KJLS-FM 103.3 10am Sundays
August 30, 2026
Early Romantic Relationships
Part 1
Hello, Central Kansas and around the world. Thank you for spending some of your Sunday with us and we celebrate together the final Sunday of August, 2026. Welcome to MATT on today’s best music, Mix 103.3. It’s great to have you with us. I’m Fr. Mike, your host for MATT. We take the top 10 songs of the past 46 years, songs that we have played here on Mix 103 and we talk about their meanings and their applications to our lives in this often mixed-up complicated world of ours. Our motto here is: enjoy the music, and listen to the message, allowing that message to influence our lives for the better. Today, besides our top 10 we will hear songs from our past top 10’s as well, with people like Charlie Puth, the group Blind Melon and Rihanna.
Most of the songs written for radio play are love songs, estimated to be about 70% or so. And of course, there are many sides to the love that is written about. One of the more interesting sides to study in popular music is love which is just beginning. It has characteristics of its own and can be made better than it is. Consequently, we can say some positive elements to it so that it is a good way to live at that particular moment of a couple’s lives or of course, some negative elements. Also since there will be a more permanent love a little later on, it’s good to see what preparation there is in the song for a future marriage.
I think of all of that as I study the number 3 song in our countdown right now from Olivia Rodrigo. It is a song about being totally infatuated with someone as a beginning love experience. She begins her song: “I know that the bar closes at 11, but I hope you never finish that beer. You know all the words to ‘Just Like Heaven,’ and I know why he wrote them now that you’re standin’ right here. One night I was bored in bed and stalked you on the internet. It’s feminine intuition ‘cause I always had a vision of us standing like this. You’re lookin’ like an angel on the walls of Versailles, the most alive I’ve ever been, but kiss me and I might drop dead.”
The person in the song is completely infatuated with the man, and portrays the intense feeling of an early romance, referring to a similar experience as described in the band the Cure’s song “Just Like Heaven.” The song will give us an opportunity to speak about a beginning love experience on our show today, and what each of our songs will give as a particular insight.
This is from Olivia Rodrigo’s album “You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love,”, and her song “Drop Dead”, number 3 this week on MATT.
(double) 3 DROP DEAD / Olivia Rodrigo
Deja vu / Olivia Rodrigo
Part 2
Double Olivia Rodrigo there, that last one from her debut album “Sour”, her song “Déjà vu” from 2021. It is a song lamenting the fact that the lady in the relationship has lost her once-upon-a-time boyfriend to another girl, and she is thinking that the other girl and he are doing the same thing that they did. “I bet she’s braggin’ to all her friends, sayin you’re so unique; so when you gonna tell her that we did that, too? She thinks it’s special, but it’s all reused. That was our place, I found it first, I made the jokes you tell to her when she’s with you. Do you get déjà vu when she’s with you?” She is being very sarcastic, and probably very angry at her ex and she is no doubt jealous. In terms of our theme, these are the common problems of early love relationships, and the mature person will take time to study them in order to make the best possible response.
My website www.frmikescully.com has a song by Tate McRae on Wednesday that is interesting to study. She calls it a song celebrating female confidence. “He says, ‘Are you serious,’” she begins her song speaking of the boyfriend in the relationship, “I’ve tried, but I can’t figure out; I’ve been next to you all night and still don’t know what you’re about.” But she says, “I would want myself. Please believe me. I’ll put you through hell just to know me, so sure of yourself, don’t get greedy—that stuff won’t end well.” I changed the words a little. It is a song of female empowerment. And exactly what should be said to someone who wants to control a situation when he/she shouldn’t. In terms of our theme, when just discovering love, we have to be very aware that too many people want to control a situation. From the year 2o24, and a song from her album “Think Later,” her song, “Greedy”—23 year old Canadian singer Tate McRae on MATT.
(triple) GREEDY/ Tate McRae
MISERY / Maroon 5
10 BABYDOLL / Dominic Fike
Part 3
30 year old Dominic Fike born in Naples, Florida, and his song “Babydoll”, number 10 on MATT this morning. It is a song of a person who cannot let go of a previous love relationship perhaps because of a very difficult childhood. “I can’t move on, babydoll, waitin’ on calls, flippin’ through stations. I’m outclassed and it’s outrageous, and I’ll take it all, babydoll, whatever’s been weighin’ you down. Find me on Miami concrete, lookin’ for somebody different ‘cause my daddy was a pimp; my mama had her issues, but I miss her anyway. Oh, babydoll, please don’t call me for the wrong reasons.” The man in the relationship is looking for love, and he may not have ever learned exactly what it is. Tough song, teaching the importance of a good childhood. In terms of our theme, early romantic relationships will often reflect the kind of childhood the couple have experienced.
Before him, we heard from the group Maroon 5 and their song from their album “Hands All Over” and their song “Misery” from 2010 on MATT. It is a song of begging the girlfriend in a relationship to respond to the man’s desires. "So scared of breaking it," they sing, "but you won’t let it bend. And I wrote two hundred letters I won’t ever send. Somehow it cut so much deeper than they seem. You’d rather cover up, I’d rather let them be, so let me be, and I’ll set you free. I am in misery. Girl, you really got me bad; I’m gonna get you back. I’m desperate and confused, so far away from you. Why do you do what you do to me?" The man in the relationship is in very bad straits, and his girlfriend is not responding. Consequently, he is about to make matters worse--he is threatening revenge. It is an early romantic relationship, our theme today, and one of the things to stay away from early on and later as well is the thought of revenge.
Our theme of early romantic relationships came from Olivia Rodrigo’s number 3 song right now “Drop Dead.” Get ready for the music of top 10 from Huntr/X and Ariana Grande as well as music from the band Blind Melon, Meghan Trainor and Charlie Puth. And, thanks to my trusty quote book, as usual, I have a thought for you to close this session. This one comes from Mr. or Mrs. Anonymous: “It is better to lose your pride with someone you love rather than to lose that someone you love with your pride.” That is a great thought, especially apropos for early love relationships. You’ve got today’s best music Mix 103 on your dial right now; I’m your host Fr. Mike, and you are in tune / with the MATT music network.
We continue on the MATT music network on Mix 103. Welcome back to the only top 10 show of its kind in these parts, maybe in the whole world. We look at the meanings of the songs we play in the hopes that you and I can learn to live better as we follow our motto to enjoy the music and especially to listen to the message. I’m Fr. Mike, your host, and it is so good to have you with us today. We are using a theme of early love relationships and what can happen with them. Let’s see how that theme fits in with a song from Ariana Grande.
According to the critics, it addresses regret over a relationship while also reflecting her conflicted feelings about fame and public scrutiny. “Just know that I will find my way from you,” she sings, “Like flowers from a tomb while you decide who you are. And I can see right through like shadows on the moon and it’s all bad news. I hate that I made you love me, sorry if I made me your type. Yeah, I hate that I made you love me ‘cause I barely tried. What’s happening now? You studied my crown and borrowed my body, warm, kissed by the sun, then cold like the wind, a bee stuck in honey. Know that I will find my way from you. I hate that I made you love me.” So, a relatively negative song, and those negative feelings are important for us in a way, because in terms of our theme, beginning romantic relationships may not always be smooth and we need to learn to work with those negative feelings. The song has quite a good video, I believe. This is a song of a breakup with some personal overtones about her career, from her new album “Petal,” “Hate That I Made You Love Me” from Ariana Grande on MATT.
(double) 9 HATE THAT I MADE YOU LOVE ME / Ariana Grande
NO / Meghan Trainor
Part 5
32 year old Nantucket, Massachusetts-born Ms. Meghan Elizabeth Trainor and a song about how not to get into a relationship. You do it by saying “no.” It comes from her album “Thank You”, and very simply its title “No” from 2016 on MATT. “I think it's so cute and I think it's so sweet,” she sings, “how you let your friends encourage you to try and talk to me. But let me stop you there before you speak. My name is no; my sign is no; my number is no. You need to let it go.” Then she goes into a little teaching, saying “All my ladies, listen up. If that boy ain't giving up, girls, all you gotta say is no.” It’s really not bad advice—you must learn direct communication at times, and difficult or not, we should learn it and in terms of our theme, learn it even in early love relationships.
Let’s go into this triple play with a song which is on my website www.frmikescully.com on Tuesday of this week. Charlie Puth sings here “I’m only one call away; I'll be there to save the day. Superman’s got nothing on me. I'm only one call away. Call me if you need a friend. I just wanna give you love. Reaching out to you, so take a chance. Come along with me and don't be scared. I just wanna set you free. You and me can make it anywhere. For now, we can stay here for a while 'cause you know, I just wanna see you smile.” It seems the man in the relationship would like it to turn into a real relationship but for right then, he was just interested in making her feel good. And in terms of our theme, that is a pretty good goal to begin a love relationship with. This is Charlie Puth from the album “Nine Track Mind” and his song “One Call Away” on MATT.
(triple) ONE CALL AWAY / Charlie Puth
NO RAIN / Blind Melon
8 GOLDEN / Huntr/X
Part 6
Three Korean young ladies named Huntr/X there, and their number 8 song this morning, former number 1, “Golden” on MATT. It is from the soundtrack of the animated movie, “K Pop Demon Hunters” and the theme of the Netflix film that follows Huntr/X—who lead double lives facing off against a rival boys band, the Saja boys whose members are secretly demons. The words recall that story. “We’re going up, it’s our moment. You know together we’re glowin, gonna be golden. I’m done hidin’ now, I’m shinin’ like I’m born to be, oh, our time, no fears, no lies, that’s who we’re born to be.” I interpret it as a song urging people to do what is right, and in terms of our theme today, that is pretty important as we begin romantic relationships.
