Today, I want to talk to you about what songs you should listen to if you would like to
improve your English that's coming up.
Hi everyone. My name is Wes. This is Interactive English,
which is where you want to be to practice and improve your English skills.
And today today's lesson is all about music because so many of you will ask,
you know, I want to improve my English skills. I love listening to music.
So what songs do you recommend?
And I'm going to tell you about a variety of songs that you can listen to to
help you improve your listening skills and your English comprehension.
All of these songs are very different.
Some of them you may have never heard of before,
but that's good because it's all about getting exposure,
especially the right exposure,
which is really going to help improve your comprehension.
But first I want to mention that when you're listening to music,
I personally think it's really beneficial if you can actually see the words that
you're listening to. So down in the description,
I have attached a link to each one of these songs so that you can listen to
them, read the lyrics and really understand what the song is about.
Let's begin with something that I think is a bit easier and that is John
Lennon's Imagine ,and the reason I chose this song,
well first of all it's very famous but also it's really slow and I think that is
a problem when it comes to listening to music is that most of the time people
are not listening at their level.
They're listening to music that is way beyond their level and they're like, wow,
I didn't hear this word. I don't understand what they're saying,
but this song is really slow. They speak slowly,
which makes it easy to comprehend.
Imagine all the people.
And I think that's good that this song may even be below your level and it's always
good to get that exposure because you want to build your confidence,
you want to understand what it is you're listening to and this song will help you do just that.
Now I want to tell you about another song that is also a bit slower.
I think it's easier to understand and that is the Police,
Every Breath You Take.
Every breath you take...
Throughout much of the song they're singing slowly, it'll be easy to follow.
But then there's a part where it speeds up a little bit and I think that's a
good challenge when you are listening to something that is slow and you can
comprehend it easily and then test yourself to see if you can keep up.
So throughout the song it moves a little slowly and then there's a point where
it picks up a little. So they'll be like, I'll be watching you.
And then it picks up a little faster. Since you've gone, I've been lost without a trace.
And it, it sounds much better than that. Alright. I'm sorry.
I'm going to try not to sing throughout this lesson because I just don't want to hurt your ears.
But you get the idea that the song will move from from slow to a little faster
and that's a good test to see if you can keep up and follow along with what's
being said. Then we have Beyonce, If I Were a Boy.
So this song I put this in there because it's good practice.
If I were a boy, this is the second conditional.
If I were a boy...
She gives that condition, that hypothetical situation. If I were a boy...
It's also the subjunctive I were, if I were a boy,
if I were you, if I were king of the world.
This is a great example of the subjunctive in the second conditional and then
throughout the song she says this and we'll give different results and you're
going to use wood plus the base verb.
If I were a boy I would listen to her. So again,
it's great practice for the second conditional to see if you can listen for it
and try to identify those different results that she gives throughout the song
because she repeats that throughout.
If I were a boy and then we'll talk about these different results and what it
would be like if this hypothetical situation were true. If I were a boy,
then we have Indigo Girls, Closer to Fine. And this is a great song to also
practice your grammar skills a little bit because they use the simple past quite
often and the song is also a bit faster as well.
And the reason I chose this is because I think when it comes to the simple past,
for many of you, especially if you are an intermediate or advanced learner,
you'll be able to easily recognize the simple past.
It's good to choose a song that that's a little faster. I went to the doctor,
I went to the mountains, I looked to the children, I drank from the fountain.
And they sing it with a lot more melody than I just did right then and they sing it much faster.
Closer I am to fine.
So again, this is a great song
to practice your grammar skills and try to identify the simple path.
Then we have Gloria Gaynor, I Will Survive.
One word that I would use to describe the song is mellifluous. And if you don't
know what that means,
it is an adjective which means that something is pleasant to hear and that's
what I think about when I hear Gloria Gaynor's, I Will Survive.
It is mellifluous. It is pleasant to hear,
which is one of the reasons why I recommend it.
Oh no not I. I will survive.
This song also has, it has just a great message. I will survive.
It's mostly that it has to do with a relationship and you know,
trying to get past this, this bad relationship and she's saying, you know,
I will survive. I'm going to move on with my life.
I will continue forward. I will survive.
Which I think is something that I think all of us can relate to,
that we've had problems in our lives, issues,
people that we've dealt with who have not treated us fairly and you want to move on past that.
I will survive and this is a great song because it's a different style than
these other songs.
This is more disco music from the 70s and that's mostly why I chose it is to
give you a bit of variety because when it comes to practicing your listening
skills, I would always recommend try to listen to songs that you enjoy,
music that you enjoy,
but it's still good to get exposure to different music, to different styles,
to different accents. And that's what I would encourage you to do.
