In my mid teens to my mid 20′s, I was shy with girls. Because that was an era when people actually had to talk on the phone and communicate like humans, it wasn’t as easy as it is now. We couldn’t just send a text pic of our cocks and call it a day. We had to actually use words that came out of our mouths. Because that was never entirely in my comfort zone, I always would make girls mixes. If I liked you, I’d make you a mix (unless it was just some girl who had heard another mix I had made for another girl and asked me for one cause she too wanted cool music to listen to).
Making a successful mix for a girl was walking a fine line. You wanted to , first and foremost, give them good music. Music you legitimately enjoy. You also wanted to be subtle. Love songs were a must but making a whole mix of slow jams was kinda presumptuous. You had to spoon feed your intentions. I’d imagine crafting a mix tape that gets across the right emotions without being too overt could be compared to sculpting a bonsai tree. It was about balance. Pretty songs, funny songs, message songs and just songs you liked and wanted to share. It was truly a craft.
From Phat Friend via The Hairpin. Oh yes, and the artwork, yes.
My husband has been making me ‘mixtapes’ for almost 20 years, the latest one was last week. He has the most eclectic, wide-ranging and thoughtful taste in music and without these love tokens I would be lost. I adore each one.
Oh my, the romance. Niiiiice.
Didn’t Nick Hornby already write this?
I had that deja vu, too.
My partner made me mix tapes (CDs really) when we weren’t living together, and a few special ones when I was living overseas. I treasure every one. He’s a graphic designer who often made his own covers so they were truly works of art. One was made of brown cardboard with the number of miles apart we were stitched in blue thread on the front. He even made his own song once – an a cappella version of Beach Boys’ ‘God Only Knows’ all by him. I’ve never made anything nearly so heartfelt, I wouldn’t even know where to start.