Ode to the iPod: Part 2

Musical Voyeur

When I purchased my used 5th generation iPod, it came with 2277 songs, from artists ranging from Abba to The Zombies. Frankly, I was not expecting anything on the iPod, and I plan on erasing the contents of this iPod once I complete this series. You can read Part 1 here.

However, for the time being, I have taken advantage of listening to an eclectic collection of music, some of which is familiar, while other songs are entirely new.

It is like tuning into a random radio station that you have never heard before. One of the things I have come to love about the iPod is the main menu option to “Shuffle Songs” and its something I’ve taken full advantage of over the past week.

Listening to a stranger’s musical selections is an oddly voyeuristic experience.

When I skip the song, I have found myself asking questions. What made the previous owner put this song on their iPod? I wonder what they were going through in life when they decided to pay .99 cents of $1.29 for this song?

I wonder why this song has no metadata? Why does someone have a playlist titled Limewire? Oh god, I wonder how many times they got a virus trying to download songs from Dave Matthews Live at Red Rocks off Limewire? I wonder how much of this library was even purchased legally?

Listening to a stranger’s musical selections is an oddly voyeuristic experience. I know that I paid for…