Music transcends language. It brings cultures together that are alien to each other.

It can break you down and build you right back up again. Music puts any emotion into sound. It’s limitless, ever growing and timeless.

So what kind of music do the students of Fresno City College like and why do they appreciate it?

Fresno City College student Josh Dupont loves metal music, and says it was the typical “speed and aggression” of the genre that drew him in.

Joe Kimball enjoys punk music as he feels that it has “a lot of variety” and a majority of the music the he listens to had evolved from punk.

Arsheal Washington listens to rap and hip-hop. The “songs that tell stories” about the musician’s personal struggles are what attracts him most to the genre.

Diana Deedon also listens to hip-hop because she likes the motivational aspects that the artists provide, which Deedon says “helps get things done.”

Jesse Romero believes “the complexity and structure” of jazz influenced music is amazing and can “produce so many unique sounding songs.”

Romero also indulges in punk because “it doesn’t matter if your music is sloppy, fast, messy, as long as you have the passion then it’s good.”

Wesley Kershner likes “a lot of different kinds for a lot of reasons” but in particular he likes Japanese music due to his love for anime as most of the musical content in the films and TV shows tend to be from Japanese artists.

Former FCC student, Jesse Kennedy, occasionally gets bored of the “stereotypical, market-driven music” that the industry offers today so he prefers to listen to “math rock” because of the “complex, emotionally layered and honest artistic expression”.

It’s clear that our college is wonderfully diverse; embrace your musical way of life inside and out.  Whether it’s David Bowie, Bessie Smith, Frederic Chopin or Eminem, pass on your knowledge in exchange for another’s or simply because it’s something you love and want to spread.

 In the midst of a new semester, remember that music can forge relationships stronger than words can design.