Some people work in silence. But many don’t. I certainly don’t. Whether it’s a podcast, youtube, movies, or old fashioned music, I almost always have something of my choice playing in the background. I enjoy the information and learning that can be done from podcasts and youtube while also enjoying the pleasure and leisure of music. But what if both could be combined?

Enter Meaningwave.

Akira the Don is one of my go-to choices for background music that combines information and pleasure to create meaning. This is music I can work to while also bettering myself. Akira has a predominately electronic sound, so if that’s not you, you probably won’t appreciate it and that’s okay. But if you’re open to it, give him a listen next time you’re trying to figure out something new to pour into your ears… it might actually go to your brain.

So what is his gimmick and why does his music generate meaning?

Akira himself is an incredibly likable guy. From his contagious smile to his colorful wardrobe, the guy exudes positivity. His music is a combination of his unique sounds and beats combined with the words of some of the world’s greatest thought leaders over the course of history.

People like:

[cue scrolling list of names via 90’s TV advert]:

• Mr. Rogers

• Elon Musk

• Jocko Willink

• David Goggins

• Marcus Aurelius

• Joe Rogan

• David Foster Wallace

• Hank Hill

• Gary Vee

• Naval Ravikant

• Jordan Peterson

• & many others!

His transformation of lecture to lyric set to toe-tapping beats is a unique memory mechanism. I’ve never been able to retain information for long periods. I’m not great at memorization, test-taking, etc. I’m visual and pretty good at understanding the gist of concepts—but my knowledge retention is generally shallow. I’m very good at refreshing as necessary, however. But music is one of those things that I’ve never had a problem remembering. I can still recite the entirety of Weird Al’s 10+ minute “Albuquerque” word-for-word despite having not listened to it for a few years at least. Music has that effect on so many people. We may mumble many of the words, but we remember the key parts and those parts never leave us. They take us back to a place in time when we hear them. What we listen to and put into our ears matters.

That’s what I love about Akira the Don’s art. He has created a hack for learning that resonates with me. It helps that my worldview is similar (and also many times challenged) by the people he chooses to sample. They’re free-thinking examples of positivity and working hard to achieve meaning in this life; what better motivation when working hard? I can listen to tracks of his dozens of times sometimes before the message clicks. And a dozen times more I’ll still pick up on something new.

I love this format and hope others will be inspired and bring this style to other genres of music and types of thinkers (whether it be religious, architectural, etc). I would love to do it, but am unfortunately not the most-gifted musically. Anyways, next time you are looking for something to listen to, give him a try. There’s no shortage of his music on Apple, Spotify, and Youtube.

A few hits below to start with: