One of my favorite artists of all time is Sleeping at Last. I was first introduced to his music in my high school AP Psychology class. We were told to take the Enneagram test, which is a personality test that sorts you into nine different types. The personality types that I received from the test were Type Three and Type Four. Type Three is the Achiever, which means my deepest fear is failure and I value success. Type Four, on the other hand, is the Individualist. Individualists fear unhappiness and value individuality (like the name suggests) and exploration. After receiving our personality types, we were told to listen to the Sleeping at Last song associated with our types.
The singer and songwriter of Sleeping at Last, Ryan O’Neal, wrote a song for each personality type. I recently listened to his podcast where he explains his thought process behind these songs. He met up with his friends and family who have each personality type and tried to understand the way each person thinks and what they value most in life. Each element in a song is based on the personality type, whether it be the choice of instruments or the lyrics themselves. I loved listening to the songs related to my personality types. I felt as if I could relate deeply to the lyrics and I felt understood through the music.
When I got home from school that night, I listened to more Sleeping at Last songs, and I fell in love. O’Neal’s songs have a passion and meaning to them that I haven’t found in other music. For instance, he has a song for each of the five senses. Of those songs, “Touch” is currently my favorite, but each song truly captures the emotions of these senses. For instance, “Touch” describes both the importance of human touch and being in touch with your emotions while “Smell” is about different smells allowing a person to uncover memories.
Sleeping at Last is currently my favorite artist, as his music allows me to think deeper about myself and the world. I recommend everyone to try taking the Enneagram test and start listening to his music.