--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I actually can't listen to music and…" description: "\"I actually can't listen to music and write poetry at the same time, but I do kind of think about the music I've been listening to when I write.\" — Shan..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f9/shane-mccrae-22873_kind_i-actually-can-t-listen-to-music-and-wri_311720.jpg" --- # I actually can't listen to music and write poetry at the… ![“I actually can't listen to music and write poetry at the same time, but I do kind of think about the music I've been listening to when I write.” quote by Shane McCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f9/shane-mccrae-22873_kind_i-actually-can-t-listen-to-music-and-wri_311720.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f9/shane-mccrae-22873_kind_i-actually-can-t-listen-to-music-and-wri_311720.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f9/shane-mccrae-22873_kind_i-actually-can-t-listen-to-music-and-wri_311720.jpg) > “I actually can't listen to music and write poetry at the same time, but I do kind of think about the music I've been listening to when I write.” [Shane McCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-mccrae/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The poet finds music influences his writing, even if he cannot listen while composing, showing indirect creative interplay. **In simple terms:** Music inspires poetry even without simultaneous listening. Key Takeaway Use music as a mental backdrop for writing. Themes inspiration process artistic interplay focus Mood contemplative inquisitive Type reflective creative When to use this quote - writing sessions - music listening - creative brainstorming Key Concepts creative cognition intermodal influence Questions to Reflect On - Does music shape your poetic voice? - Can you integrate music more directly? A Different Perspective Relying on indirect influence may limit real-time synergy. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Listening to music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/listening-to-music/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I listen to music when I write. I need the musical background. Classical music. I'm behind the times. I'm still with Baroque music, Gregorian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/i-listen-to-music-when-i-write-i-need-the-musical-background/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [I never listen to music when I write.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/i-never-listen-to-music-when-i-write/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) > [I don't listen to music when I write, but I do turn on appropriate music when I read portions of my manuscripts back to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-larson/i-don-t-listen-to-music-when-i-write-but-i-do-turn-on-appropriate/) [Erik Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-larson/) > [I always listen to music when I write, I need a rhythm to write.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fatih-ak-n/i-always-listen-to-music-when-i-write-i-need-a-rhythm-to-write/) [Fatih Ak?n](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fatih-ak-n/) > [I don't listen to music when I write - I find it distracting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/i-don-t-listen-to-music-when-i-write-i-find-it-distracting/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) > [“What I do like listening to as I write is the sound of ordinary life out in the street—children playing and workmen talking.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-tyler/what-i-do-like-listening-to-as-i-write-is-the-sound-of-ordinary-life/) [Anne Tyler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-tyler/) > [I think music is the greatest art form that exists, and I think people listen to music for different reasons, and it serves different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-vedder/i-think-music-is-the-greatest-art-form-that-exists-and-i-think-people/) [Eddie Vedder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-vedder/) > [We think of music as this substance that flows - you turn on the tap, and there it is, streaming off your computer -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vijay-iyer/we-think-of-music-as-this-substance-that-flows-you-turn-on-the-tap/) [Vijay Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vijay-iyer/) > [I do think that music videos have a huge impact on the way you listen to music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/devendra-banhart/i-do-think-that-music-videos-have-a-huge-impact-on-the-way-you-listen/) [Devendra Banhart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/devendra-banhart/) > [I just can't write and listen to music at the same time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-mccrae/i-just-can-t-write-and-listen-to-music-at-the-same-time/) [Shane McCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-mccrae/) > [I never listen to music when I write. It's too much of a distraction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-kitamura/i-never-listen-to-music-when-i-write-it-s-too-much-of-a-distraction/) [Katie Kitamura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-kitamura/) > [I don't listen to music when I write. I need silence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-sachar/i-don-t-listen-to-music-when-i-write-i-need-silence/) [Louis Sachar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-sachar/) > [I would never really listen to my own music or whatever, but I write music so I can deal with things and I hope…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zac-farro/i-would-never-really-listen-to-my-own-music-or-whatever-but-i-write/) [Zac Farro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zac-farro/) > [At any given time I'm listening to the Cory Branan, Leonna Naess, Eve 6, the King's Noyse, Sean Paul, Green Day, the BoDeans, Buddy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-addison-allen/at-any-given-time-i-m-listening-to-the-cory-branan-leonna-naess-eve-6/) [Sarah Addison Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-addison-allen/) > [I enjoy bluegrass, folk, gospel, and classical. I don't listen to music when I write. I sometimes listen to music just before I sit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-haruf/i-enjoy-bluegrass-folk-gospel-and-classical-i-don-t-listen-to-music/) [Kent Haruf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-haruf/) ## More by Shane McCrae > [I like having a phrase lying around to get poems started. It's like having a key.