MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
Now we're going to hear from Andy Marra - a transgender activist who writes about different kind of freedom - freedom from wondering about her roots and fear of not being accepted. She spoke to us about finding her birth mother in Korea after coming out as transgender. For a regular segment we call In Your Ear, she shared some of the songs that helped her write that story.
ANDY MARRA: My name is Andy Marra and I am listening to "Lullabies" by Yuna.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "LULLABIES")
YUNA: (Singing) I wanted to go away with you.
MARRA: She's a Malaysian artist and she was discovered and brought the states.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "LULLABIES")
YUNA: (Singing) And I will leave all my troubles here.
MARRA: Her vocals are so dreamy and beautiful. And her voice is very clear and I love falling asleep to the sound of her music and to the sound of her voice. It puts me into a nice relaxing state that lets me fall asleep.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "LULLABIES")
YUNA: (Singing) Like lullabies you are forever in my mind. I see you and I, the pieces in my life. Though you weren't mine. Like lullabies you are forever in my mind. I see you and I, the pieces in my life.
MARRA: Another song I'm listening to is "Holocene" by Bon Iver.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "HOLOCENE")
BON IVER: (Singing) Someway, baby, it's part of me, apart from me. You're laying waste to Halloween. You [bleep] it friend, it's on its head. It struck the street.
MARRA: That's a perfect song to write to. I particularly like to write to that song when I'm in front of a fireplace and it's quiet outside and it's night out. So it's a wonderful song to write to.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "HOLOCENE")
BON IVER: (Singing) and at once I knew I was not magnificent. Strayed above the highway aisle, Jagged vacance, thick with ice...
MARRA: Another song I really love is "Go Do" by Jonsi.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "GO DO")
JONSI: (Singing) Go sing, too loud. Make your voice break - sing it out. Go scream, do shout. Make an earthquake. You've all wished fire would die and turn colder.
MARRA: It's a wonderfully happy and exuberant song. It has a lot of pep and it reminds me of the fall of 2010 when I found my family in Korea and I was able to begin building a relationship with them. So it has a lot of great memories, and it's very motivational for me when I am feeling down.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "GO DO")
JONSI: (Singing) Go drum, do proud. Make your hands ache - play it out.
MARRA: Another song I really, really love is the "The Lark Ascending" By Vaughan Williams. It's more of a classical piece but again it's a wonderful song to write to, especially when you're feeling reflective and introspective, if you will.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "THE LARK ASCENDING")
MARRA: I love playing the piece when I am sitting down, when it's raining outside and writing more thoughtful, meaningful pieces.
MARTIN: That was Andy Marra telling us what's playing in her ear. If you want to listen to our previous conversation, just head to npr.org/tellmemore. And that's our program for today. I'm Michel Martin, and you've been listening to TELL ME MORE from NPR News. Let's talk more tomorrow. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.