that I had to put myself out there. (This was their first U.S. appearance in 7 years) Imagine how elated I was when I met the lead singer, and the first thing he told me was how beautiful my video was, and how much it meant to him.
This is who I am. It's not so much a language fascination but a connection that I crave. I crave to connect, every day. Whether I'm on-air telling stories, or on-stage, telling jokes. I just want to connect. I just want to know that something I'm saying is making somebody feel comforted, in some way. I want to make a difference. I want to have an effect. No matter what language, I want to strive to prove there is always, and will always be, a link.
And if it takes me scanning the world music section of Virgin records on a Sunday afternoon to restore my faith in that vision…then so be it.