Before them, we heard a great song to study from the band Blind Melon who are still on the music scene with different members, this song from 1993’s top 10, from the album named after them the song “No Rain”. It is a song that describes a bored individual who leads a life that was “pretty plain”, as they sing. The title is a little too realistic for some areas of our country, to be sure—no rain. Actually, the description of life being “pretty plain” for the man in the song is an understatement. Not only is it “plain,” / it is so boring that he “watches the puddles gather rain” and when it does not rain, he occupies his time by sleeping and complaining that there is no rain to gather into puddles. No one pays any attention to him, they call him insane; he would do anything to escape the boredom. “It rips my life away,” the group sings. This person needs some help, and that help would be a must for anyone beginning a love relationship, our theme today.
That theme of studying early love relationships came from Olivia Rodrigo and her song “Drop Dead.” We have another hour to go yet today with MATT. In fact, get ready for people like Bruno Mars and Paula Abdul. Popular music always has a message, and the songs of popular music always contain something to talk about, and we will continue to do just that in a couple of minutes. First, a little break, and before the break a thought from Christian author C. S. Lewis: “A proud man is always looking down on things and people; and of course, as long as you are looking down, you can’t see something that’s above you.” Now, that’s one great insight, Mr. Lewis. And the person who is looking down on others will often make mistakes in relationships, especially early ones. I’m Fr. Mike, inviting you to keep your dial right there as we continue shortly / on the MATT music network on today’s best music Mix 103.3.
We continue with the only top 10 show of its kind in this area as we celebrate the last Sunday of August 2026. It is great to have you with us on 100,000 watts of power, and the show we have labeled MATT, the show that takes only the top 10 of today and yesterday, and discovers just what their messages are, often giving us some thoughts to live by. Our motto is to enjoy the music, and listen to the message, allowing that message to influence our lives for the better. My name is Fr. Mike, your host, and we are featuring the thought of Olivia Rodrigo this morning from her song “Drop Dead,” and we are studying the songs of our show in light of what they say about early love relationships.
Let’s begin our second hour together with a good song about the scenario in which a couple have given themselves completely to each other physically, and now one of them just wants to be friends, and that, the artist concludes, is a contradiction. He sings, “How can we go back to being friends when we just shared a bed? How can you look at me and pretend I’m someone you’ve never met?” It seems as though the lady in the relationship wants to have a breakup or at least a temporary time apart, but the two have already made it clear that they are committed to each other. As I have mentioned, it is unfortunately a common enough experience. I believe that one of the evils of society is giving in to too much physical involvement because the physical involvement tends to dominate rather than thinking about—say--what love truly is. And when early romantic experiences are defined physically, that is certainly the case. This is a song from 21 year old Shane Michael Boose, that is Sombr at number 7 in our top 10 right now from his album “I Barely Know Her” and his song “Back to Friends” on MATT.
(triple) 7 BACK TO FRIENDS / Sombr
O MY GOD/ Adele
OPPOSITES ATTRACT / Paula Abdul f/ The Wild Pair
Part 8
Paula Abdul there singing with the Wild Pair, from 1989 and Paula Abdul’s album “Forever Your Girl,” and the song “Opposites Attract” on MATT. She reminds us in the song that one of the major blocks to a good relationship is the lack of common interests, something that is discovered very early in a relationship, our theme today. Anyone who is dating realizes that, but given that knowledge, showing once again that love does not follow the rules of logic, one of the phenomena of love relationships in countries where we choose our mates, is that we often choose a partner who has very little in common with us. Or, as Paula Abdul sings here, “Opposites Attract.” In the song, they sing about all kinds of opposites, but even given them, they do hit it off well. But there can be a problem. In the very clever video of the song, Paula Abdul and her cartoon feline friend are playfully choking each other, as they sing “We have nothing but fun”. Something worth pointing out: opposites may attract initially, but in the long run, they will probably tear the relationship apart, a fact that should not be forgotten as such a couple begin the relationship.
Before them, we heard a song about coming out of a negative time in the person in the song’s life, and reaching out to something new in a tentative way. It comes from Adele Laurie Blue Adkins or simply Adele from her album “30” and her song “Oh My God”. “Wish that I would let you break my walls, but I’m spinning out of control from the fall. I know that it’s wrong, but I want to have fun. Oh my God, I can’t believe it, out of all the people in the world, what is the likelihood of jumping out of my life and into your arms? Maybe baby I’m just losing my mind ‘cause this is trouble, but it feels right. Teetering on the edge of heaven and hell is a battle I cannot fight. Oh, Lord, don’t let me down.” I just love it when these songs ask God for help because that is exactly what must happen in life, in my humble opinion, and therefore, for me, it is THE way to work with early romantic relationships, our theme today.
Yet another triple play is all set up on these fancy computers and it begins with a song about begging another person to love the person in the song, and that is something you have to be very careful about. “I want you to love me,” she sings, speaking the thoughts of the woman in a relationship, “so forget about the world ‘cause it’s going to be me and you tonight. Want you to make me feel like I’m the only girl in the world, like I’m the only one that you’ll ever love, like I’m the only one who knows your heart, like I’m the only one that’s in command, ‘cause I’m the only one who understands how to make you feel like a man. I’ll tell you all my secrets that I’m keepin’; when you enter, you ain’t leaving, be my prisoner for the night.” Words asking the other to love, and the reason that this is so risky is that she might give too much of herself, and get nothing in return. It is one of the problems with early romantic relationships, our theme today. From 2010, Rihanna from her album “Loud”, “Only Girl (in the World)” on MATT.
(triple) ONLY GIRL (IN THE WORLD) / Rihanna
NO AIR / Jordin Sparks & Chris Brown
6 I JUST MIGHT / Bruno Mars
Part 9
At number 6 from Bruno Mars’s album “The Romantic”, and the song “I Just Might” on MATT. He has number 4 also which we will hear in a couple minutes. His real name is Peter Gene Hernandez. The song was a former number 1, a song of wanting another to show her love for him by good dancing. “It would break my heart” he sings, “if I find out you can’t move. You better show me now ‘cause when I take you to the floor, you gotta get down. Hey, Mr. DJ, play a song for this pretty little lady ‘cause if she dance as good as she look right now, I just might make her my baby.” It is a rather selfish song in the sense that the man is really only thinking of himself, but in general, early romantic relationships, our theme today, may often be defined in terms of good dancing.
Before him, we heard Ms. Jordin Sparks and Chris Brown and their song “No Air” from 2008 from the album “Jordin Sparks.” The song begins with its theme: “Tell me how I’m supposed to breathe with no air.” Then they continue: “If I should die before I wake, it’s ‘cause you took my breath away. Losing you is like living in a world with no air. How do you expect me to live alone with just me, ‘cause my world revolved around you. It’s so hard for me to breathe. Tell me how I’m supposed to breathe with no air; can’t live. That’s how I feel whenever you ain’t there.” Not very good English, but rather straightforward thought—for some reason, the two broke up, and it feels like they’re dying because there is no air. A very good description of pain. We simply have to work with the pain, especially as we experience breakups early in our romantic relationships, our theme today.
Which brings us to another momentary break in the music and message. Get ready during our final segment for songs from Taylor Swift along with numbers 4, 2 and 1 in our nation right now. Here is a thought that comes from Mr. Will Rogers who died in 1935: “Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there.” Well said Mr. Rogers, which means we must do more than simply talk about things in order to live well. Stay with us as we pursue a theme that has come from Olivia Rodrigo’s number 3 song “Drop Dead.” This is MATT on Mix 103.3.
COMMERCIAL BREAK
Part 10
Welcome back to MATT on Mix 103. I am Fr. Mike, and we are beginning the final segment of our show this last Sunday of August. We take the songs of the top 10 of today and yesterday, and we speak about the messages of those songs, those messages often giving us some good thoughts to live by. Our motto as always is to enjoy the music of our show and this great radio station, and at the same time, listen to the message so that our lives can be a bit better than they are now.
At number 5 in our countdown today is Taylor Swift and let’s do a triple play from her. The song falls from the number 1 position to number 5 right now. It talks of the concepts of reunion and memory, and the emotions that go with it. “I knew you through the daze of the blades of the grass in summer,” she begins her song, “parachutes for the free fall of being younger. I memorized the sound of your bare footsteps running wild. It’s been a long time; life has ways of leaving those days behind. But seeing you tonight, I remembered I loved you, came back when it mattered. I saw you, standing there in the light of the window, wearing that same smile. Man, it’s been a while, but I knew it, I knew you.” Remembering a past love is its theme, and in terms of our theme this week, much of early romantic relationships are nothing more than comparing those relationships with recent past ones. The song is “I Knew It, I Knew You” from Taylor Swift and the character known as Jessie in the movie “Toy Story 5”, number 5 on MATT.
