How to keep the aux cord: Playlist 101

You’re on a road trip and the radio stations keep playing Ariana Grande’s song Side to Side. Out comes the aux cord and it’s passed to you. What are you going to play?

There’s nothing worse than being caught off guard when you have to become the resident DJ. Yeah, you can pick an already made playlist off of Apple Music or Spotify but what’s the fun in that? Also, how is Spotify supposed to know that Pop That is your best friend’s favorite twerking song? Exactly. So, as the self declared Queen of Playlists, I’ve decided to create this guide to help you with yours.

You’re. Welcome.

 

What’s the playlist for?

Pick an occasion. Pick a mood. Pick a frequent occurrence. ANYTHING can be a playlist. I, for one, have a playlist called Black Excellence. When you look at it, the playlist seems a little random but there’s a COMMON THEME. All of the artists are amazing….and black. As long as there’s a common theme, you can make any type of playlist. The choice is yours!

Okay, so you got your theme. Now what?

Go through your music library and try to find songs and artists that fit the theme you’re trying to create. I stray away from putting full albums on a playlist but hey! Do you.

Your playlist is somewhat complete but how do you make it better?

 

Be open minded

When you hear about new artists or albums from friends, co-workers or blogs, take the time to actually listen to them! Even if you don’t like the complete album, I’m pretty sure you’ll like at least one or two songs. If it’s a single that’s even easier! Give it a quick listen. If you don’t like it, move on. If you DO like it, add it to your library. If it fits a theme of one of your playlists definitely add it in!

 

Keep up with artists you like and keep up with the artists THEY like

This step is definitely easier said than done. There’s so much music being released everyday so it’s easy to get behind on new releases. But, if you really love an artist, it’s super helpful to keep up with them and check out the artists they feature on their albums and social networks. Artists tend to work with people that have a similar sound to them. So, if you like one, you’ll probably like the other.

For an example, I’m a huge fan of Kanye. One day on Twitter, Kanye posted Travis Scott’s first mixtape, Days Before Rodeo. Since Kanye doesn’t normally shout artists out, I checked out the mixtape and it was actually amazing. I’m still a fan of Travis Scott and I even saw him in concert!

But, if checking Twitter everyday isn’t your thing...

 

Follow blogs that match your taste in music

This will at least slim down the amount of accounts you’re looking at. Some blogs I really like are:

DaGreenRoom (of course)

Saint Heron

The Fader

Complex

 

Keep those songs in rotation!

A playlist is never complete and some songs are only good for a season. If you start skipping over a particular song don’t just keep it there! Remove it and add another! Change the sequence. Change the theme! Keep it current, make it throwback or mix the two! Once again, the choice is yours!

Last but not least, if all of this seems like too much work, you can also follow DaGreenRoom on Spotify and listen to the playlists I curated myself!