What if every person had a song that truly captured who they are?

In this heartfelt and inspiring TED-Ed Student Talk, 13-year-old Gianna Garg explores the deep connection between music, emotions, memories, and identity. Through personal reflections and thoughtful storytelling, Gianna shares how music can become a mirror of our personalities, experiences, and dreams — helping us discover the song that sounds like us. From powerful lyrics to unforgettable melodies, this talk reminds us that music is more than entertainment — it is a language of self-expression and belonging.

✨ Join Gianna as she takes the TED-Ed stage to celebrate individuality, creativity, and the universal power of music.

🎙️ Speaker: Gianna Garg

🎂 Age: 13 Years Old

📍 TED-Ed Student Talks

About Speaker : Gianna Garg, 13 Years Old

Better known as somebody who sees in colours and breathes through music- I’ve always found sounds fascinating. From listening to playing- every song has made me feel a little more alive. Each note, I feel, holds a different personality, its own attitude- just like humans! That’s why I chose to give this talk; titled “The Song That Sounds Like Me!”, and it does!

Often times it feels like the world is playing someone else’s track- and it just doesn’t fit, so….why don’t we hum our own melody?
I’ve come to realise that life isn’t about the perfect plan- sometimes we just need to follow our own journey, our own rhyme, our Own Music!

About TED-Ed Club

The Bookosmia TED-Ed Club is a youth-driven public speaking and idea-sharing initiative aligned with Bookosmia’s mission: “Every young voice matters.”

TED-Ed is TED’s youth and education initiative. TED-Ed’s mission is to spark and celebrate the ideas of teachers and students around the world. Everything we do supports learning — from producing a growing library of original animated videos, to providing an international platform for teachers to create their own interactive lessons, to helping curious students around the globe bring TED to their schools and gain presentation literacy skills, to celebrating innovative leadership within TED-Ed’s global network of over 650,000 teachers. TED-Ed has grown from an idea worth spreading into an award-winning education platform that serves millions of teachers and students around the world every week.

Email to sara@booksmia.com

Transcript

Hi everyone, how are you? Wait, who are you? Or better yet, what’s your favorite song? For somebody who doesn’t know me that well, you might be thinking, “What a weird way to get to know someone.” And yes, a wise man would agree, but only until you hear what I have to say. Let’s be honest, music hits different when you’re supposed to be doing something else, right? Ever found yourself staring at a piece of homework wondering if or not to do it? Well, been there. But somehow the second I open Spotify, I’m the main character of a movie called Procrastination the Music. It’s funny how we don’t even see the difference.

Like, have you ever actually stopped on a random Tuesday wondering if or not you like a song? Or why does it make you want to dance? Probably not. But think of it this way. A concert has a set, a movie has a plot, a book has a climax, and life, well, life has music. Mostly the kind where you accidentally hit shuffle and everybody judges you like you’re the opening act for chaos. Trivia time. Did you know the way you hear sounds is so much different than everybody else’s? Let’s test that theory out, shall we? Think of a joyful melody.

Something like, “What did that remind you of? A quiet afternoon in the rain? Your friends?

Something fun.” Right? Now, imagine a more suspenseful tone in a dark forest.

Something like, “What did that remind you of? A storm, a word, a sign, a signal, danger, something, right? You see, our subconscious is trained to see these sounds as a tiny movie, too. If I alone can see completely different worlds with just two sounds. Imagine the entire world.

Music changes perception. Perception changes you. Perception is you. And you shouldn’t be scared of showing it. So when I say everyone should be allowed to create their own music, I mean more than just the albums on your playlist. In the crescendo of my memory came out a song, Shake It Off by Taylor Swift. So hyped, so controversial, so good, yet so bad at the same time. The entire social media was flooded with comments. It’s good.

No, it’s not. I like the dance. Or you know I don’t. And miles and miles away was me in a tiny window thinking I would be judged for just liking the soul. All spared and uncertainty. But haven’t we all felt scared for being judged? Terrified of thinking others might not agree with us. You probably have felt that too. It’s like one day you’re posting your playlist and the other day you’re taking it off the net just because somebody called your style basic. It’s not fair, is it? If listening to music is supposed to be freedom, then why do we think if it’s famous enough for our playlist?

Anyways, let’s go back to being two. One of the first things we heard in preschool was a set of two words. Be yourself. Unless this yourself shows up wearing sandals with socks to school, then maybe take a long hard look at your life choices. But seriously, be yourself. Be yourself. because you’re unique. See yourself as more than just definition of statements. And free yourself with the personality you firmly believe is yours. Because being yourself isn’t a cliche thought. It’s about letting your inner music freely play.

You’re the vocalist of your endless time which you constantly pretend to hear.

You’re the pianist to your own melody, the leader of the chords, the organizer of the clashes. You’re the creator of the harmony you brought to life. So why aren’t you the writer of these thoughts?

Society keeps trying to press these questions onto our joy. But in quiet defiance, I wonder. Does it really even make sense to critique something I know I love? The simple answer to that is no.

No, it does not. So how do I start to play my own music? Not by picking up the guitar and surely not by learning how to sing. Instead, by believing what I love is valid, even if nobody else claps. You don’t need an orchestra. You just need the guts to hum your own sound while the word is shouting its own.

If you don’t believe me, ask yourself, does your sibling need an audience to annoy you? Nuhuh. They don’t. They just do it fearlessly, passionately. Think it’s their life’s purpose to trigger you. Now, that right there, that’s confidence. That’s owning your sound.

Exactly what we need. So, what I’m trying to tell you is that it’s not just about music. It’s about the liberty to be us, the freedom to choose without second thought. Basically, it’s like dancing like a maniac in the kitchen and then blaming it on the cookie box if your mom catches you. So the next time they tell you to stay on beat or follow the tune, do make sure to remind them you wrote the melody. Life isn’t just about finding the perfect song. It’s about creating one that sounds like you.

So go ahead, turn up that volume. Yes, the volume to the song that sounds like you. Because even the world can’t mute what was born to make noise.

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This article is published by Bookosmia, India’s #1 publisher for and by young people. Bookosmia publishes stories, books, podcasts, events, TED-Ed talks, workshops, bedtime stories and more related to kids and young adults.

Photo Credit – AI generated images from Chat GPT and Magic Media from Canva .

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