(triple) 5 I KNEW IT, I KNEW YOU / Taylor Swift
CARDIGAN / Taylor Swift
I CAN DO IT WITH A BROKEN HEART / Taylor Swift
Part 11
Closing off a triple play from her, Taylor Alison Swift, and a song of despair, from her album “The Tortured Poets Department,” and “I Can Do It with a Broken Heart” on MATT. The lady in the song is swearing that she will get over the despair, although you wonder whether she ever will. “I can read your mind, ‘she’s having the time of her life,’” the lady in the relationship sings, “There in her glittering prime. I can show you lies ‘cause I'm a real tough kid, I can handle my stuff. They said, ‘Babe, you gotta fake it 'til you make it’. And I did: Lights, camera, smile even when you want to die. He said he'd love me all his life, But that life was too short. Breaking down, I hit the floor, all the pieces of me shattered. I was grinning like I'm winning. I was hitting my marks 'Cause I can do it with a broken heart. I'm so depressed, I act like it's my birthday every day I'm so obsessed with him, but he avoids me like the plague. I cry a lot, but I am so productive. It's an art. You know you’re good when you can even do it with a broken heart.” I changed some of the words. In terms of our theme, many early love relationships cause broken hearts and we have to be prepared for them.
Before
her, her again, Taylor Swift, this time with a song whose meaning
according to her is about a lost romance and
why young love is often fixed so permanently within our memories, and
why it leaves such an indelible mark. It comes from 2020 from her
album “Folklore” and the name of the song “Cardigan”. “When
you are young, they assume you know nothing, but I knew you dancing
in your Levi’s, and when I felt like I was an old cardigan under
someone’s bed, you put me on and said I was your favorite. I knew
you playing hide and seek and giving me your weekends. I knew you’d
linger like a tattoo kiss. I knew you’d haunt all my what-ifs
‘cause I knew everything when I was young. I knew I’d curse you
for the longest time. I knew you’d miss me once the thrill expired,
and you’d be standing on my front porch light, and I knew you’d
come back to me.” She is singing about a beginning romance, our
theme today, and what it should mean.
Back to our
countdown now, and we have number 4 all set on these computers. It is
from Bruno Mars again.
“For just the chance to win your heart, you could set the bar
beyond the stars” he sings, “I’ll do anything, anything you ask
me to. Say you want the moon—watch me learn to fly, ain’t no
mountain you could point to I wouldn’t climb. It’s crazy, but
it’s true. There’s nothing I won’t do. I’d risk it all for
you.” In terms of our theme today, really working at a permanent
commitment of love will come after an early romantic experience, and
the better the experience is, the stronger will a permanent
commitment be. This is from his album “The Romantic” again, his
song of complete commitment to another, “Risk It All”, the name
of it from Bruno Mars on MATT.
(double) 4 RISK IT ALL / Bruno Mars
2 DRACULA / Tame Impala
Part 12
That was Tame Impala, the musical project of Australian instrumentalist Kevin Parker and he is accompanied by South Korean singer Jennie. It is from the album “Deadbeat” and the song “Dracula”, number 2 this week on MATT. The song is about a person who is wanting a love connection while at the same time not wanting to come out of his chosen hidden life. Comparing the person in the song to a vampire, they sing: “The morning light is turning blue, the feeling is bizarre,” they begin their song. “The night is almost over, I still don’t know where you are. The shadows, they keep me like a movie star, daylight makes me feel like Dracula. In the end, I hope it’s you and me in the darkness, I would never leave. Run from the sunlight, Dracula.” The man in the relationship is growing up in the process of love, and in order to begin his romantic experiences, our theme today, he will have to come out of his shell a little.
And the number 1 song is once again from London born Olivia Dean, from her album “The Art of Loving,” and her song “So Easy”, making it altogether 8 weeks at number 1. It is a song of the desire for love of one particular person. “I could be the twist, the one to make you stop,” she begins the song, “The icing on the cake, the cherry on the top. It’s heaven in my heart, and we could find you some space. I could be the world to you, the missing piece, that extra kind of chemistry. Some people make it hard; with me, that isn’t the case ‘cause I make it so easy to fall in love. So, come give me a call, and we’ll fall into us. I’m the perfect mix of Saturday night and the rest of your life. Anyone with a heart would agree: it’s so easy to fall in love with me.” So, a rather straightforward statement to someone and both of them seem to be growing up well in their relationship together which began with a successful early romantic relationship, our theme today, one would imagine.
And there you have it, the top popular songs of this area according to Mediabase 24-7 and KJLS-FM along with their meanings. Our theme today is the thought of early romantic relationships and their special situations. My prayer for you and me is that we will develop the thought of love as we grow, whether we move into romantic love or not. My thanks to our producers and sponsors, especially our sponsors at Holy Family Elementary School in Hays, Hays Car and Truck Alignment, Auto World in Hays, and Thomas More Prep-Marian Junior and Senior High School in Hays, all made up of great people. If you want to contact me by mail, I hope you do so at KJLS radio, Hays, KS, 67601 or my e-mail address is frmikescully@yahoo.com. My website is www.frmikescully.com where you will find some good meditations on the Gospels and songs and movies and a transcript of the show. You can join us on the web every Sunday morning at 10 CDT by tuning to www.hayspost.com, and choosing Mix 103.3. A final quote to lead us out of our show today from an anonymous author again: “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.”
That is, we have to do more to bring about good things than merely talk about it. Yes, indeed. As we close with Olivia Dean’s “So Easy”, may I remind you that you are listening to today’s best music on Mix 103, and as you do, I hope you hold a good thought. Thanks for your time today. From beautiful West Virginia to beautiful Hays, KS, and to the world, my name is Fr. Mike Scully. Stay safe, peace to you, and be good.
1 SO EASY / Olivia Dean
August 23, 2026
“Breaking Bad Habits”
Part 1
Good morning Central Kansas and around the world; happy second last Sunday of August and happy beginning of school if that is happening for you in whatever form it comes. I hope your day is a good one today. Thank you for joining us this still-summer Sunday morning. Welcome to “Message at the Top.” Get set for the top 10 songs of our area as determined by the research from your requests, as well as the national research of Mediabase 24-7, and get ready for some great songs from the past as well.
According to Wikipedia, habits are routines of behavior that are repeated regularly; they tend to occur subconsciously without directly thinking consciously about them. Habitual behavior sometimes goes unnoticed in persons exhibiting them, because it is often unnecessary to engage in self-analysis when undertaking in routine tasks. Habits are sometimes compulsory.
Now, that gives us some things to think about. We have all set up habits in our lives in which we do something that we always do, and it becomes comfortable to do them the way that we do them, and so we keep at it. There is nothing wrong with that—we all do it. The last phrase of Wikipedia’s definition is the one to think about: habits are sometimes compulsory. Sometimes we establish habits that become dictating to our behavior, and sometimes such habits should be studied and changed.
I think of all of that because of the song on my website www.frmikescully.com tomorrow from Ed Sheeran. Its conclusion although unwritten is that bad habits will never take away a problem. And that is a pretty good conclusion to remember. The man in the relationship’s problem is that his girlfriend left and the lady of the relationship has led him to her through bad habits: “Every time you come around, you know I can’t say no, every time the sun goes down, I let you take control. I can feel the paradise before my world implodes, and tonight had something wonderful. My bad habits lead to late nights ending alone, conversations with a stranger I barely know, swearing this will be the last, but it probably won’t. I’ve got nothing left to lose, or use, or do—my bad habits lead to wide eyes stare into space, and I know I lose control of the things that I say. I was looking for a way out, now I can’t escape. My bad habits lead to you.”
The question might be asked about how to break a bad habit. Well, determination to do something is the first thing that we need. Secondly, we may need some professional help, especially if we have gotten ourselves addicted to something that is a bad habit. And thirdly—this is what I a clergyman would add—you need some type of connection with a Higher Power, praying intently to be able to get over the addiction.
But the songs of our show probably have something to add of their own, and I would like to see what they are as we use the theme this morning of “Breaking Bad Habits.” So, let’s use Ed Sheeran’s song on my website tomorrow to discover how to break bad habits in our world today. His song is appropriately named “Bad Habits” from his album which is an equal sign from 2021 on MATT.
(double) BAD HABITS / Ed Sheeran
HABITS / Tove L0
Part 2
A song simply named “Habits” from the year 2013 from the Swedish singer/songwriter/ musician named Tove Ebba Elsa Nilsson better known by her stage name of Tove Lo from her album “Queen of the Clouds,” on MATT. The story is this: the lady in the relationship’s problem is that her boyfriend left and the lady of the once-upon-a-time relationship sings: “I gotta stay high all the time to keep you off my mind.” In the process, she mentions all of the bad habits that keeps her high, but she realizes that it will get her nowhere. As she sings, “I’m staying in my play pretend where the fun ain’t got no end.” But she’s only pretending and this type of behavior—bad habits—will never solve any problem, and the way to break those bad habits, our theme today, is to get away from the play pretending.
Let’s dive into our top 10 now and give us the bottom 3 songs of our countdown. At number 10 is a song from Naples, Florida born Dominic Fike. It is a song of a person who cannot let go of a previous love relationship perhaps because of a very difficult childhood. “I can’t move on, babydoll, waitin’ on calls, flippin’ through stations. I’m outclassed and it’s outrageous, and I’ll take it all, babydoll, whatever’s been weighin’ you down. Find me on Miami concrete, lookin’ for somebody different ‘cause my daddy was a pimp; my mama had her issues, but I miss her anyway. Oh, babydoll, please don’t call me for the wrong reasons.” The man in the relationship is looking for love, and he may not have ever learned exactly what it is. Tough song, teaching the importance of a good childhood. In terms of our theme, bad habits can easily come about if our childhoods are not what they should be, and it may take some therapy to realize that. This is 30 year old Dominic Fike, and his song “Babydoll”, number 10 on MATT.
