Moments can sometimes heavily rely on good music in the background. A song can make or break an experience, and I think I have mostly mastered the craft of playlist-making. I have over 60 playlists on Spotify alone, plus more that are private on old accounts and were created on YouTube before I discovered the magic of streaming. My love for music and playlists probably began in elementary school when I had my best friend’s mom burn different songs on CDs for me.
We will be ignoring that there are a few songs that reappear throughout most of my playlists. I can’t help it, though. Faye Webster, Pixies, Beabadoobee, Leith Ross and many other artists are just so incredible that I cannot help but repeatedly add their songs.
1) “ride with rocktopus“
The origin of this one was when we needed sonic fuel for a trip to the Columbus Zoo. A little over four hours in total of driving, and we wanted to be prepared to stay awake and have fun. So, I took it into my hands to create a collaborative playlist of various favorites from many genres.
There are eight hours of pure random vibes (although some are skips, no one has to mention that). It is not the best playlist, but it is a go-to for all kinds of hangouts now.
2) “a vicious cycle“
Everyone has a depression playlist, and this just so happens to be my most recent one. Sometimes you need to temporarily give in and feel your emotions.
Playlists are deeply personal, and I fear making some of them public. However, I doubt anyone will actually seek out my playlists or hate my song choices. Plus, music is a way I cope, and I love connecting various songs to my feelings.
3) “let me drown in your love“
After a little while of being with my boyfriend, I wanted to just have all the songs that reminded me of him in one place. I made it after hanging out with him one weekend, and thinking about it put butterflies in my stomach.
I have a lot of love playlists, or at least ones that center around that idea, but this is a big collective one that I really like.
4) “what my stuffed animals party to while im gone“
I do not really listen to this one as much anymore. This playlist is very much a time capsule playlist for me. Songs like “Cherry Jerry Citrus” by Hey Cowboy! and “Shut up My Moms Calling” by Hotel Ugly are entirely reminiscent of March 2021.
I was also extremely proud of the title. I think the weirder and more niche of a title, the better. It is a little embarrassing to think that I sat for a while trying to come up with something like this, but I am happy with the results. I get quite a few weird looks when I tell people about it, though.
5) “the weather is good for now, and so am i“
This playlist is my most recent one, and I created it instead of doing my homework on one of the days when it was nearing 60 degrees. I was under the weather, so I did not want to go out for a walk, but I opened my window, made this playlist and cleaned. Music is incredibly healing to me, and I felt refreshed and overall a lot better afterward.
Music can be extremely therapeutic, no matter what tunes you choose to listen to. Happy listening!