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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at CU Boulder chapter.

I don’t know what I would do without seasons. When considering a college—and now beginning to think about life postgrad—I couldn’t imagine living somewhere that doesn’t change throughout the year, it brings structure to my life. If every season was just a minimally changed version of the same climate, I don’t think I could be productive. That being said, one of my favorite seasons is fall. As transitional seasons, fall and spring are special to me because they remind me of the temporal aspects of life. 

Something that has always stuck with me, regardless of the changing seasons, is my love for music. I believe that regardless of the genre or musician, good music can be found almost anywhere. One of my favorite pastimes is creating playlists and including a variety of genres that almost clash. Despite including a wide variety of songs on any given playlist, one thing that occurs—at least for me—is once a song is on a playlist, it remains there in my mind forever. With fall being one of my favorite seasons, every year since 2018 I’ve been working to cultivate the best fall playlist I can. I always try to include new songs, but there are some songs that act as pillars and reminders of the feeling of fall, making them permanent additions. Although I’m most proud of my Fall ‘19 playlist, I think I’ve created a very diverse and reminiscent playlist this year. Here are ten songs on my Fall ‘24 playlist that I feel embody the season this year. 

“What You Won’t Do for Love” by Gus Dapperton

Originally written and performed by Bobby Caldwell, “What You Won’t Do for Love” is a Blue-eyed soul song that has been sampled and covered multiple times. Most notably, it was sampled in Tupac’s “Do for Love”, which was released posthumously in 1997. Although it has been a part of many different songs, Gus Dapperton’s version is infused with his own style over the original lyrics. Many of Dapperton’s songs have been on some of my previous playlists, but this year his rendition has been on repeat. Something about it inches a part of my brain that the original doesn’t. I feel like it also works on this playlist because there’s something timeless about seeking a change, but going back to the same thing, over and over again. While fall is a time of change, every year I see and feel myself falling back into similar patterns. 

“Lights” by Journey

In addition to having a variety of genres and artists on any given playlist, I enjoy having music from different time periods. It’s hard to go to any karaoke event and not hear “Don’t Stop Believin’” blasting at least once, but I would like to go on record to say that “Lights” is an equally good song. A song filled with the pride of discovering home and belonging in a city, this song is uplifting in an unexplainable way. He sings about night becoming day, the lingering period where the night stretches for a while before the sun rises. Some singers just have an incredible talent when it comes to storytelling and constructing a mental image for a listener to exist in. The layered voices throughout the chorus are just so beautiful and almost mirror the uncountable lights; embodying the feeling of staying up all night and getting to see the sun rise.

“Back to the Old House” by The Smiths 

I don’t think I could have a fall playlist without The Smiths. The British indie rock band has many songs that fit perfectly with the cool weather. Exploring politics and other complex issues, the band created thought-provoking music set to upbeat instrumentals. “Back to the Old House” to me lies between fall and winter. It hurts so bad, especially as a 20-year-old out-of-state college student, to hear this song and think about despite how far I have come and how many opportunities are in front of me, there are some people and places I can’t ever go back to. They sing, “There’s too many bad memories,” but later in the song change the words to, “Too many memories,” which in my heart hurts so much more. Regardless of the memories, there is no going back because you can’t perfectly repeat a season, experience, or time. 

“Different State of Mind” by Kid Bloom

This is another song that has appeared multiple times throughout my playlists. I use it almost every year because it reminds me of when I first started trying to capture how autumn felt to me. In order to try and handle all of the work I have to get done, there’s something about this song where I find consistency and familiarity, despite the singer acknowledging that in an instance, they were in a different state of mind

“Love Somebody” by Morgan Wallen 

Although country songs are usually included in my summer music rotation, I’ve sparingly included them in my previous fall playlists. I really enjoy country music in general and over the summer I found a love for Wallen’s music. His latest song, “Love Somebody” was released in October, and I immediately felt the need to add it to my library, and it ultimately landed a spot in my fall song rotation. There’s nothing that really ties it to this season for me besides its release date, but being around other songs that remind me of fall, it doesn’t feel like an outlier. 