(triple) 10 BABYDOLL / Dominic Fike
9 HATE THAT I MADE YOU LOVE ME / Ariana Grande
8 GOLDEN / Huntr/X
Part 3
Three Korean young ladies named Huntr/X there, and their number 8 song this morning, former number 1, “Golden” on MATT. It is from the soundtrack of the best animated feature of this year according to the Academy Awards, “K Pop Demon Hunters” the name of it, the theme of the Netflix film that follows them—namely Huntr/X—who lead double lives facing off against a rival boys band, the Saja boys whose members are secretly demons. The words recall that story. “We’re going up, it’s our moment. You know together we’re glowin, gonna be golden. I’m done hidin’ now, I’m shinin’ like I’m born to be, oh, our time, no fears, no lies, that’s who we’re born to be.” I interpret it as a song urging people to do what is right, and in terms of our theme today, that is a sure-fire remedy for any bad habits that we have acquired.
Before them, we heard number 9 this morning, a song of a breakup with some personal overtones about her career, from her new album “Petal,” “Hate That I Made You Love Me” from Ariana Grande. According to the critics, it addresses regret over a relationship while also reflecting her conflicted feelings about fame and public scrutiny. “Just know that I will find my way from you,” she sings, “Like flowers from a tomb while you decide who you are. And I can see right through like shadows on the moon and it’s all bad news. I hate that I made you love me, sorry if I made me your type. Yeah, I hate that I made you love me ‘cause I barely tried. What’s happening now? You studied my crown and borrowed my body, warm, kissed by the sun, then cold like the wind, a bee stuck in honey. Know that I will find my way from you. I hate that I made you love me.” So, a relatively negative song, and those negative feelings are important for us in a way, because in terms of our theme, if those feelings have caused bad habits which they often do, we have to take the time to correct them. The song also has quite a good video, I believe.
During our next segment this second last Sunday of August, we will continue our thoughts of how to break a bad habit that our songs suggest. We began with the song on my website tomorrow called “Bad Habits” from Ed Sheeran. Taking you to our break, here is a thought from the great Albert Einstein: “Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe.” We’ve got to work on our stupidity and it will help us solve some of our bad habits. “Message at the Top” will continue right after these important messages. I’m Fr. Mike inviting you to keep your radio dial set at Mix 103.3.
It is great to have you back with us. Thank you for sharing part of your Sunday morning with us, and we welcome you back to the top 10 songs of our area as of the week ending today August 23, 2026. I am Fr. Mike, your host for the only top 10 show of today’s best music Mix 103, and we call it “Message at the Top.” Our theme today involves the idea of discovering ways to break bad habits. The thought came to us from Ed Sheeran’s 2021 song of “Bad Habits.”
The song on my website this Saturday is from the band 5 Seconds of Summer who were founded in Sydney, New South Wells, Australia in 2011. They sing here: “Remember the words you told me, ‘love me till the day I die’, Surrender my everything ‘cause you made me believe you’re mine. Yeah, you used to call me baby, now you’re calling me by name. You push and I’m pulling away from you. I give and you take. Youngblood, say you want me out of your life, but you need it, all of the time. Youngblood, say you want me back in your life, so I’m just a dead man crawling tonight ‘cause I need it all of the time.” It is a song addressed to “Youngblood” which is probably a generic name for all young people saying a great message: if you say something, you had better mean it. And something to keep in mind when you say that you want to break a bad habit. This is from 5 Seconds of Summer, or 5SOS and their song “Youngblood” the title song from their album of 2018 on MATT.
(double) YOUNGBLOOD / 5SOS
7 BACK TO FRIENDS / Sombr
Part 5
Number 7 there is a good song about the scenario in which a couple have given themselves completely to each other physically, and now one of them just wants to be friends, and that, the artist concludes, is a contradiction. It is from 21 year old Sombr whose real name is Shane Michael Boose from his album “I Barely Know Her” and his song “Back to Friends” on MATT. He sings, “How can we go back to being friends when we just shared a bed? How can you look at me and pretend I’m someone you’ve never met?” It seems as though the lady in the relationship wants to have a breakup or at least a temporary time apart, but the two have already made it clear that they are committed to each other. As I have mentioned, it is unfortunately a common enough experience. I believe that one of the evils of society is giving in to too much physical involvement because the physical involvement tends to dominate rather than thinking about what love truly is. It would be in my words a bad habit, our theme today, and the way to break it is to work at truly knowing the definition of romantic love.
Our next triple play begins with a song about a relationship that came about rather suddenly, then fell apart and then finding the consequences of such a falling out. “You know my ex,” they begin the song, “and that makes it all feel complicated. I swear to God I never fall in love, then you showed up and I can’t get enough of it.” But then it fell apart, with the man in the relationship saying, “First off, I’m not sorry, I won’t apologize. You play like I’m invisible. Girl, don’t act like you ain’t saw me. Go our separate ways, but look at this damage you did to me.” He used the word “complicated,” and that’s what happens when people try to rebuild a relationship. Apparently neither person in the song is being very honest and she in his opinion is someone who changes according to the circumstances, and is into playing games. “Look at the damage you did to me.” He is blaming everything on her, and my guess is that he was as much to blame as she was. One of the bad habits that we fall into is blaming others for any problem, and the way to break that habit is to do some real soul-searching, “breaking bad habits” being our theme today. This is Colson Baker, better known as Machine Gun Kelly and Matthew Tyler Musto, better known as Blackbear from Machine Gun Kelly’s album “Tickets to My Downfall” from 2021 and their song “My Ex’s Best Friend” on MATT.
(triple) MY EX’S BEST FRIEND / Machine Gun Kelly f/ Blackbear
ALL I KNOW SO FAR/ Pink
6 I JUST MIGHT / Bruno Mars
Part 6
At number 6 from Bruno Mars’s album “The Romantic”, and the song “I Just Might” on MATT. He has number 5 also. This was a former number 1, a song of wanting another to show her love for him by good dancing. “It would break my heart” he sings, “if I find out you can’t move. You better show me now ‘cause when I take you to the floor, you gotta get down. Hey, Mr. DJ, play a song for this pretty little lady ‘cause if she dance as good as she look right now, I just might make her my baby.” It is a rather selfish song in the sense that the man is really only thinking of himself, but we have given some general thoughts on dancing over the weeks it has been in the top 10. As usual with him—Bruno Mars—the song has quite a good dance video. In terms of our theme this week, simply dancing and never communicating is a bad habit, but good dancing might be able to lead one to a good relationship.
Before him, we heard a great song of strong meaning from Alecia Beth Moore Hart better known as Pink from 2021 again, and her song “All I Know So Far”. It is a song about the makeup of who we are and therefore a 10+ category of meaning song because it has some great words to dwell on, and that can guide our lives. “I haven’t always been this way,” she begins the song, “I wasn’t born a renegade. I felt alone, still feel afraid, I stumble through it anyway. I wish someone would’ve told me that this life is ours to choose. No one’s handing you the keys or a book with all the rules. The little that I know I’ll tell to you. When they dress you up in lies and you’re left naked with the truth, you throw your head back and you spit in the wind, let the walls crack ‘cause it lets the light in. Let ‘em drag you through hell---they can’t tell you to change who you are. And when the storm’s out, you’ll run in the rain. Put your sword down, dive right into the pain. Stay unfiltered and loud, you’ll be proud of that skin full of scars. That’s all I know so far.” In terms of our theme today, one of the bad habits that we must break is to feel sorry for ourselves when we have had some things go wrong for us.
That is our theme this morning, “Breaking Bad Habits” which we took from Ed Sheeran’s 2021 song named “Bad Habits.” Still to come on MATT during the beginning of our second hour together is music from Shaboozey, the band AJR, Bruno Mars again, Sia, Daniel Powter and Olivia Rodrigo in that order. Let me take you to break with this thought from William Ellery Channing, an American Christian author who died in 1842: “Difficulties are meant to rouse, not discourage. The human spirit is to grow strong by conflict.” We may not like it, but it is true. And something to remember as we try to overcome any bad habits. It is great to have you with us on 100,000 watts of power, Mix 103, and MATT.
COMMERCIAL BREAK
This is MATT on Mix 103. Every song has a message, and that message often can be studied so that we can learn some things about life. Such is our philosophy on this show, and we are back for “Message at the Top” for this Sunday. Thank you for giving us a little of your second last Sunday of August. I’m Fr. Mike, ready to lead you through the second hour of our show as our music leads us to explore the theme of “Breaking Bad Habits”. As usual, we invite you to enjoy the music and listen to the message so that the message can help your life and mine be a little better.
Our second hour begins with yet another triple play and this triple begins with a song on my website www.frmikescully.com this Tuesday. It is a song about something that the person wishes he has, but it’s a long way from him. “Man, what a hell of a year it’s been, keep on bluffin’, but I just can’t win, drowned my sorrows, but they learned to swim. Head in a bottle for my heart in a case. Yeah, it’s getting’ harder to act my age. Play a sad song on a tiny violin for the man at the bar confessin’ his sins. I need some good news; sittin here, sippin’ on cold truth. Nobody knows what I’m going through; bet the devil wouldn’t walk in my shoes; wish someone told me. Still stuck singin’ these blues. All I really need is a little good news. Love keeps knockin’, but I just stay home.” There is nothing but bad news for him, and in terms of our theme this morning, perhaps he has set up a habit of only seeing bad news in his life, and he needs to start understanding the things that happen in a different light. This is Collins Obinna Chibueze better known as Shaboozey, on both country and pop charts, from his album “Where I’ve Been Isn’t Where I’m Going: Deluxe edition,” and his song from last year, “Good News” on MATT.
