Get to know the 2022-2023 Chaparral’s staff by reading about their favorite artists, bands and music genres and see who you have most in common with or find new music that you like!

Holly Hinman, Editor-In-Chief

I love Taylor Swift because I grew up with her music. My first memory of listening to her was when I was given a Radio Disney CD that had her song “Teardrops On My Guitar”, but also had Miley Cyrus’ “Fly On The Wall” and Selena Gomez’s “Tell Me Something I Don’t Know” if you remember those! Taylor’s 3rd album, Speak Now, was on repeat while I sat in the backseat of my mom’s old minivan as we drove to Pasadena to visit family. That album will forever hold a special place in my heart and hopefully the re-recording comes by the end of this month! And nowadays, people realize how much of an asset she is to the music industry — and when you grow up with someone and their music like that, you couldn’t be more proud to be a lifelong fan. I enjoy pop music and keep tabs on all of it, but I also adore folk-pop like Vance Joy and The Lumineers or classic rock when I’m in the car with my dad.

Carl Schoemig, Assignment Editor and Staff Reporter

My favorite music is by Kraan. The band has been around since 1970. It was also one of my partner Dana’s favorite bands, besides many others. Their music style is in the genre of jazz-rock. Some songs are mixed with other exotic sound elements. It is music that can easily run in the background and another song that I love is “Think Of Me With Kindness” by Gentle Giant. I love the lyrics and the piano. The song is from the album, Octopus from the year 1972. I discovered the CD in my partner’s collection in 2020 during lockdown when I went through it. Another song that brings back sweet memories is “Sweetest Day” by Control Freq. It’s a love song and it has a lot of meaning to me.

Gianni Olivares, Staff Reporter

My favorite solo artist has to be The Weeknd because of how good all of his music is — especially his albums Beauty Behind The Madness or After Hours. My favorite band has to be Big Time Rush because I grew up watching them on Nickelodeon, and I still listen to them all the time. My favorite member of the band has to be James. My favorite genre of music is a tie between rap and pop since I grew up listening to both in the car, and I listen to both equally as much.

Dean Trombino, Copy Editor and Sports Reporter

My favorite band is The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus. I’m a huge fan of the pop-punk genre and they were a big reason why. “Face Down” has been the most-listened song on my Spotify for years and for good reason. They also led me to some of my other favorite bands such as Paramore which really got me into the punk rock/punk-pop genre in general. I have some great memories of listening to these genres on trips with my girlfriend!

Brianna Jaime, Staff Reporter

Favorite artist? Amy Winehouse. She was unapologetic with her music and lyrics; she was so authentic. Loved her jazz so much. My favorite band right now is Cults. They have a dreamy sound to their songs like TV Dream, but are also experimental, like in Gilded Age and Bad Things!

Fernanda Medina, Staff Reporter

I have so many favorite artists because i enjoy almost every music genre except country. This past year some of my most listened were The Neighbourhood, Billie Ellish, and The Weeknd. My favorite band isn’t limited to just one; I like Surf Curse, Wallows and, of course, The Neighbourhood. My favorite artists right now are definitely Role Model, Conan Gray and Montell Fish. An album that was kept on repeat this year was Bad Bunny’s Un Verano Sin Ti. Whenever I’m at the gym, I love listening to Latin pop when I want to get really hyped! Daddy Yankee, Nicki Jam, Ozuna, and Maluma, along with many other singers from the same genre, always get the job done, but when I need to hit PRs, I also love sad music. My current favorite song has to be “Anything” by Chris Travis, but mainly “Miss Me When I’m Gone”.