Then we have Weird Al's, Word Crimes.
I love this song, especially as an English teacher because, well,
if you're not familiar with Weird Al, he does music. It's,
they're mostly parodies of other songs.
So this is a parody of the song Blurred Lines by Robin Thicke.
So instead of blurred lines, Weird Al is talking about word crimes.
I hate these word crimes.
These are all the different mistakes that people make when they are either
speaking English or maybe grammar mistakes.
So this is a song that I really recommend you've listened to and read the lyrics.
Follow along with the lyrics and and see if you can understand the different
mistakes that he's talking about. It's a great song. Check it out.
I think you will find it very funny. Word Crimes.
Then we have Disney's, I am Moana. And this is from the movie Moana.
And I think this song is great.
Well I think many Disney songs in general are great because they tell a story
they have to do with the movies,
which means that the music is also going to tell a story related to what you're
watching in the movie.
This is a great example of listening to a story which is in the song.
So the song begins with the grandmother telling that story, talking to Moana,
asking her, you don't want to listen, do you know who you are?
And then finally Moana jumps in there and you hear say, who am I?
And then she proceeds to tell you who she is,
which finally culminates in her saying.
I am Moana...
So this is a great song that presents a story that is clear, concise,
easy to comprehend. So listen to the song, check it out.
And if you haven't seen the movie, I also suggest you watch it.
It's a great movie. Next is Charlie Daniels Band, Devil Went Down to Georgia.
And the reason I chose this song is because again, it tells a story.
It tells a great story,
but also it's a different style of music because this is more Southern rock.
A little bit of bluegrass.
The devil went down to Georgia. He was looking for a soul to steal.
And the song starts out really just giving you the main idea.
The devil went down to Georgia. He was looking for a soul to steal.
He was in a bind, he was way behind,
so he was willing to make a deal. And the devil comes across this,
this boy named Johnny and they have this competition so it really tells a clear
story in a different way than that a Disney song would.
So that's why I recommend this song. It's great. Different style. Check it out.
Then we have Harry Chapins. Cat's in the Cradle. This is,
well this is actually one of my favorite songs. I love it. I chose it because,
well it is a little slower so I think it will be easier for you to comprehend.
And the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon.
The story which it tells is perhaps a little more challenging to then like a
Disney song or even a the Charlie Daniels band song that I recommended,
but still it represents a story,
something that I think we can all relate to because it's talking about a
relationship and not being able to invest the time and energy that you want to
in this relationship.
And I think that's something that we can all identify with when we're talking
about friends or family and we want to be able to give this person a little more
time, a little more attention, but maybe we're not able to.
That is the message at the heart of the song. So when you listen to it,
just see if you can identify it.
Next is Alan Jackson's, Little Bitty.
So I chose this song for, well, a few different reasons.
First it's also I think a little slower.
It's a little easier to comprehend because it is country music and that's
another reason. It is a different style.
And I do think whether you like these different styles or not, it's up to you.
But I still think it's great to get that exposure and to give it a try.
This was a very popular song,
and what they're talking about are these things that are little bitty,
which basically means it's talking about something that's small or in a small
amount. So he talks about a little bitty town, a little bitty check, a little bitty car.
All of these things that are kind of small or in a small amount,
I think the message is to say, well, you know,
if you just have a small amount of something that that's okay,
that's perfectly fine. We all don't need to have too much in life.
It's all right to be little bitty.
Life goes on for a little bitty while.
Then we have Pearl Jam's, Last Kiss.
So this is a song that I grew up with.
I think it's from the 90s and I was in high school. So that's how I remember it.
And I chose it for two reasons.
It is a song that is sung slowly and they clearly pronounced the lyrics.
O where, O where, can my baby be?
So I think this will be another song that it will be a little easier for you to
comprehend. And that's good because listening to music,
it's not always about trying to push yourself to the limit and try to listen to
music that's really fast and challenging.
It's good to get a variety and sometimes take a step back and listen to
something that's a little easier to comprehend. But when it comes to music,
I think the most important thing is that you listen to something you enjoy,
which is one reason I tried to provide you with a variety of different styles
and tried to provide you with different reasons as to why you should listen to
these songs. Maybe to practice your grammar or your listening comprehension.
And if you are learning English, it is a great way to do both,
to enjoy the music as well as practice your listening skills.
But now I want to hear from you. So in the comments, tell me what,
what kind of music do you like to listen to? What is your favorite song?
It's always great to get recommendations from other,
so I suggest that you read down below in the comments and see what other people
have to say. If you enjoy this lesson, please hit that like button.
And as always, thanks for watching and I'll see you next time.