(triple) GOOD NEWS /Shaboozey
WAY LESS SAD / AJR
5 RISK IT ALL / Bruno Mars
Part 8
Number 5 in our countdown this weekend, from his album “The Romantic” again his song of complete commitment to another, “Risk It All”, the name of it from Bruno Mars or his real name Peter Gene Hernandez for the second time in our top 10 this morning on MATT. Here, he sings, “For just the chance to win your heart, you could set the bar beyond the stars. I’ll do anything, anything you ask me to. Say you want the moon—watch me learn to fly, ain’t no mountain you could point to I wouldn’t climb. It’s crazy, but it’s true. There’s nothing I won’t do. I’d risk it all for you.” In terms of our theme today, really working at a permanent commitment of love will automatically mean that we must attack any bad habits we may have.
Before him, we heard from their album “OK Orchestra” addressing the virus and our recovery from it, the band AJR, and “Way Less Sad” from 2021. AJR is Adam, Jack and Ryan Met, and they said of the song that "So much of last year felt apocalyptic and this year we can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. Things aren't back to normal yet but we should be celebrating the small wins, even if they seem trivial." “I don’t want to hurt no more,” they sing, “so I set my bar real low. I’m A-okay—you say it but you just don’t mean it. You’re so insane. Shut up and enjoy this feeling. Don’t you love it. No, I ain’t happy yet, but I’m way less sad.” Sounds a little negative, but looking at it from wha happened with the pandemic, it probably describes it pretty well. In terms of our theme, bad habits arise from bad situations and we have to continually work at them and make things as good as possible.
Yet another triple play right now beginning with the song on my website this Friday. It is a song about “hiding feelings.” “I smile,” she sings, “I know what it takes to fool this town. I’ll do it ‘til the sun goes down. And all through the night time, I’ll tell you what you want to hear, keep my sunglasses on while I shed a tear. I break down; only alone I will cry out loud. You’ll never see what’s hiding out deep down. I know I’ve heard that to let your feelings show is the only way to make friendships grow, but I’m too afraid.” And the refrain is her showing that she will not let her feelings out: “I’m unstoppable, I’m a Porsche with no brakes, I’m invincible. I win every single game, I’m so powerful I don’t need batteries to play. I’m so confident, I’m unstoppable today.” She may think that and it may indeed be a central theme when a couple in the relationship are merely having fun, but there will come a time when if they want to be serious, they must share feelings because in terms of our theme, it is bad habit that they must overcome. This is Australian singer Sia Kate Isobella Furler better known simply as Sia and a song from 2022 from her “This is Acting” album and her song “Unstoppable” on MATT.
(triple) UNSTOPPABLE / Sia
BAD DAY / Daniel Powter *
4 DROP DEAD / Olivia Rodrigo
Part 9
From Olivia Rodrigo’s album “You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love,”, and her song “Drop Dead”, number 4 this week on MATT. It is a song about being totally infatuated with someone. She begins her song: “I know that the bar closes at 11, but I hope you never finish that beer. You know all the words to ‘Just Like Heaven,’ and I know why he wrote them now that you’re standin’ right here. One night I was bored in bed and stalked you on the internet. It’s feminine intuition ‘cause I always had a vision of us standing like this. You’re lookin’ like an angel on the walls of Versailles, the most alive I’ve ever been, but kiss me and I might drop dead.” As I say, the person in the song is completely infatuated with the man, and portrays the intense feeling of an early romance, referring to a similar experience as described in the Cure’s song “Just Like Heaven.” In terms of our theme, one of the bad habits of growing in love is to be infatuated with someone without growing any deeper in love.
Before her, we heard from Daniel Powter from his album named after him, and the name of the song “Bad Day” from the year 2006. Daniel Powter is a Canadian singer who sings here about a person who has not had things go his way. “They tell me your blue skies fade to gray,” he sings, “they tell me your passion’s gone away. You stand in line just to hit a new low, you’re faking a smile with the coffee to go. You tell me your life’s been way off line; you’re falling to pieces every time. ‘Cause you had a bad day.” But there is a solution. He sings, “You sing a sad song just to turn it around, you work at a smile and you go for a ride. You need a blue sky holiday.” I love the concept of a “blue sky holiday”, and tying it into our theme, if we are working with that concept, we will have the ability to break any bad habits, I believe.
Which brings us to another momentary break in the action in the words of my friend Gerard Wellbrock here on Tiger Radio, but we are speaking of music and message and not sports. Get ready during our next segment for Ed Sheeran in triple play as well as the top 3 songs in our area right now. And here is a thought that comes from Eleanor Roosevelt, and you’ve probably heard it before, but it is worth our time remembering: “It is not fair to ask of others what you are not willing to do yourself.” That will give us personal understanding, and probably help with overcoming any bad habits in our lives. We are pursuing that theme that has been generated by the song “Bad Habits” by Ed Sheeran. Stay with us; we’ll be right back.
COMMERCIAL BREAK
Part 10
If it is in the top 10, you’ll hear it here. Welcome back to MATT on today’s best music Mix 103. I am Fr. Mike, and we are beginning the final segment of our show this morning. We take the songs of the top 10 of today and yesterday, and we speak about the messages of those songs, those messages often giving us some thoughts to live by. Our motto as always is to enjoy the music of our show and this great radio station, and at the same time, listen to the message. Our theme this morning concerns overcoming the bad habits in life which we took from Ed Sheeran’s song “Bad Habits.”
Speaking of Ed Sheeran, let’s do a triple play dedicated to him. This first one is a song extolling the fact of being ordinary and not wanting to be anything else. “Everybody’s looking for a come-up,” they sing, “and they wanna know what you’re about. Me in the middle with the one I love and we’re just tryna figure everything out. We don’t fit in well ‘cause we are just ourselves. This is my only fear—that we become beautiful people: that’s not who we are.” And much of the song is describing the thought of who the beautiful people are, that is, those who have money and everything they want. It’s a song of accepting who we are and not wanting to be fake. The couple get a taste of the fake life, but know that they do not want it. In terms of our theme, they seem to conquer the bad habit to always wanting to have more than they have. Good song and good video. From 2019, this is from Ed Sheeran and Khalid and their song “Beautiful People” from Ed Sheeran’s album “Number 6 Collaborations Project” on MATT.
(triple) BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE / Ed Sheeran & Khalid
CAMERA / Ed Sheeran
EYES CLOSED / Ed Sheeran
Part 11
The close of a triple play dedicated to him, Ed Sheeran, and the song’s album which is a dash sign was nominated for best pop album of the year at the Grammys the year of the song, 2023, his song “Eyes Closed” on MATT. It is a song which reflects, as he says, losing someone, his friend by the name of Jamal, saying music helps heal, and he’s dancing with his eyes closed to try to get through it. “I know it’s a bad idea,” he begins his song, “But how can I help myself? Been inside for most this year, dealing with the cards life dealt while my friends are somewhere else. Every song reminds me you’re gone, and I feel the lump in my throat cause I’m here alone. Just dancing with my eyes closed ‘cause everywhere I look I still see you and time is moving so slow, and I don’t know what else that I can do, so I’ll keep dancing with my eyes closed.” He’s feeling the pain of loss, and in terms of our theme, which he gave us in his song “Bad Habits,” it is a bad habit to dwell with the pain, and it is one that he had to work on.
Before that song from him, we heard a song of his concerning the feelings of love, from his album “Play,” and his song “Camera” from last year. “You should see the way the stars illuminate your silhouette,” he begins his song, “I had to count to ten and take a breath. You think that you don’t have beauty in abundance, but you do. That’s the truth. You’re frozen in moment, a perfect picture in a frame. Some visions don’t ever fade. I don’t need a camera to capture this moment. I’ll remember how you look tonight for all my life. When everything is black and white, your color’s exploding. There’s something in the way you shine. I don’t need a camera when you’re in my eyes.” So, some poetry about the way his friend looks. There is no chance of a bad habit here, our theme today, since he is totally convinced about the love of his fiancee.
Let’s see how that thought of “bad habits” comes into play in our top 3 songs of our land right now. Our number 3 song is about a person who is wanting a love connection while at the same time not wanting to come out of his chosen hidden life. Comparing the person in the song to a vampire, they sing: “The morning light is turning blue, the feeling is bizarre,” they begin their song. “The night is almost over, I still don’t know where you are. The shadows, they keep me like a movie star, daylight makes me feel like Dracula. In the end, I hope it’s you and me in the darkness, I would never leave. Run from the sunlight, Dracula.” The man in the relationship is growing up in the process of love, and he will have to break his bad habit—our theme today—of protecting his quiet life-style and open up a little more. This is Tame Impala, the musical project of Australian instrumentalist Kevin Parker and he is accompanied by South Korean singer Jennie. It is from the album “Deadbeat” and the song “Dracula”, number 3 this week on MATT.
