Music Mondays: The Foreign Exchange - On A Day Like Today

“On A Day Like Today” by Foreign Exchange is close to my heart for several reasons. I won’t bore you with all the reasons, but will share a couple. I have never been in love before. Not the romantic type of love. And at 36 I thought I would be married with children by now. Life does not go as we plan and that’s okay too. If just for today I let go of all my expectations. If I just allow life to unfold as it will. That is scary, I always had a “plan”. But as Phonte sings, "Today I am going to try something new".

For years I have “worked” so hard on trying to have it all together. On my journey I find myself letting go. I finally accepted I won’t have it all together. Pause….breathe….and it’s okay. Perfection only lives in my mind. I wanted the perfect relationship. I wanted to court, get married, THEN move in together (build our own home of course) and have children. It’s okay to have a dream about your ideal relationship, but what I never made room for was life to happen. As Phonte wisely sings, “Get out the way of your happiness/ Let go of all you know is not true”.

“On A Day Like Today” is one of my favorite songs. It is a mid tempo song with an 80’s feel. It a perfect song for a sunny Fall day! And I love how Phonte fades out the song with the lyrics he sings at the start of the song. There is nothing greater than a love song! A song you can jam to and lyrics that can heal a broken Spirit. A healthy love is the goal. I will no longer be obsessed about the process. What I don’t learn while I am single, I will learn God willing when I’m in a relationship. My obsession with trying to have it together was my wall. That wall kept romantic love out of my life that did not meet my high expectations. On a day like today I will change my point of view. Now with a new outlook on life my prayer is that I will find my way to you. Enjoy…

Music Mondays: Zo! - Tell Me Something New feat. Jeanne Jolly

People who are the closet to me know I am a super romantic. Since a little girl, if I had a tough time expressing emotion music did that for me. The perfect lyric would express my deepest sorrow, joy, peace, and a desire just to be loved. That is what Zo's "Tell Me Something New" did for me. My longing to settle down and fall in love is my hearts greatest desire. It is amazing to me how a song can express our deepest desires. In the second verse country, soul singer/songwriter Jeanne Jolly sings "Such a rare and precious find/ To receive this love divine/ And I am yours babe". To hear a man say or feel that way about me would be ‘a dream come’ true. With a soulful melody and deep felt lyrics, this instantly became my favorite song.

Zo! is a soul/jazz artist from Detroit. From top to bottom, "Manmade" is a classic with many hit records written by Foreign Exchange lead singer, Phonte Colemen. Go get this album now; you will be in for a treat!

Enjoy...

Music Mondays: The Foreign Exchange - So What If It Is

"Don't you worry bout the pain of yesterday, just remember to live. Don't be afraid it's not the end of your world but so, so what if it is" ~Phonte

Riding the train on a long commute home from my former job in DC I checked my twitter timeline. Phonte Coleman posted that there would be a new song by Foreign Exchange coming out that day. Being a long time fan I went directly to his twitter page to get the link. As I heard the song first of all, the music during the intro gives me the most amazing feeling. I could stay in that space forever, listening to the intro over and over. Once getting to the lyrics I was blessed by the simple words “It’s not the end of your world…so what if it is”. Going home emotionally drained and wondering if I should quit my job, I felt like it was the end of the world. And it was the end of my world, at least that part of it. What I learned in that moment was so what if everything comes crashing down; your life gets turned upside down. It is heartbreaking, but if you’re blessed to see another day it will get better so remember to live! It’s not the setbacks that define us, but how we recover is what does. I have below the lyrics that helped free me from the prison of my plan and releasing my life to God allowing a new journey to take place. What must come to an end in your life? What is God asking you to free yourself of? While you reflect on that, enjoy the music below. With pleasure here is the new single on the upcoming Foreign Exchange remix album titled “The Reworks “, “So What If It Is”.

Lyrics by Phonte Coleman
Everybody's got their song and dance about
What it means to struggle and to go without
No one thinks that they're part of the problem yes it's true
It's true

People running scared amidst these changing times
Recession, depression, unemployment lines
Everybody needs a little healing yes they do
They do

Now's the time to raise your voice and lift your hands
Show your love to every woman every man
Nobody believes things will get better but I do
I do

Don't you worry bout the pain of yesterday
Just remember to live
Don't be afraid it's not the end of your world but so
So what if it is

Everybody's searching trying to find a way
Reaching through the darkness for a brighter day
Looking for the sunshine in a sky that smiles so blue
So blue

Now's the time to raise your voice and lift your hands
Show your love to every woman every man
Nobody believes things will get better but I do
I do