You hear it almost everywhere you go — a discordant mix of pneumatic guns, multimillion-dollar aircraft engines, JP-5-fueled afterburners, and steel clashing steel in the galley, or rather, any compartment aboard the world’s largest aircraft carrier, USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78). But there is another sound, friendlier and more unified in nature that catches your ear: the music of the crew, the crew that makes every carefully planned operation and evolution run.
American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow once wrote, “music is the universal language of mankind.” In an environment that combines vastly different cultures, backgrounds, and skillsets, this statement most certainly applies. It’s not just a representation of the individual Sailor, but also of the Sailors when they come together.
Individually, Sailors have their own taste in music. But at coordinated events, where rest and relaxation are the goal, you’ll always find a pocket of unified line dances, a group of friends singing without regard to key or volume, and even the ship’s deejay making sure everything sails smoothly.
“Music is one of the most powerful things ever created,” said Logistics Specialist 3rd Class Donte Davidson, one of Gerald R. Ford’s deejays. “It helps bring people together, creating memories like no other. I don’t think people realize how powerful it is.”
You can even identify the squadrons belonging to Carrier Air Wing Eight by the genre or tempo of their tunes.
According to Aviation Structural Mechanic 3rd Class Chris Johnson, Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 31's maintainers prefer old school hip-hop and R&B in the afternoons, undercut by an up-tempo trap sound highlighting their mornings, getting them in gear for the day ahead.
This contrast in musical taste isn’t unique. Across the air wing, each squadron carves out its own identity through sound.
Inversely, Sailors assigned to VFA-213’s maintenance control office prefer to keep things mellow and upbeat with a medley of reggae and nineties soul.
Airborne Command and Control Squadron (VAW) 124 can be noted for listening to soul, R&B, and most of all, letting the sentiments of country music connect them.
“I definitely see our music keeping us motivated and wanting to work,” said VAW-124’s own Aviation Maintenance Administrationman Airman Alijah Placide. “It really brings us together, no matter what we’ve been through or what we’re going through.”
The songs you hear on the average transit ducking and dodging through the hangar bay on the way to chow are more than just songs; they’re callbacks to home, memories, and loved ones. They serve as reminders of Sailors’ “why?”
At cleaning stations, passageways fill with playthroughs of entire albums. In the galley, you hear rhythm and blues. In the hangar bay, where aircraft maintainers work on some of the Navy’s most prized assets, you may hear anything between punk rock, classic hip-hop or pop from the early 2000s and now, in different sectors — all in the span of five minutes.
When Gerald R. Ford celebrated the 4th of July, the crew was entertained not only by an accompanying soundtrack, but a live music performance by some of their own, playing an electric guitar rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner" followed by a vocal rendition from Aviation Boatswain’s Mate (Equipment) Airman Lauriana Dyson.
“As an Airman at my first command, singing the National Anthem was a completely liberating experience,” she said. “Being given the opportunity to express myself through song and creativity, in a space where people are prone to forgetting who they are, was a great privilege and I see it as a reminder to stay true to who we are.”
Music is something that has an iron grip on the ship’s culture from the top down, officer to enlisted. The executive officer, Capt. Christopher Williams, even goes by “The BIG XO,” and emcees over the 1MC, rapping at the end of announcements he makes to the crew; rumor has it he even has a ghostwriter.
The speakers that blast aboard Gerald R. Ford often reflect a wide range of emotions while assisting Sailors through their day-to-day lives.
Although the crew ultimately comprises a lethal war machine capable of deterring any foe from the seas to the air, they are still human, going through ups and downs like the waves they traverse.
For Sailors like Aviation Boatswain’s Mate (Aircraft Handling) Airman Tony Johnson, who’s current favorite track is “King Tonka” by Yeat, their favorite songs keep them running, giving them reason to see the day through tomorrow.
“After long days of working in the [hangar] bay, I put that song on and it’s just super motivating,” said Johnson. “It reminds me that I’m him.”
Music can shape and shift the flow of the day, but what about days where the symphony is toned down?
In an age where most music is digital through the advent of streaming services, one thing that jeopardizes Gerald R. Ford’s unique sonic identity is something also unique to the experience of being on a large warship equipped with Wi-Fi: the current Personal Electronic Device Condition (PEDCON).
During PEDCON green, Wi-Fi is enabled, and Bluetooth is allowed everywhere a personal device is allowed. But as operational security needs shift, and PEDCON changes, so too does the frequency and tune of the ship. This is especially true of the hangar bay and fantail, which is outside the skin of the ship, in which PEDCON orange allows no Bluetooth, cutting off access to the speakers that soundtrack Sailors’ lives. If your favorite album or playlist isn’t downloaded, in any setting besides green — you’re out of luck, and the waiting game begins.
“It feels like the day is just longer without my music, or any at all,” said Aviation Machinist’s Mate Airman Ethan Guiting, assigned to VAW-124. “We just sit there waiting for what seems like forever.”
It’s often something we don’t notice as days churn on and blend together as deployment ticks by. Yet, despite the awesome volume of flight operations, contrasted with the dim rumble of Gerald R. Ford’s air conditioning, something is missing. Despite the ship’s population of over 4,000 Sailors, where something is always happening, the vacuum of energy becomes apparent and obvious.
“Without any music, these 12-hour days feel nerve wracking,” said Culinary Specialist 3rd Class Nicholas Murphy. “I need music to get me through my day; it balances everything out and boosts whatever I do.”
To the crew, music is a weight needed to not only balance life out, but also what tips the scale in their favor as a community, helping them complete tasks while enhancing their focus together. Without their signature sounds, there’s a yin without the yang.
But, when the music returns and the beat marches on, the orchestral nature of Gerald R. Ford breathes life into the monotony and gives its Sailors a battle rhythm that is of their own making, a cadence carried not just by orders, but by melody.
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