(double) 3 DRAULA / Tame Impala
2 SO EASY / Olivia Dean
Part 12
At number 2 is London, England born 27 year old Olivia Dean, from her album “The Art of Loving,” and her song “So Easy” on MATT. It is a song of the desire for love of one particular person. “I could be the twist, the one to make you stop,” she begins the song, “The icing on the cake, the cherry on the top. It’s heaven in my heart, and we could find you some space. I could be the world to you, the missing piece, that extra kind of chemistry. Some people make it hard; with me, that isn’t the case ‘cause I make it so easy to fall in love. So, come give me a call, and we’ll fall into us. I’m the perfect mix of Saturday night and the rest of your life. Anyone with a heart would agree: it’s so easy to fall in love with me.” In a real sense, the lady in the relationship is begging the partner for romantic love, and that is a bad habit, our theme today. What she must do is work at developing the type of love that will last.
And the song at number 1 is “I Knew It, I Knew You” for two weeks in a row from Taylor Swift and the character known as Jessie in the movie “Toy Story 5”, depicting the concepts of reunion and memory, and the emotions that go with it. She wrote the song after she had watched the movie. “I knew you through the daze of the blades of the grass in summer,” she begins her song, “parachutes for the free fall of being younger. I memorized the sound of your bare footsteps running wild. It’s been a long time; life has ways of leaving those days behind. But seeing you tonight, I remembered I loved you, came back when it mattered. I saw you, standing there in the light of the window, wearing that same smile. Man, it’s been a while, but I knew it, I knew you.” Remembering a past love is its theme, and in terms of our theme this week, there are a number of bad habits that develop from past love relationships, and one of the ways to overcome them is to face them as we study those relationships.
Our thought this morning has revolved around that thought of overcoming the bad habits in our lives. My prayer for you and me is that we will understand what bad habits we may have developed and want to do something about them.
Every once in a while, I like to say a word about how important the idea of being a minister is / in today’s world. Let me say this: if you feel that you can give yourself to the complete service of God, you are making a choice that will help our world, a world that desperately needs help.
If you have any suggestions for me, or if you want to comment on anything I have said, feel free to write me here at KJLS-FM, Hays, KS 67601 or e-mail me at frmikescully@yahoo.com. My website is www.frmikescully.com where you will find meditations on the Gospels, these songs and some great movies and a transcript of the show. If you are away from your radio, you can reach us on any listening device on the web every Sunday morning at 10 am by logging on to www.hayspost.com and choosing Mix 103.3. One final thought before we leave is one that comes from Narcotics Anonymous and you’ve probably heard it before: “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over, and expecting different results.” Now, that is one great thought that will lead to a real understanding of bad habits. As Taylor Swift and her song “I Knew It, I Knew You” leads us out, may I remind you that you are listening to today’s best music, Mix 103.3. Thank you for your time this second last Sunday of August. Besides all the other words we have said to you, I urge you to remember to hold a good thought. From almost heaven West Virginia, my name is Fr. Mike Scully. Stay safe, peace to you, and be good!
1 I KNEW IT, I KNEW YOU / Taylor Swift
August 16, 2026
What Should We Pray For?
Part 1
Hello, Central Kansas and around the world; thank you for joining us this middle Sunday of August 2026 as you no doubt are as ready for Fall-type weather as I am. And Happy “Back to School” days for those who qualify for that greeting. Welcome to “Message at the Top.” Get set for the top 10 songs of our area right now as determined by the research from your requests, as well as the research of Mediabase 24-7 for the reporting date of today and get ready for some top 10 songs of the past as well. We will listen to some songs from Bruno Mara, Gnarls Barkley, Olivia Rodrigo and Demi Lovato among many others. My name is Fr. Mike, and you have your dial set to today’s best music, Mix 103, the number one popular music station of Central Kansas. Our topic today will center around the thought of living a little better.
Speaking of that—living better—I read a statement during some spiritual reading last week that gave me cause to think. The statement was a resolution which was given to some graduating students from nursing school and said simply, “Whatever you do, let it be a means of bringing about something good.” As I thought about it, I think of some music that has been produced that seems not to have such a high ideal. But quite often, as I work with popular music, some songs stand out that does express high ideals that every church-goer would agree with, and in particular, prayer.
This song is a statement of what happens with prayer. It is the meditation on my website www.frmikescully.com this Thursday. Speaking the truth of so many people, it says: “I only talk to God when I need a favor, and I only pray when I ain’t got a prayer. So, who the heck am I to expect a Savior if I only talk to God when I need a favor. But God I need a favor! I know Amazing Grace, but I ain’t been livin’ them words. Swear I spend most Sundays drunk than I have in church. Hard cover King James only been savin’ dust on the nightstand, and I don’t know what to say the time I fold my hands. I only talk to God when I need a favor.” I changed some of the words there.
It is an honest song. This is my line of work, and the thing to learn from it is exactly what his words say, and then do something about it. As I have done with this song, I can’t resist the chance to say something theological here—God or our Higher Power always listens to our prayer, and will answer them with what is best for the situation.
The fact is, I think, that we don’t often pray with the desire of doing something ourselves to help our prayer. So, let’s choose as a theme today the question of “What Should We Pray For?” And remembering that we must do our part as we pray.
Incidentally, the video to the song is very good. This is a 10+ category song from Jason Bradley DeFord better known in the country and pop world as Jelly Roll, and his excellent song from his album “Whitsitt Chapel,” the song “Need a Favor” from 2023 on MATT.
(double) NEED A FAVOR / Jelly Roll
PRAYING / Ke$ha
Part 2
A song about something that I should know about, from Ke$ha and her album “Rainbow” and a great song in my opinion, from 2017, “Praying” on MATT. Incredibly it is a song of the love of someone, presumably a boyfriend, who has hurt her, and she is wishing him well. “Well, you almost had me fooled, told me that I was nothing without you. I can thank you for how strong I have become ‘cause you brought the flames and you put me through hell. I hope you’re somewhere praying, I hope your soul is changing. I hope you find your peace falling on your knees, praying. Sometimes, I pray for you at night, but some things, only God can forgive.” She is praying that her ex-boyfriend will find peace on his knees, praying, although she is still hurting terribly. In terms of our theme, we should pray for God’s help for other people, and then help them if we can.
My website on Saturday has a very interesting song to study. It is a song of as they sing, getting the light from the source, meaning they are only interested in the very best, that is peaches from Georgia, and in the man in the relationship’s mind, that is his girlfriend. “I get my light from the source,” they sing, “I want to wrap my arms around you and never let you go. There’s nothing like your touch and I’ll be right here with you until the end.” But the man in the relationship doesn’t know how she feels. They sing “You ain’t sure yet, but I’m for you.” One of the complications of young love is one being absolutely sure and the other not being that way. Perhaps one of the things to pray for, our theme today, is to truly determine how other people feel, especially in love situations. This is Justin Bieber and here singing with him is Ashton Dumar Norwill Simmons better know as Daniel Ceasar and Giveon Dezmann Evans better known as Giveon, and their song from 2021 from Justin Bieber’s album “Justice,” the song “Peaches” on MATT.
(triple) PEACHES / Justin Bieber f/ Daniel Ceasar & Giveon
MATERIAL GIRL / Madonna
DANCING WITH YOUR SHADOWS / Phillip Phillps
Part 3
American Idol number 11 Phillip Phillips from his album “Drift Back,” and his song from 2023, “Dancing With Your Shadows” on MATT. It is a thought obviously about dancing and using dancing to hide problems. “It’s hard to hear your words,” he sings, “When you’re so afraid to speak them. Something’s on your mind, but you’re hiding it away. You say that we’re going under, I say we still got each other. It breaks my heart that you can’t let go. You say you’re fine, but girl I know, you’ve been dancing with your shadows. When the days get hard and your lights burn low, don’t go far, just hold me close—we’ll go dancing with your shadows.” She has the problems, but he says that he will help, even if dancing is trying to cover them up. In terms of our theme, he can pray that she stays with him, and he is working at bringing it about at the same time.
Before him, we celebrated our first birthday of this week. We will have three more a little later in our show today. This one is from a person that everyone interested in rock music knows and the song just about everyone in that genre of music recognizes. Going back to the 80’s, 1985 to be exact, Madonna, and a song that has been argued to be nothing but a biography of her earlier life, “Material Girl”. Madonna is 67 years old today. It is one of her controversial songs. Boys, she sings, can beg and they can plead, but they can’t see the light, “‘cause the boy with the cold hard cash is always Mister Right, ‘cause we’re living in a material world, and I am a material girl. You know that we are living in a material world. Boys may come and boys may go, and that’s all right, you see; experience has made me rich and now, they’re after me.” In 1985 when she released the song and video, she was close to the epitome of a material girl; she may be somewhat tamer now. This thought is interesting to put into our theme today—one of the things to pray for in life is that we learn to put material things in their proper place.
We have taken that theme of what to pray for from the song “Need a Favor” by Jelly Roll which is on my website this Thursday, and we will pursue that theme further in just a couple of minutes with music from numbers 10 through 6 on our countdown today. Before a break, let me quote from my anonymous quote book—that is, someone said this, but we don’t remember who: “Always keep your words soft and sweet, just in case you have to eat them.” Now, that is great advice, and certainly something to pray for. Your dial is set for today’s best music, Mix 103.3 and you are listening to “Message at the Top”. We’ll be right back.
