Several people that I follow on Facebook and Instagram have recently said they are taking a break from social media — most likely because they are weary of their exposure to so much political and cultural bickering. The perceived daily insult. The urge to weigh in. The frustration of never being able to convince someone they love or admire — or despise — about what is true.
For others, taking a social media break stems from a worry they are spending too much time gazing into a screen while missing the world right at their feet. Unfortunately, I know this too well.
One place that I don’t regret visiting is the Facebook page of Thomas Whitlock, a Hopkinsville man who faithfully shares his “Song of Day” seven days a week. He has fewer than 300 followers.
In the vast wilderness of social media, you could say that Thomas’ offering is but a mere whisper. You could, unless you are among the handful of followers who anticipate his daily declaration of a song from decades ago. Then it’s not a whisper. It’s more like a friendly shout from next door. They are waiting, and he delivers.
Thomas occasionally adds a little music history lesson to his “Song of the Day.” Early this week he wrote, “Good Morning. The Chicago area Burke siblings had a huge hit with our Song of the Day, ‘O-o-h Child’ by The Five Stairsteps (1970). Have a wonderful Wednesday, everyone!”
Maybe I’m not the only one who knows that song very well but didn’t know anything at all about the musicians who made it a hit. This is how Thomas works. Slowly, deliberately, day by day, he’s building up our music chops.
I asked Thomas how he started his song project. Here’s what he told me:
“I suffered a ‘catastrophic rupture’ of the quadriceps tendon in my right knee, from which I am still recovering. With a lot of spare time, I started accessing [Facebook] a lot and noticed a lot of negativity. I asked myself what could I do to add something positive to the discourse.”
The idea that formed wasn’t original. He got it from a former co-worker, Sandy Hester, of Hopkinsville. They had met as employees of Covington’s Convalescent nursing home.
So one day Thomas asked Sandy if she minded if he took her Facebook practice as an inspiration, and he started posting rhythm and blues titles.
“I feel that music communicates to all and have been proven right. I hear from people I haven’t seen or heard from in decades, both red and blue,” he said.
I reached out to Sandy and asked how she started suggesting music to her Facebook friends.
Her inspiration was an earworm. She was 13 years old, waiting for the school bus one day, and the song “I’m Henry the VIII, I Am,” by Herman’s Hermits was playing on a loop in her head. Years later when she joined Facebook, she started sharing more earworms. She said her daily post has been going strong since 2015.
Thomas and Sandy agree they probably wouldn’t have connected without music. They come from different backgrounds, and he is more than 20 years her senior. Thomas, a 1974 graduate of Hopkinsville High School, was among the first generation of Black students in Christian County to participate in desegregation of local schools. Sandy, who is white, graduated from Christian County High School in 1996.
“Thomas is a great friend of mine and it just goes to show that you can bond with anyone and have lifelong friendships because of music,” Sandy told me.
If you want to take a deeper dive into Thomas’ musical world, you can listen to this Spotify playlist I created using his suggested songs from the first half of September. (Note, if you don’t have a Spotify account you’ll probably be prompted to create an account to listen in, but the streaming service does offer free account options.)
Enjoy, everyone.
Jennifer P. Brown is co-founder, publisher and editor of Hoptown Chronicle. You can reach her at editor@hoptownchronicle.org. Brown was a reporter and editor at the Kentucky New Era, where she worked for 30 years. She is a co-chair of the national advisory board to the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, governing board past president for the Kentucky Historical Society, and co-founder of the Kentucky Open Government Coalition. She serves on the Hopkinsville History Foundation's board.
