I'm Major Jackson and this is the slowdown.

And this is the slowdown. I typically ignore algorithmic suggestions, an app telling me if you like X, then you'll

like Y. But recently, I gave a Spotify curated playlist a try.

The music put together just for me was dead on,

mostly a mix of spiritual jazz and future soul. I enjoyed everything I heard, but after a minute or so of each

song, I went to the next tune. I did not let them play to their end. I wasn't down with this personalized

listening. It felt like a predictable roadmap to my future.

It felt like submitting to that algorithm.

Yet, in my restlessness,

something magical happened.

Fast forwarding through the playlist, I formed a mental stream of associations.

The quick listening proved far more exciting than a prepackaged music set.

A sample sound swiftly heard in a Roots hit took me to the theme song of the series

American horror story.

Besame Mucho triggered a memory of driving a coast in the south of Spain,

winding curves and dramatic sunlight sparkling at a distance on water.

Cessaria Ivora brought to mind an aunt who enjoyed cigars.

This non-committal experience to the playlist led to a variety of

thoughts including politics, the fabrics of my clothing, and Japanese calligraphy.

In the half seconds between songs I relish the leaps.

Often music we choose can sound like we've heard it all before, but disrupting the sequence of songs, strangely and beautifully renewed my ear.

Often the world in a poem can strike us sometimes as too familiar.

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