So, fun little fact about me: I’m one of those girls. When someone asks me what kind of music I listen to, I say “pretty much anything.” 99% of the time, they roll their eyes back at me. But it’s true; I’m the type of music lover that does gravitate towards a certain genre, but when I like a song, I LIKE a song (Just ask Obie; he’s the reason why I’m up to date on all of the Fabolous mix-tapes.)
When I’m not secretly partying by myself with my really loud “bops”, I’ve been going back to these specific artists/albums/playlists on my Spotify playlist a lot lately:
- This 2007 hits playlist. Ever since 2017 started, I’ve been curious to see if I remembered any of the songs that were hits 10 years ago, and this playlist doesn’t disappoint. Sometimes, user-made playlists can either be really good, or extremely bias (in other words, this 2007 Hits playlist could’ve been just a playlist of heavy metal/Myspace Emo songs that came out in 2007). This one though is SO GOOD. Every song on this playlist will have you living in complete nostalgia. I know I have!
- A whole lot of Fifth Harmony, especially this unreleased song. I am not going to lie and say that Camila Cabello leaving the group did not affect me because I’ve been fans of theirs ever since their X-Factor days. I mean, I wasn’t surprised that Camila left 5H (I actually didn’t like her a hell of a lot, but that’s a different story). This unreleased song was recorded back in 2013, initially for their EP, Better Together. Before the group got all big and famous, this is what Fifth Harmony sounded like: a young, bubblegum pop girl group that sang about real empowerment (Again, not saying that “Worth It” or “Work from Home” were bad songs, they were just… confusing girl-empowerment songs). What I’m saying is that this unreleased 5H song really hit me close to home because the message is pretty much what I’m planning to make 2017: fearless and the world is mine.
- Speaking of 5H drama; this edited 4H version of “That’s My Girl” . I don’t know why I keep going back to this song on YouTube practically every day since I discovered it, but there’s something so satisfying about listening to a song you love without a member’s voice in the song. This edited version of “That’s My Girl” only has the voices of Lauren Jauregui, Ally Brooke, Normani Kordei, and Dinah Jane showcased; all the parts Camila Cabello sang where edited out. Don’t get me wrong, I was listening to the real version of this song ever since 7/27 was released and I still love it, and even without Camila in this version, it’s still just as great. I’m excited to see the direction the remaining four members will take their music in 2017.
- This “Punk Goes Pop” cover of “Chandelier” . I occasionally like to listen to rock or punk music, and although Sia’s original version of “Chandelier” is possibly one of my favorite songs of all time, this cover of it is almost just as amazing as the original. I always envisioned this song to be a very powerful piece, and Pvris, the band who covers it, does an amazing job heightening the power ambiance the song already has. I believe even people who aren’t into punk music like that will like that, because of the power the song carries.
- This Kelly Clarkson cover of Radiohead’s “Creep”. If you’ve known me for the longest of time, you will know that I am possibly Kelly Clarkson’s biggest fan. I was that ONE GIRL who cried her eyes out at 8 years old when she won American Idol in 2002. She recently released a few of her live covers from her 2015 Piece by Piece Tour (which I went to and it was the best night of my life). Kelly, being an 80’s baby, is always covering songs that are before her time & WAY before mine, or songs that I don’t really know because, again, she’s an 80’s baby. She released the ONE SONG I actually knew from Radiohead, “Creep”. A lot of people have covered this song to this day, but I believe Kelly’s cover of it is one of the best. Prepare for instant goosebumps towards the end of the song. You won’t regret it.
- Lastly, this throwback song of “The Baddest Girl” by Pentatonix. Since then, Pentatonix has come out with a full-length album for their original songs, after they gained popularity and success through YouTube making covers of Top 40 hits. “The Baddest Girl” is possibly their first original song they put on an EP; this particular one was on their first EP, PTX Vol. 1. I always looked over it because when I was introduced to them, I was only interested in their covers. Now as an all-around fan, this is now one of my favorite originals of theirs. Scott Hoying, originally the unofficial leader of the group—excuse my language—SANG HIS ASS OFF in this song. The other members, Mitch Grassi, Kirstin Maldonado, Avi Kaplan, and Kevin Olusola are all equally has talented, and with their harmonies and backtrack of the song (oh, yeah – if you didn’t know, they are an a capella group), the song is a masterpiece on the album. Of course, their newer originals are a lot more complex in harmony and now almost all members now get a chance to shine in a track as the lead, “The Baddest Girl” is great considering this is the first original they produced and released.
I promise, my musical selection will be more diverse next time I post a music entry for Topic Tuesdays, but with the devastation of 5H’s split and nostalgia of 2007, I’ve been pretty hooked.
-Liz (:
Letters From Liz. 