Released today, the 2019 TIME 100-the magazine's list of the world's most influential people-features plenty of names you'll recognize instantly. And for those you don't, chances are you'll be inspired by the work of these artists, athletes, activists, and more. In either case, TIME asked them each a question: What song inspires you?
Below are songs selected by 10 people on TIME's list, plus an explanation of why they find meaning in that particular track. From Eminem to Beethoven, the music spans genres and eras, yet all these songs will likely stir something inside you-just as it does for them.
1. Dreams by Fleetwood Mac Fleetwood Mac is one of my favorite bands, and they have always been a main source of inspiration for me. I love Stevie Nicks so much, and her voice is just amazing. Dreams' is a timeless song, and that represents everything I aspire to be in music.
-Khalid, singer-songwriter
2. Nessun Dorma! from Giacomo Puccini's Turandot My surgeon father would put on the record player and sing along to it at the top of his voice, standing with clenched fists, in the middle of the living room. He sang it to give himself strength.
-Glenn Close, actor
3. Downtown by Petula Clark My parents have a home video of me singing it to a spoon. It's all about getting out, going somewhere and doing something with your life.
-Ryan Murphy, screenwriter, director, and producer
4. The Climb by Miley Cyrus It's one of my favorite songs to run to.
-Aileen Lee, venture capitalist
5. Better Together by Jack Johnson It was our wedding song, and I cannot possibly listen to this song without smiling.
-Alex Morgan, athlete
6. Not Afraid by Eminem It speaks volumes (to me specifically). I fear nothing.
-Caster Semenya, athlete
7. EARTHA by Jamila Woods The song is based on sentiments Jamila shares with Eartha Kitt about compromising with men and holding them accountable.
-Indya Moore, actor
8. To Love Somebody by the Bee Gees I'm a big romantic and am someone who believes at my core that the most important thing in life is who you love and who you choose to spend your time with. This song reminds me how important it is to my own happiness to show the people I care about how important they are to me.
-Jennifer Hyman, CEO and cofounder of Rent The Runway
9. Lose Yourself by Eminem It talks about how you've gotten knocked down before, and you may have failed then, but an opportunity presents itself for you to obtain the thing you desired for so long. When you have that opportunity, will you seize the moment or will it slip away? It spoke to the movement to restore voting rights to returning citizens. Politicians who wanted to deal with this issue presented an opportunity and voters were ready to deal with it. This was the moment, that once in a lifetime chance, to deal with it.
-Desmond Meade, President of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition
10. Symphony No. 9 by Ludwig van Beethoven There is still reason to be hopeful and courageous.
-Hoesung Lee, Chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
For the complete Time 100 list, visit http://time.com/100, and you can check out the corresponding Time 100's Most Inspiring Songs playlist below.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
09/10/2026
September 10 2026, 06:00 (PDT) Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform with New Capabilities at IBC 2026
New Sports Intelligence helps providers better unders...
08/10/2026
Modern venues have come a long way since the tinny, echoing audio of the mid 20t...
08/10/2026
ESPN's first Super Bowl production will stream in English and Spanish on Disney+, while the ESPN App carries the full slate of game, ManningCast, studio, an...
08/10/2026
From high-school videoboards to War Eagle Productions, the Opelika native is learning how to lead shows and capture big moments
The future of live sports produ...
08/10/2026
The Television Academy and Prime Video have announced a six-year agreement making Prime Video the exclusive global home of the Emmy Awards beginning with the 20...
08/10/2026
Techex will exhibit at NAB Show New York 2026 (Booth 623, Javits Center, October...
08/10/2026
X Games has announced the appointment of Steve Rogers as Chief Operating Officer. Rogers previously served as COO of World Supercross and spent nearly a decade ...
08/10/2026
Fonn Group has appointed Trevor Spielmann as Sales Director for Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. Spielmann joins from EVS, where he held sales and business de...
08/10/2026
The flagship program will originate from major PG events with a four-camera production, live distribution across PGTV, social platforms
Perfect Game is bringin...
08/10/2026
Innovation rarely happens in a vacuum. More often, it happens at the point of collision: when worlds that have run on separate tracks begin to converge. That is...
08/10/2026
For decades, the production and broadcast services business has run on a familia...
08/10/2026
Uplynk, Zixi, BroadView Software, and Grass Valley have published The IP Converg...
08/10/2026
The NFL has announced the return of the Big Data Bowl, the league's analytics competition, now in its ninth year and again powered by AWS. Registration is o...
08/10/2026
Eutelsat has renewed its partnership with T l diffusion d'Alg rie (TDA), Algeria's national broadcasting network operator, for continued distribution of...
08/10/2026
Disney will livestream Super Bowl LXI on February 14, 2027, alongside the game's broadcast on ESPN and ABC. All Disney subscribers in the United States wi...
08/10/2026
RHStv and Red House Streaming have announced an expansion of their partnership w...
08/10/2026
Gray Media has announced a distribution agreement with TEGNA and DAZN to simulca...
08/10/2026
SVG readers can save 10% on registration and receive a complimentary Solutions H...
08/10/2026
PROTON Camera Innovations GmbH has been named a recipient of a 2026 Technology a...
08/10/2026
Industry leaders discuss real-world cloud workflows for live game production, pl...
08/10/2026
The next-gen audio technology joins Dolby Vision as part of Apple TV's immersive F1 experience...
08/10/2026
David France, Jesse Short Bull, Mato Wayuhi, N. Bird Runningwater, Jodi Archambau, Jhane Myers, Paul McGuire, Amber Morning Star Byars, Holly Macarro, Nick Tils...
08/10/2026
Dynamic panning plug-ins get an upgrade
Sound Particles have just announced major updates for two of their popular dynamic panning plug-ins. Energy Panner 2...
08/10/2026
New expandable instrument boasts full DMNO engine
UDO Audio have just announced the upcoming release of a new, expandable synth that packs the power of the ...
08/10/2026
Two new subwoofers added to monitoring line-up
ADAM Audio's monitoring range has just been expanded with two new DSP-equipped subwoofers, the Sub8 PRO a...
08/10/2026
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......
08/10/2026
Calrec gives broadcasters freedom of choice at NAB Show New York We're looking forward to meeting up with you all at NAB New York on 21st-22nd October.
Cal...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Globecast, a leading provider of broadcast, media and entertainment managed services, will showcase its next generation of media orchestration services at NAB S...
08/10/2026
Clear-Com played a critical role in the production communications infrastructure for Rock in Rio 2026, one of the world's largest and most recognized music...
08/10/2026
Sohonet Launches ClearView Rush: A Leap Forward in Studio Review, Built for Crea...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Ikegami announces a major expansion to its range of broadcast-quality live production cameras. Scheduled for introduction on Ikegami booth 708 at NAB New York, ...
08/10/2026
Calrec will be located at Booth 444.
Freedom to choose
The media landscape is evolving quickly, and the broadcasters best placed for what comes next will be...
08/10/2026
LiveU has announced that CRD Audiovisuel relied on LiveUs LU900Q intelligent production unit, with built-in native LiveU IQ (LIQ ) connectivity, to deliver live...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/10/2026
Marshall Electronics, a globally recognized provider of high-performance video solutions for broadcast, streaming, AV and professional production, will exhibit ...
08/10/2026
14-hour package also includes A Remarkable Place to Die season 2 as well as libr...
Released today, the 2019 TIME 100-the magazine's list of the world's most influential people-features plenty of names you'll recognize instantly. And for those you don't, chances are you'll be inspired by the work of these artists, athletes, activists, and more. In either case, TIME asked them each a question: What song inspires you?
