Music Is My Life

Artist & Fan Testimonial - How Music Shaped Me!

Artist: Tone Gold

It’s hard to say exactly when Hip-Hop became my best friend, but I can't remember a time in my life where Hip Hop wasn't a part of it. Maybe it was Eric B & Rakim telling me how I have soul and teaching me how true emcees must move the crowd. Somewhere in between getting slapped by my aunt for reciting Dr Dre lyrics and riding shotgun with moms’ bumpin’ “Me Against the World”, I found love. I fell in love with Hip Hop at a time, where gangsta rap was at its peak for better or worse. I was a kid, so I believed every word they said.


To this day, I still feel a kinship towards artists that come across to me as authentic goons: Jeezy, Gucci, The Game- just to name a few. This is not my life and I’m not glorifying the things said, however I couldn't imagine Hip-Hop without gangsta rap. I credit Diddy himself, for inspiring me to want to create music, he put BIG and Ma$e in my walkman and it was a wrap. I wanted every color Yankee cap just like the “Feel So Good” video, a fresh pair of Air Force 1’s and I was gooood! Hip Hop culture has helped shape me into who I am today, giving me vision, confidence and a treasure chest of memories. I owe it all to Hip Hop!




Fan: Kenya Afam


If there is music playing, you know where to find me; the dance floor. My escape, my therapy and my high…..music. There is nothing in the world that can quench my thirst like music. Nine years ago, I was introduced to salsa music, salsa dancing and Afrobeats.  My life has not been the same since.  Music and dance can heal my emotional aches and bring me a sense of joy that seems unattainable through any other means.


Not everyone understands my love, my high. As soon as the base drops to an Afro Salsa or Afrobeats tune I zone out, at that moment there is only the music and my dance partner.  Nothing else matters; no stress, no phone, no talking and no restrictions. I escape. When it comes to salsa, Ciela Cruz moves me; her music exemplifies soul and African rhythms.  Dancing to her music puts me in place that is unexplainable.  With each dance, with each song I am always looking for that next moment, the next Ciela Cruz like tune that will take me outside of myself and provide those moments of freedom, belonging and joy. For me, music is life. In the words of Brene Brown, ‘music is the most powerful form of collective joy.”