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-mccrae/i-like-having-a-phrase-lying-around-to-get-poems-started-it-s-like/) [Shane McCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-mccrae/) > [I think that the moment we're living in offers the best opportunity we've had in a long time in that a lot of things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-mccrae/i-think-that-the-moment-we-re-living-in-offers-the-best-opportunity/) [Shane McCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-mccrae/) > [I believe rhythmic sensibility is always a product and extension of language, defined broadly, among other things. But it is an immediate product and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-mccrae/i-believe-rhythmic-sensibility-is-always-a-product-and-extension-of/) [Shane McCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-mccrae/) > [I love to read long books. I enjoy experiencing that extension. But it's not something I feel comfortable with and not something I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-mccrae/i-love-to-read-long-books-i-enjoy-experiencing-that-extension-but-it/) [Shane McCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-mccrae/) > [There's no such thing as an animal too big too kill, AND we're cornered by such animals every day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-mccrae/there-s-no-such-thing-as-an-animal-too-big-too-kill-and-we-re/) [Shane McCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-mccrae/) > [I don't know that I find either aspect of Jesus more interesting than the other, although maybe I think about the God one more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-mccrae/i-don-t-know-that-i-find-either-aspect-of-jesus-more-interesting-than/) [Shane McCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-mccrae/) > [I definitely notice the absence of character in most poetry, which is not so say that I'm an innovator in that regard. Character-based poems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-mccrae/i-definitely-notice-the-absence-of-character-in-most-poetry-which-is/) [Shane McCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-mccrae/) > [I think I cause a lot of headaches for editors - it's impossible to keep up with the ridiculous amount of changes I make.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-mccrae/i-think-i-cause-a-lot-of-headaches-for-editors-it-s-impossible-to/) [Shane McCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-mccrae/) > [I just can't write and listen to music at the same time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-mccrae/i-just-can-t-write-and-listen-to-music-at-the-same-time/) [Shane McCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-mccrae/) > [I do believe in Jesus as wholly God and wholly human, and I believe the human part was human.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-mccrae/i-do-believe-in-jesus-as-wholly-god-and-wholly-human-and-i-believe/) [Shane McCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-mccrae/) > [I was just thinking about how my grandparents, who raised me, would be considered "white trash," whatever that means - mostly for being racists,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-mccrae/i-was-just-thinking-about-how-my-grandparents-who-raised-me-would-be/) [Shane McCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-mccrae/) > [I'm always glad that other people are way smarter about my poems than I am.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-mccrae/i-m-always-glad-that-other-people-are-way-smarter-about-my-poems-than/) [Shane McCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-mccrae/) > [I think that the casual reader and the lyric and confession are trickily tied up together. I mean often when I read my students'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-mccrae/i-think-that-the-casual-reader-and-the-lyric-and-confession-are/) [Shane McCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-mccrae/) > [I do try to incorporate particular rhythmic and generally sonic motifs I discover in music as such, and if one thinks of language in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-mccrae/i-do-try-to-incorporate-particular-rhythmic-and-generally-sonic/) [Shane McCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-mccrae/) > [If I can quote myself, I explained whatever it is I'm doing once for No Tell Motel, and I still think it's the clearest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-mccrae/if-i-can-quote-myself-i-explained-whatever-it-is-i-m-doing-once-for/) [Shane McCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-mccrae/) [Explore all 26 Shane McCrae quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-mccrae/) ## More Kind quotes > [Money is the kind of instrument which is very speedily produced.