Although music was already a major part of my everyday life, being in self-isolation has increased its role in my life by at least 100%. I fall asleep to music, I sleep to music, I wake up to music, and I spend all day listening to music.
I think it’s safe to say that quarantine has put normal life somewhat on hold, for better or worse, and so I started listening to music that reflects my different moods (and I´ve been getting into lots of them) almost exactly.
I’m sure a lot of people find themselves in their feelings more frequently, and while this playlist isn’t meant to be sad or melancholic, I think it encompasses many different vibes: late-night drives, melancholia, romance, regret, truth. In other words: whatever you feel under purple neon lights, you´ll feel it to this.
As always, here is a short breakdown of my favorite songs and why I feel they belong to this particular playlist. If you want to make up your own mind and just listen to the playlist, click this link to be brought to my Spotify playlist and this link to be brought to the Apple Music version.
Obviously no rap playlist would be a true rap playlist without at least one Drake song, and so mine has four. Passionfruit and Take Care both contain tropical beats that make listening to them a lot easier than either song’s lyrics would suggest. Both, as most of Drake’s songs do, handle the topic of love, and while they were released at different times (Passionfruit in 2017 and Take Care in 2011) I like to believe that they are part of the same storyline.
While Passionfruit is about a dwindling relationship influenced by distance, both physical and emotional, Take Care is direct contrast. It seems as though Take Care‘s story could come right after that of Passionfruit, and that as a response to the prior song’s message of wanting to end the relationship due to said distance.
I also think these songs are especially relevant in the context of the collective period of distance the world is currently going through. Many relationships are being thoroughly thought through and tested by this lack of contact/communication. Again, I want to believe that Take Care is a response to the worries of Passionfruit.
The next Drake song in this playlist is Fire & Desire, and here’s a shoutout to all the real ass women out there, may we know them, may we celebrate them, may we be them. (Am I coming out of this quarantine a couples therapist? Maybe. Hmu if you’re in need of counseling in the form of Drake lyrics that relate to your situation lmao)
Another artist who shouldn’t be missing from a playlist like this one (refer to the playlist’s title is all I´m going to say to that haha) is The Weeknd, who is represented four times as well. The Party & The After Party and Acquainted are two of my favorite The Weeknd songs because their vibes are impeccable. The part in The Party & The After Party where they´re like “you always come to the parties to pluck off all the birds/ you always come to the parties on your knees” sounds so cool I can´t even describe it. Acquainted is probably my favorite The Weeknd song now that I think about it (but so is High For This. And so is Shameless. Help??), and a lot of that is due to everything that comes after 4:00, which works so well with the first part of the song but could simultaneously be a whole new song.
High For This and Or Nah I will not be going into depth about because my parents read my blog and I´m gonna spare them the details. Just know that they belong in this playlist.
Next up we got some Kendrick Lamar because he´s such a poetic genius and I´m still not over the fact that I analyzed his lyrics for my IB English class. What a king.
LOVE has a very special place in my heart because I started listening to it in March and I connect a bunch of positive memories with it: Zacari´s voice is so smooth and is the perfect contrast to Lamar´s rather harsh tone and the combination of the two is soo soothing. All The Stars reminds me a lot of October 2019 and listening to it makes me feel like that one scene in The Perks Of Being A Wallflower where they´re driving under the bridge and life just feels… infinite. I´m not going to die until I listen to this song while driving down the Brooklyn Bridge at night. Speak things into existence, I dare you.
Moving on to the queen herself: Rihanna. She obviously already made an appearance in Take Care, but she’s back as a feature in Lamar’s LOYALTY, which is all about (you guessed it) loyalty = ” Feel somethin’ wrong/You actin’ shifty, you don’t ride/With me no more, I need/Loyalty, loyalty, loyalty”.
The song 000000 by A.CHAL is new on my radar but we all know I love bilingual songs so here we are jamming to a song that contains about three Spanish lines in the name of fake trilingualism. 000000 is about a girl who wasn’t interested in Alejandro until he started getting famous and earning enough money for there to be six zeros (aka millions). It sounds like a normal song but has somewhat of a reggaeton feeling to it (only softer, if that makes sense??).
Lava Walk by MANILA GREY feels like somewhat of a revolution in this playlist because it is the only song that fully radiates good energy. Something about this song reminds me of Unforgettable or old Jay Sean vibes.
Hear Me Calling and Let Me Know are definitely slower songs that are both nice to vibe to and nice to listen to because the lyrics of both songs are actually really sweet and dare I say romantic.
Pretty Little Fears is probably included in every single playlist of mine no matter the mood or genre because I love it so so so much. Seriously. It´s one of my favorite songs ever and I could listen to it forever because the lyrics are so beautiful and personal and deep and relatable and romantic and wow. Also, it has both 6LACK and J. Cole in it and that alone makes this song elite.
I initially found PnB Rock through this Soundcloud track of his (which is great you should check it out I even linked it for you so you better) but this song of his is good and on Spotify so it´s in this playlist.
I´m a huge lover of music that doesn´t only sound good but that also sends out a meaningful message, no matter the topic, through lyrics. Artists, and especially bigger musicians, have so much power when it comes to influencing the minds of their fans/listeners, especially musicians that create music for younger, easily-impressed audiences (just think about the typical The Weeknd or Drake stan and you´ll know what I´m talking about). I´ve always been into writing and my mind is programmed to focus on words rather than instrumentals (it’s a blessing and curse let me tell you), and I can honestly say that J. Cole has never ever disappointed me with his lyrics. While some rappers use their platform to promote drug culture etc., J. Cole´s lyrics are often focused on racial discrimination and his personal experience of growing up and living as a black man in North Carolina and, you know, the US as a whole. His lyrics are both poetic and political in the most unforced way, so if you haven´t I seriously recommend listening to his albums in more depth x Anyways, these lyrics are from Deja Vu.
Of course, I haven´t talked about every single song in the playlist because that would take us forever to go through, but I hope you enjoyed this insight into my mind and a few of my favorite songs.
Remember to stay inside, stay safe, stay vibing to your neon light strips lmao. xxx