Music is a huge part of THE
SOUND OF US. Kiki Nichols, the main character, is always searching for songs
that speak for herโchoosing to express her emotions through the words of other
people, instead of using her own.
While working on the book, I created a huge playlist of songs to inspire me
while writing (or thinking about writing). These are some of the tracks I think
Kiki wouldโve been listening to while trying to survive opera camp, her
tumultuous ex-best-friendship, and her relationship with Jack.
Untouchable
Face by Ani DiFranco (NSFW): First rule of
mixtaping is that you never include two songs by the same artist, so I had to 86
both โSuperheroโ and โFalling Is
Like This,โ even though Ani was such a huge influence on both Kiki and me. I
think โUntouchable Faceโ is one of the best angry love songs on the planet.
Deathly by
Aimee Mann: Another Jack and Kiki song. The first line of this one kills me
every time. No wonder Paul Thomas Anderson used it verbatim in the movie
Magnolia. Itโs simply perfection.
Break Your
Heart by the Barenaked Ladies: I donโt think heโd admit it, but
this song is Jack to a T. Heโs afraid of change, afraid of making waves, and
afraid of making anyone feel badโbut by trying so hard to be the โgoodโ guy, he
manages to do just that.
Elsewhere by
Sarah McLachlan: Oh, this song. This was one of my favorite โYou are
speaking right to my life, lady songstressโ tracks when I was in high school.
Itโs all about growing up and finding your own path, even if your parents (and
the other people in your life) just donโt understand.
Northern Lad
by Tori Amos: This is the song Kikiโs playing when she first meets Jack. I
love the lyrics, but I also love the vocal range of this song. I used to sing it
myself when I was a (bad) voice student. It was one of my very favorite songs to
sing when performing my own solo concerts in my parentsโ basement, just like
Kiki.
Language or the
Kiss by the Indigo Girls: Sorry, I have to break the mixtape rules
here. But of course, mixtape rules were made to be broken (and I broke them
often in my mixtape making days). That said, Iโm going to call my flagrant
rule-breaking legal on a technicalityโthe first Indigo Girls song on this list
wasnโt really an โIndigo Girlsโ song.
โLanguage or the Kissโ is one of the greatest, saddest songs about being a
creative person, and it is so representative of Kiki. Whatโs more importantโart
or love?
Julie Hammerle is the author of THE SOUND OF US (Entangled TEEN, 2016).
Before settling down to write "for real," she studied opera, taught Latin, and
held her real estate license for one hot minute. Currently, she writes about TV
on her blog Hammervision, ropes people into conversations about Game of Thrones,
and makes excuses to avoid the gym. Her favorite YA-centric TV shows include
90210 (original spice), Felicity, and Freaks and Geeks. Her music playlist reads
like a 1997 Lilith Fair set list.
She lives in Chicago with her husband,
two kids, and a dog. They named the dog Indiana.
Sheโs put her TV-loving, nerdy self aside for one summer to prove sheโs got
what it takes: she can be cool enough to make friends, she can earn that music
scholarship, and she can get into Krause Universityโs music program.
Except camp has rigid conduct rulesโwhich means her thrilling late-night jam
session with the hot, equally geeky drummer canโt happen again, even though they
love all the same shows, and fifteen minutes making music with him meant more
than every aria sheโs ever sung.
But when someone starts reporting singers who break conduct rules, music camp
turns survival of the fittest, and people are getting kicked out. If Kikiโs
going to get that scholarship, her chance to make true friendsโand her first
real chance at something moreโmight cost her the future she wants more than
anything.
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