My friends argue that recommending me a song is very challenging because my taste is "weird." They thus far have gotten closer with their recommendations but even their best attempts have either been artists I already know and songs that I found decent to enjoyable.

My taste, in general, is musicals. 95% of the music I listen to is from musicals. If you're curious about which musicals represent my taste in genres best, I'll put them at the bottom.

In songs, I tend to value good vocals, the presence of dynamics that don't stay the same the whole time, intelligibility of the lyrics, acting from the singer, and minimal meaningless repetition. I also have realized I can't expect this from the songs my friends recommend, but I like when the music helps tell the story and serves a purpose.

I maintain a playlist that's about 600 songs long of songs that I like. If I'm listening to music, I usually shuffle that. Some parts are outdated, but it's pretty accurate. There are a few songs I skip every time though but never get around to removing. Adding the song to that would be half the challenge (M500). Me not skipping that song whenever it comes on is the other half (M500). That will be measured as of about 1-2 weeks after adding the song.

The song cannot be written or sung by an artist that I recognize. It also cannot be from a musical (unless it is from a jukebox musical and it wasn't written for the musical). It can't be from a movie if it was both written for that movie and sung by a character in that movie as part of that movie.

Musicals that represent my taste in genres:

• Next to Normal (especially "I'm Alive," "Superboy and the Invisible Girl," the sung parts in "Make Up Your Mind/Catch Me I'm Falling," "I've Been," "A Promise")

• bare: a pop opera (especially "You & I," "Best Kept Secret," "Are You There?", "One," "Ever After," "Promise," "Bare")

• Heathers

Some artists that I recognize from non-musicals:

• Simon & Garfunkel (really like "I Am a Rock," "America," a few others; my favorite non-musical artists at the moment)

• ABBA (my sister and brother have both been obsessed with them, their music grew on me and I'd sing it with people but isn't stuff I'd listen to on my own — but I also love the musical Chess, which had music by the writers for ABBA)

• Journey (I've watched a lot of Glee)

• Coldplay

• Taylor Swift

• Billy Joel

And here's a few non-musical songs that I was exposed to and liked:

• I Am a Rock by Simon and Garfunkel

• America by Simon and Garfunkel

• Before He Cheats by Carrie Underwood

• Landslide by Fleetwood Mac

Anyway, if you give me a song I've never heard of but I know the artists from (and I haven't mentioned knowing the artist already) and I really like the song then I'll give M100 to the first person who does this, M50 to the second, and nothing to the third etc.

Good luck, and please prove my friends wrong. I'm hoping this works.