Most of us can’t imagine going through life without music. We listen to music when we’re sad, when we’re happy and pretty much any moment in between. Music is a universal message, and each song comes with a message. Unfortunately, nobody has the time to learn the story behind every song they listen to, but there are some stories that are definitely worth knowing.
The story behind the song “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” is definitely one of them. There’s no way you haven’t heard this song unless you’re an alien from Mars who hasn’t discovered YouTube.
The song is famous throughout the world, and there’s no way not to fall in love with its beautiful lyrics and melody as soon as you hear them for the first time. You probably even know all the lyrics to the song.
But what few people know about the song is that it was actually composed by Israel Ka’ano’i Kamakawiwo’ole, a man whose name is super hard to pronounce, but who has had a tremendous impact in life thanks to its involvement with many different Hawaiian advocacy projects.
Known as the “Gentle Giant”, he was known in his community as a quiet guy who always wanted to make people around him feel happy through his music. Unfortunately, he died when he was only 38 years old due to health problems caused by his weight.
This song is a memorable gift he’s left all of us. And although he’s no longer a part of the physical world, part of his soul is still with us thanks to the beautiful musical legacy he’s left behind.