COMMERCIAL BREAK
Part 4
We are back for “Message at the Top” and we welcome you back to the top 10 songs of today and yesterday as determined by our research and your requests. We call our show MATT because we take those top 10 songs and analyze their meanings in the light of how we can live better in this complicated world. I am Fr. Mike, your host for the top 10 show of today’s best music, Mix 103, and we are calling our show this week “What Should We Pray For?”
We will give us the top 10 in two chunks of music today, so to speak. We have numbers 10 through 6 during this half-hour. At number 10 is a song new to our top 10 from Naples, Florida born Dominic Fike. It is a song of a person who cannot let go of a previous love relationship perhaps because of a very difficult childhood. “I can’t move on, babydoll, waitin’ on calls, flippin’ through stations. I’m outclassed and it’s outrageous, and I’ll take it all, babydoll, whatever’s been weighin’ you down. Find me on Miami concrete, lookin’ for somebody different ‘cause my daddy was a pimp; my mama had her issues, but I miss her anyway. Oh, babydoll, please don’t call me for the wrong reasons.” The man in the relationship is looking for love, and he may not have ever learned exactly what it is. Tough song, teaching the importance of a good childhood. In terms of our theme, praying for young people in difficult situations is a very important prayer. This is Dominic Fike, and his song “Babydoll”, number 10 on MATT.
(double) 10 BABYDOLL / Dominic Fike
9 HATE THAT I MADE YOU LOVE ME / Ariana Grande
Part 5
Number 9 this morning, a song of a breakup with some personal overtones about her career, from her new album “Petal,” “Hate That I Made You Love Me” from Ariana Grande on MATT. According to the critics, it addresses regret over a relationship while also reflecting her conflicted feelings about fame and public scrutiny. “Just know that I will find my way from you,” she sings, “Like flowers from a tomb while you decide who you are. And I can see right through like shadows on the moon and it’s all bad news. I hate that I made you love me, sorry if I made me your type. Yeah, I hate that I made you love me ‘cause I barely tried. What’s happening now? You studied my crown and borrowed my body, warm, kissed by the sun, then cold like the wind, a bee stuck in honey. Know that I will find my way from you. I hate that I made you love me.” So, a relatively negative song, and those negative feelings are important for us in a way, and in terms of our theme, we can pray about them in the hopes that things will finally work out. The song has quite a good video, I believe.
Number 8 begins a triple play of top 10 songs, and number 8 is a good song about the scenario in which a couple have given themselves completely to each other physically, and now one of them just wants to be friends, and that, the artist concludes, is a contradiction. He sings, “How can we go back to being friends when we just shared a bed? How can you look at me and pretend I’m someone you’ve never met?” It seems as though the lady in the relationship wants to have a breakup or at least a temporary time apart, but the two have already made it clear that they are committed to each other. As I have mentioned, it is unfortunately a common enough experience. I believe that one of the evils of society is giving in to too much physical involvement because the physical involvement tends to dominate rather than thinking about what love truly is. Maybe one of the things to pray about, our theme today, is that our permanent commitments will really be permanent when we make them. This is 21 year old Sombr whose real name is Shane Michael Boose from his album “I Barely Know Her” and his song “Back to Friends” at number 8 this week on MATT.
(triple) 8 BACK TO FRIENDS / Sombr
7 GOLDEN / Huntr/X
6 DRACULA / Tame Impala
Part 6
That was Tame Impala, the musical project of Australian instrumentalist Kevin Parker and he is accompanied by South Korean singer Jennie. It is from the album “Deadbeat” and the song “Dracula”, number 6 on MATT. The song is about a person who is wanting a love connection while at the same time not wanting to come out of the shadows. Comparing the person in the song to a vampire, they sing: “The morning light is turning blue, the feeling is bizarre,” they begin their song. “The night is almost over, I still don’t know where you are. The shadows, they keep me like a movie star, daylight makes me feel like Dracula. In the end, I hope it’s you and me in the darkness, I would never leave. Run from the sunlight, Dracula.” The man in the relationship is growing up in the process of love, and perhaps it is something that he should pray for as he grows.
Before them, we heard from three Korean young ladies named Huntr/X, and their number 7 song this morning, former number 1, “Golden”. It is from the soundtrack of the best animated feature of this year according to the Academy Awards, “K Pop Demon Hunters” the name of it, the theme of the Netflix film that follows them—namely Huntr/X—who lead double lives facing off against a rival boys band, the Saja boys whose members are secretly demons. The words recall that story. “We’re going up, it’s our moment. You know together we’re glowin, gonna be golden. I’m done hidin’ now, I’m shinin’ like I’m born to be, oh, our time, no fears, no lies, that’s who we’re born to be.” I interpret it as a song urging people to do what is right, and in terms of our theme today, that is certainly something to pray for.
It is really interesting what these songs of popular music lead us to and the different good thoughts we can learn from them even from so called negative songs. Our theme today is the spiritual thought of what should we pray for. It came from a song by Jelly Roll called “Need a Favor.” Our next set of music and message will explore that theme with music from in order of appearance the band Fall Out Boy, Gnarls Barkley, Icona Pop, and three birthday people, The Kid Laroi, Dua Lipa and Demi Lovato. Let me take you to break with this quote from economist David Friedman: “The direct use of force is such a poor solution to any problem; it is generally employed only by small children and large nations." Force is not a way to control, and perhaps force is a “must not” as we pray for our world. I’m Fr. Mike, listen to these words of wisdom, and then I hope you come back for more…wisdom.
COMMERCIAL BREAK
Part 7
This is “Message at the Top”, on Mix 103. Thank you for joining us today, August 16, 2026; welcome to our second hour of music and message. I am Fr. Mike, and our show gives you the top 10 songs of our area, as well as some great top 10 songs of the past. What is amazing about all of our songs is that with a little bit of help, they can actually teach us something about ourselves and about our behavior. The topic of our show today concerns the thought of what we should pray for.
Let’s begin our second hour together right now with a song that is on my website www.frmikescully.com this Wednesday. It is a song about an actress who does sing in some of her movies, but the song is more about her acting. I believe it is a song about power, the power of a young lady in a relationship. In the band’s description, they say that she can "move mountains" and "work a miracle." The young lady is in charge of her life, and she understands that she can become whatever she wants as she sets up her relationship with the man. “I can move mountains,” the group sings the thoughts of the lady, “I can work a miracle. I'll keep you like an oath: ‘May nothing but death do us part.’” And their refrain referring to the actress in Pulp Fiction and Kill Bill: “She wants to dance like Uma Thurman. Bury me 'til I confess. She wants to dance like Uma Thurman, and I can’t get you out of my head.” The lady has power in the relationship, it seems, and it is exactly what he wants. In terms of our theme, his prayer is probably centered around her, and that is not a bad thing. The band Fall Out Boy and their song simply called “Uma Thurman” from 2015 from their album “American Beauty/American Psycho” on MATT.
(triple) UMA THURMAN / Fall Out Boy
CRAZY / Gnarls Barkley
I LOVE IT / Icona Pop
Part 8
Icona Pop along with Charli XCX from Icona Pop’s album named after them, and their song “I Love It” from 2012. It is an interesting sound from what is called the electro house genre of music. Icona Pop is a Swedish duo from Stockholm, and their song is an irreverent way of saying “I want to enjoy myself”. “I got this feeling on the summer day when you were gone,” they sing, “You’re on a different road, I’m in the milky way, you want me down on earth, but I am up in space. You’re hard to please, we gotta kill this switch, you’re from the 70’s, but I’m from the 90’s. I don’t care. I love it.” I cleaned up some of the words. It is a happy dance song without a whole lot of real meaning saying basically to enjoy life—“I love it,” they sing, and really that in itself is enough to make it a song of meaning. In terms of our theme today, however, one of the things to pray for is to enjoy ourselves, but to always respect others.
Before them, we heard from CeeLo Green with producer Danger Mouse, and the two of them are called Gnarls Barkley, and their song “Crazy” from 2006 and the album “St. Elsewhere”. It is a statement about accomplishing something in life, and then looking back and seriously thinking about what was accomplished. At least, that’s what it seems to me. “And when you’re out there,” the person in the song sings, “without care, I was out of touch. But it wasn’t because I didn’t know enough. I just knew too much. Does that make me crazy? Possibly. Come on now, who do you think you are. You really think you’re in control? Well, I think you’re crazy just like me. My heroes had the heart to build the life I want to live and all I remember is thinking I wanna be like them. But maybe I’m crazy. Maybe we’re crazy. Probably.” Interesting song, and I interpret it to be something quite positive because the person is thinking seriously about trying to accomplish something good, and our theme would add that she/he should be praying to a Higher Power to help accomplish it.
As promised, let’s go to three birthday people. First, The Kid Laroi or Charlton Kenneth Jeffrey Howard will be 23 tomorrow, and in his honor let’s listen to his song which he sings with Justin Bieber about the man in a relationship who no longer has the lady in the relationship around, it seems, and it is probably his fault, and therefore he will have to face the truth sometime. “I do the same thing that I told you that I never would,” they sing, “I told you I’d change, even when I knew I never could. I know that I can’t find nobody else as good as you; I need you to stay. I get drunk, wake up, I’m wasted still. I realize the time that I wasted here. I feel like you can’t feel the way I feel. I’ll be messed up if you can’t be right here.” I cleaned up the language a bit. In terms of our theme, the man in the relationship should pray for the strengh to get his life back in order. The song we ranked at number 1 in 2022—”Stay”, happy birthday, The Kid Laroi, on MATT.