“Her Diamonds” by Rob Thomas 

I love Rob Thomas because his songs remind me of being younger. I grew up listening to “Mockingbird” and “Someday,” in addition to numerous Matchbox Twenty songs. Pursuing his own career after belonging to a band,Thomas has created so much music that is nice to listen to. It feels like the early 2000s and like many songs from that period, it’s a great nostalgic addition to my playlists.

“She’s a Rainbow” by The Rolling Stones

This song from the 1960s adds another genre to my playlists. Honestly, the first time I heard this song it was playing in a car commercial, and I remembered thinking that it was different from other music I heard used for similar ads. I really like this song because similarly to all the colors leaves take in the fall, the way they describe a woman in the song is really fun and upbeat. The instruments broken down towards the end of the song are also really beautiful.

“The Kids Don’t Wanna Come Home” by Declan McKenna

Numerous Declan McKenna songs have made an appearance on my playlists. His songs are layered and his vocals are enjoyable to listen to. Additionally in his album, What Do You Think About the Car?, he threads through a child’s voice asking questions and talking in the opening song, “Humongous.” It creates this really interesting contrast between the struggles McKenna is expressing and the innocence of childhood. So many songs on the album are perfect for fall because it mirrors my own experience feeling lingering self-doubt amidst my achievements. 

“Something” (Remastered 2009) by The Beatles 

Personally, songs by The Beatles are hit or miss for me. However, it’s indisputable that “Something” is so perfect for fall. If I were to be asked what song best encapsulates the talents of The Beatles, I would bring up this song. The instrumental break within the song is amazing and while it gives just enough space to begin thinking about something else, the lyrics come back in an instant, pausing whatever thought was developing. It paints a picture of a relationship being shaped by change, in the same way I believe seasons shape me.

“Die With A Smile” by Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars

Another new addition is arguably one of the best songs of the year.  If you told 10-year-old me that Bruno Mars and Lady Gaga were collaborating on a song, I probably would’ve freaked out. Growing up listening to both of their music, it’s hard to ignore the talent that they both possess. While I felt like separately they created their own unique voices, no one can convince me that they don’t work together, bringing so much to the record. This song has been on repeat all fall, soundtracking so many of my memories. Screaming the lyrics out the car windows or in the kitchen with my roommates will live forever when I listen to this song. 

Despite continuously adding songs until the season is over, I feel like these songs are a really good representation of this year’s playlist. From 1960s psychedelic rock to Grammy-nominated Song of the Year and Best Pop Duo, I feel like the various genres encapsulate the changing seasons. 

Alexandra Phelps

CU Boulder '27

Alexandra Phelps is a contributing writer in the Her Campus Chapter at the University of Colorado Boulder. She joined in August 2024. She is a sophomore at the University of Colorado Boulder and is majoring in English Literature and double minoring in Economics and Business. She is pursuing English as a major after she rediscovered her love of reading and writing. She wants to learn more about Economics and Business because she is interested in the ways businesses and governments change, track and develop their products and strategies depending on people’s interests. She is from Rhode Island, and while she loves exploring the beautiful mountains of Colorado, she aspires to return to New England. She hopes one day to become a writer or work in law. In her time outside of classes and Her Campus, Alexandra is interested in reading, painting, and photography. She loves music and creating detailed and complex playlists with many different genres. Her favorite musicians currently are Still Woozy, Lana del Rey, and Matchbox Twenty. She is an animal lover, and enjoys photographing nature. She enjoys painting landscapes and has been experimenting in printmaking. Additionally in her free time she loves to read. She loves fiction and her two favorite books recently have been "The Magician’s Assistant" by Ann Patchett and "Unsheltered" by Barbara Kingsolver.