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anatoly-chubais/money-is-the-kind-of-instrument-which-is-very-speedily-produced/) [Anatoly Chubais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anatoly-chubais/) > [Since I worked with Danny Boyle before on Slumdog Millionaire, we have great success and everything. So, when I first got the script and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-r-rahman/since-i-worked-with-danny-boyle-before-on-slumdog-millionaire-we-have/) [A. R. Rahman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-r-rahman/) > [One of the reasons that I do a lot of different kinds of pictures is because I learn a lot when I'm doing them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-jason-leigh/one-of-the-reasons-that-i-do-a-lot-of-different-kinds-of-pictures-is/) [Jennifer Jason Leigh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-jason-leigh/) > [I remember that the bass was turned up slightly more on the mix from last week, and I thought that was good - or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-ronson/i-remember-that-the-bass-was-turned-up-slightly-more-on-the-mix-from/) [Mark Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-ronson/) > [I always step on the plane with my right foot and touch the outside of the plane with my left hand. Sometimes you know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-davis/i-always-step-on-the-plane-with-my-right-foot-and-touch-the-outside/) [Hope Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-davis/) > [Every time I finish a song... most of the time it's in my own head, like this sounds too much like a Townes Van…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/conor-oberst/every-time-i-finish-a-song-most-of-the-time-it-s-in-my-own-head-like/) [Conor Oberst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/conor-oberst/) > [It can sometimes make people fold into themselves and kind of run away, but I think in this case these characters are being forced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-deschanel/it-can-sometimes-make-people-fold-into-themselves-and-kind-of-run/) [Emily Deschanel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-deschanel/) > [I did not know that the planning for biological and chemical warfare was so widespread in England, and even in France before France fell.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholson-baker/i-did-not-know-that-the-planning-for-biological-and-chemical-warfare/) [Nicholson Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholson-baker/) > [I'm not a huge social media kind of guy, so I don't really know, I don't really ever get... at least in real life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freddie-stroma/i-m-not-a-huge-social-media-kind-of-guy-so-i-don-t-really-know-i-don/) [Freddie Stroma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freddie-stroma/) > [The bigger the canvas, the better I do. I'm not so good at understated, kitchen-sink kinds of parts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-reeve/the-bigger-the-canvas-the-better-i-do-i-m-not-so-good-at-understated/) [Christopher Reeve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-reeve/) > [I'm a big fan of all the Boston guys that are acting - Matt Damon , Ben Affleck, Mark Wahlberg - they made a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenny-wormald/i-m-a-big-fan-of-all-the-boston-guys-that-are-acting-matt-damon-ben/) [Kenny Wormald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenny-wormald/) > [If we accept being talked to any kind of a way, then we are telling ourselves we are not quite worth the best. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/if-we-accept-being-talked-to-any-kind-of-a-way-then-we-are-telling/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [You're getting into some kind of shape, cop." Aw, come on, now." Butch grinned. "Don't let that shower we took go to your head."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-ward/you-re-getting-into-some-kind-of-shape-cop-aw-come-on-now-butch/) [J.R. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-ward/) > [You don't want to fix things that aren't broken, so that kind of stops you from make changes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-weidman/you-don-t-want-to-fix-things-that-aren-t-broken-so-that-kind-of-stops/) [Chris Weidman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-weidman/) > [You felt a deep sorrow, the kind of melancholy you feel when you're in a beautiful place and the sun is going down](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thrity-umrigar/you-felt-a-deep-sorrow-the-kind-of-melancholy-you-feel-when-you-re-in/) [Thrity Umrigar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thrity-umrigar/) Browse all 40,753 Kind quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I actually can't listen to music and write poetry at the same time, but I do kind of think about the music I've been listening to when I write.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Shane McCrae" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-mccrae/i-actually-can-t-listen-to-music-and-write-poetry-at-the-same-time/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Kind" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-mccrae/i-actually-can-t-listen-to-music-and-write-poetry-at-the-same-time/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f9/shane-mccrae-22873_kind_i-actually-can-t-listen-to-music-and-wri_311720.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f9/shane-mccrae-22873_kind_i-actually-can-t-listen-to-music-and-wri_311720.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f9/shane-mccrae-22873_kind_i-actually-can-t-listen-to-music-and-wri_311720.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I actually can't listen to music and write poetry at the same time, but I do kind of think about the music…” — Shane McCrae", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Shane McCrae", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-mccrae/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I actually can't listen to music...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-mccrae/i-actually-can-t-listen-to-music-and-write-poetry-at-the-same-time/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-mccrae/i-actually-can-t-listen-to-music-and-write-poetry-at-the-same-time/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```