(triple) STAY / The Kid Laroi f/ Justin Bieber
NEW RULES / Dua Lipa
SORRY NOT SORRY / Demi Lovato
Part 9
Happy birthday to her, Demi Lovato who is 34 years old this Thursday. The song we played in her honor is from her album “Tell Me You Love Me,” and the song “Sorry Not Sorry” from Demi Lovato from 2017. It is a song of revenge against a boyfriend who didn’t treat the lady in the relationship so well. “Now, I’m out here looking like revenge,” she sings, “I know how bad it must hurt to see me like this. Now you’re out here looking like regret, second chance you’ll never get. You’re messing with a savage, and it’d be nice of me to take it easy on you, but nah—Baby, I’m sorry (I’m not sorry). Talk that talk, better walk that walk.” So apparently he had said some things that he did not follow through on. In terms of our theme today, she spoke to him directly, and that direct communication is something that we should pray for, but we have to learn not to be so vindictive at the same time.
Before her we wished happy birthday to Ms Dua Lipa, an English singer, songwriter and model from her album named after her, and “New Rules”. She will be 31 years old this Saturday. The song is a set of personal rules for a lady in a relationship as she is thinking about someone she likes, but should not like. The lady in the relationship is talking to herself, trying to convince herself to stay away from her boyfriend, because he really doesn’t love her, but she is having a rough time doing it. “My love,” she sings, “he makes me feel like nobody else, but my love, he doesn’t love me, so I tell myself” … and she goes on to tell herself the new rules of her life: “One, don’t pick up the phone—you know he’s only calling ‘cause he’s drunk and alone; two, don’t let him in—you’ll have to kick him out again; three—you know you’re gonna wake up, and you ain’t getting over him.” So, she says, “I got new rules, I count them.” Part of the things we should pray for, our theme today, is for the grace to discover new rules of living as we get older and hopefully, wiser.
We are studying the top songs of this week ending today and we are also studying some songs of the past as is our wont. Our theme is the thought of what we should pray for. And we have our last segment to go yet, when we’ll hear our top 5 right now. First, a thought from Ralph Waldo Emerson: “What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.” Important lesson and something to pray for. I’m Fr. Mike, and you’re listening to “Message at the Top” on Mix 103.3. I hope you stay right there.
Welcome back for our final segment of the top 10 popular songs of our area this week according to Mediabase 24-7 and your requests. I’m your host, Fr. Mike on “Message at the Top” on Mix 103. Thank you for joining us again this middle Sunday of August. I hope your morning has gone well for you, and I hope we have added to it just a little bit. Our theme today has come from Jelly Roll and his song “Need a Favor.” We will get to our top 5 in just a couple of minutes, but let’s play another song of prayer, first of all, as we work with that theme today.
It is a familiar one that comes from Bon Jovi from 1986, the story of two people who are struggling to make it in this world, in fact, they are literally just living on a prayer. Tommy and Gina encourage one another with a refrain that speaks of love in the midst of poverty: “We’ve got to hold on to what we’ve got. It doesn’t make a difference if we make it or not. We’ve got each other and that’s a lot for love. We’ll give it a shot. Take my hand, we’ll make it, I swear.” They are absolutely correct, of course. They will make it, and love will bring them through it all. The problem comes in perseverance. It is not easy to continue to “hold on” in the face of a tough life. But if they do, life can happen, and most probably, it can be happy forever. So the prayer as they live on the prayer is to pray for a happy life. From their album “Slippery When Wet”, and their song “Livin’ On A Prayer”, Bon Jovi on MATT.
(triple) LIVIN’ ON A PRAYER / Bon Jovi
5 DROP DEAD / Olivia Rodrigo
4 RISK IT ALL / Bruno Mars
Part 11
Number 4 in our countdown this weekend, from his album “The Romantic,” his song of complete commitment to another, “Risk It All”, the name of it from Bruno Mars or his real name Peter Gene Hernandez for the first time in our top 10 this morning on MATT. He has number 3 as well. Here, he sings, “For just the chance to win your heart, you could set the bar beyond the stars. I’ll do anything, anything you ask me to. Say you want the moon—watch me learn to fly, ain’t no mountain you could point to I wouldn’t climb. It’s crazy, but it’s true. There’s nothing I won’t do. I’d risk it all for you.” In terms of our theme today, as we said before, keeping a permanent commitment in a love situation is something to pray for.
Before him, we heard from Olivia Rodrigo’s album “You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love,”, and her song “Drop Dead”, number 5 this week. It is a song about being totally infatuated with someone. She begins her song: “I know that the bar closes at 11, but I hope you never finish that beer. You know all the words to ‘Just Like Heaven,’ and I know why he wrote them now that you’re standin’ right here. One night I was bored in bed and stalked you on the internet. It’s feminine intuition ‘cause I always had a vision of us standing like this. You’re lookin’ like an angel on the walls of Versailles, the most alive I’ve ever been, but kiss me and I might drop dead.” As I say, the person in the song is completely infatuated with the man, and portrays the intense feeling of an early romance, referring to a similar experience as described in the Cure’s song “Just Like Heaven.” In terms of our theme, one of the things to pray for as we grow and desire a partner for life is that we will indeed find one.
The top 3 are up for us next, and at number 3 as we said is Bruno Mars again, this time with a former number 1, a song of wanting another to show her love for him by good dancing. “It would break my heart” he sings, “if I find out you can’t move. You better show me now ‘cause when I take you to the floor, you gotta get down. Hey, Mr. DJ, play a song for this pretty little lady ‘cause if she dance as good as she look right now, I just might make her my baby.” It is a rather selfish song in the sense that the man is really only thinking of himself, but we have given some general thoughts on dancing over the weeks it has been in the top 10. As usual with him—Bruno Mars—the song has quite a good dance video. In terms of our theme this week, I don’t know whether praying to be a good dancer is something that we should do, but we might pray that our dancing could lead to understand love of another a little better, and dancing might help. This is also from Bruno Mars’s album “The Romantic”, and the song “I Just Might”, number 3 on MATT.
(double) 3 I JUST MIGHT / Bruno Mars
2 SO EASY / Olivia Dean
Part 12
Falling from the number 1 position which she held for 7 weeks, now st number 2 is London, England born Olivia Dean, from her album “The Art of Loving,” and her song “So Easy”. It is a song of the desire for love of one particular person. “I could be the twist, the one to make you stop,” she begins the song, “The icing on the cake, the cherry on the top. It’s heaven in my heart, and we could find you some space. I could be the world to you, the missing piece, that extra kind of chemistry. Some people make it hard; with me, that isn’t the case ‘cause I make it so easy to fall in love. So, come give me a call, and we’ll fall into us. I’m the perfect mix of Saturday night and the rest of your life. Anyone with a heart would agree: it’s so easy to fall in love with me.” So, a rather straightforward statement to someone and something to pray for as we strive to be good romantic partners.
And the new number 1 song is from a person who knows about being at number 1. The song is “I Knew It, I Knew You” and it is the story line of the movie “Toy Story 5”, and in particular the journey of the character Jessie, depicting the concepts of reunion and memory, and the emotions that go with it. Taylor Swift is the artist and wrote the song after she had watched the movie. “I knew you through the daze of the blades of the grass in summer,” she begins her song, “parachutes for the free fall of being younger. I memorized the sound of your bare footsteps running wild. It’s been a long time; life has ways of leaving those days behind. But seeing you tonight, I remembered I loved you, came back when it mattered. I saw you, standing there in the light of the window, wearing that same smile. Man, it’s been a while, but I knew it, I knew you.” Remembering a past love is its theme, and in terms of our theme this week, one of the things that we should pray for is the people that we remember in the past.
And there you have it—the top 10 songs of this area as of today along with a couple more from the past. Our theme today has been the unbelievable topic for popular music, the thought of prayer, and what should we pray for. It came from a lead song from Jelly Roll and his song “Need A Favor”. My prayer—pun intended—for you and me is that we will always be people who pray for the good of our world, and then try to live that prayer. My thanks to our producers and our sponsors, especially our sponsors at Hays Car and Truck Alignment, Auto World in Hays, Holy Family Elementary School in Hays, and Thomas More Prep-Marian Junior and Senior High School in Hays. If you want to contact me by mail, I hope you do so at KJLS radio, Hays, KS, 67601 or my e-mail address is frmikescully@yahoo.com. My website is www.frmikescully.com where you can find some meditations on some Gospels, our music and some movies along with a transcript of the show. You can join us on the web every Sunday morning by clicking on www.hayspost.com and then choosing Mix 103 at 10 am. A final thought as we lead into the number 1 song, this thought from retired American cartoonist Bill Watterson, the creator of Calvin and Hobbes: “The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us.” Now, you have to think about that, and not complimentary to us at all. We must remember that we can be a bit more intelligent and it is something to pray for. As we close with the number 1 song from Taylor Swift, “ I Knew It, I Knew You”, may I remind you that right now you are listening to today’s best music, Mix 103, and part of our advice to you is to hold a good thought. From beautiful West Virginia through beautiful downtown Lawrence, KS and beautiful Hays,KS into our world, as we get ready to close out the summer, my name is Fr. Mike Scully. Be safe, peace to you, and be good.
1 I KNEW IT, I KNEW YOU / Taylor Swift