UBA066 - Bookspiration - Enya

Finding freedom in personal taste.

Some books leave a lasting impact because they challenge the way we view ourselves, our work and the world around us. In the latest instalment of my Bookspiration series, I want to explore Enya by Chilly Gonzales - a meditation on music, culture and his ideas on the freedom to enjoy what resonates with you, without worrying about whether it’s cool, or culturally acceptable.

We can all learn from this in areas way beyond music, noticing how our own ‘personal’ taste is formed.

When I saw Chilly Gonzales speak at Green Man Festival in 2021, just after the pandemic, his reflections on Enya hit home. He played piano a little too which was of course great! As someone who spent years in the music industry, he opened up about his own journey to let go of the need to conform to cultural norms or be led by what’s considered trendy. Instead, he urges us all to simply enjoy what we love - because we love it. Simple. It’s a philosophy that feels particularly relevant in today’s world of constant judgement and social media-fueled comparisons, where sometimes people follow trends simply because they are trends - becoming more and more disconnected from their own tastes and desires.

The Discovery

After the talk, it felt important to me to buy the book and to take some of his ideas home with me - to encourage my own further reflection. After some time thinking, I really felt like this message about music relates to so many other forms of creativity and our personal freedoms at large. Chilly Gonzales uses Enya (an artist often dismissed as uncool by the cultural elite) as a way to explore how we’ve allowed cultural acceptance to dictate what we’re “supposed” to enjoy. He frames Enya’s music as an example of art that exists beyond trends or coolness, something pure and personal and it made me reflect on how often we chase approval over authentic enjoyment.

The Book

In Enya, Gonzales walks us through his own experience of gradually realising that some music just resonates with him, regardless of its place in the cultural conversation. He talks about the freedom that comes with letting go of caring whether something is trendy, ironic or niche. Working in branding, it isn’t such a stretch to consider that when we engage in culture, or buy things, that part of what we are doing is claiming and expressing our identity, our idea of who we are. But by removing this complexity and layer of meaning, art forms can be enjoyed more directly for what they are rather than for what they mean. For Chilly Gonzales, this realisation was transformative: he stopped worrying about how his tastes aligned with what others considered cool and simply focused on enjoying what spoke to him personally.

For him, Enya represents a kind of artistic purity - music that doesn’t need external validation. Her work isn’t trying to fit into any scene or movement, but rather exists on its own terms. And how she decided to engage (or not engage) with the music industry and surrounding media also stands as a beacon of self clarity. This lack of concern for what others think is something I find so freeing, and it’s an approach that could benefit a lot of us. I have always felt like I am an independent soul - someone who already makes my own choices - but the more I reflect on it, the more I realise this isn’t really the case. In the main, how can we separate ourselves completely from cultural influence, but at times it can be a deeply meaningful practice to notice when this is happening and to make space for some more pure choices for ourselves.

The Inspiration

We often feel pressure, especially in creative fields, to like or appreciate things based on external standards or approval. In fact, working with clients who are constantly judged through a cultural lens by their audience means we are actively seeking out these external validations in our work. Gonzales’ message is simple but powerful: it’s okay to love what you love, even if it’s uncool, unpopular, or unexpected.

This idea feels especially relevant now, in a world that is constantly ranking, critiquing and classifying every piece of content we consume. For people working in the creative industry, the idea of ignoring this (not working against it) is especially freeing. It’s a call to stop chasing trends and start reconnecting with what truly inspires you.

The Take Out

Reading Enya felt like a personal permission slip to enjoy things for the sake of enjoyment, without the need to justify them to anyone. Whether it’s music, art or any other aspect of life, It’s a liberating way to approach not just creativity, but life itself.

Conclusion

On the surface Enya, in its blue glittery cover, might seem like it is all about irony but this book is about so much more than music, and 90s new age artists. It’s a manifesto for personal freedom - an invitation to let go of external validation and reconnect with what you truly enjoy. Whether it’s Enya’s music or something entirely different, the lesson is clear: there’s power in trusting your own taste, and in finding joy in the things that resonate with you, no matter what the world thinks.

And for me, if i’m being honest, Enya doesn’t hold quite the same feeling for me as it does for Gonzales, but I was a huge fan of A-Ha in the 80s, and I have a big soft spot for Enigma’s music of the 90s.

Judge me if you will. I don’t care.

Written by Russell