Road trips can be the best times of your life – singing along to your favorite songs and watching the world go by out your window. Or if you suffer from nausea and sit with your eyes closed, clutching your stomach for fear that if you open your mouth, words aren’t going to be the only thing coming out, road trips can be the worst. To ease your troubles, or improve upon your delights, I’ve created two different road trip playlists for a family road trip (most likely to the west, Mount Rushmore, the Grand Canyon, you have to see it all, and you have to see it through over twenty hours in the car with your nearest and dearest), and a trip with your friends (wherever you’re going, the beach, a college visit, or up to a lake house, you know you’ll be having an experience you’ll never forget). As for the lonely solo excursion (you were left home alone when your family forgot you on their trip to Mount Rushmore…or whatever your reasons may be), since its only you, you can make a playlist that caters to your interest, but definitely make it something you can sing along to, then maybe with two voices in the car you can feel like there’s someone there to keep you company on your long drive.
Family road trips can always be a bit of a struggle, especially if your family is as big as mine (five kids, I honestly don’t know how my parents do it). Being packed like sardines in a car with the people who know just how to get on your very last nerve can make one hour seem like three, so any trip four hours or more becomes excruciatingly long. But there is one thing that can relieve the tension and help the time fly by: music. Although the license plate game does have its rewards (finding Hawaii was one of my proudest road trip moments), it doesn’t have the same effect as an awesome playlist. When choosing music for families, you have to work with various musical interests, which leads us to another difference in my family. We have ages all over the board, from one who can legally drink to one still in single digits. That creates a whole slew of different genres that have to be included in order to please everyone in the car, while keeping it PG to prevent your parents from yelling, “Honestly, who talks like that?” before angrily turning off the stereo. With all of these guidelines in place, I’ve made a playlist that has it all: oldies, alternative, jazz and even a little pop for my Black Eyed Peas lovin’ little brother. I know that not everyone has the same family dynamics as me, but I’m sure that this playlist is bound to please all types of families, and turn at least an hour drive into a peaceful cruise.
1. “Mr Blue Sky” by Mayer Hawthorne
2. “Scenic World (Version)” by Beirut
3. “Could You Be Loved” by Bob Marley
4. “Sympathy For The Devil” by The Rolling Stones
5. “Tighten Up” by The Black Keys
6. “California Sunrise” by Dirty Gold
7. “Here Comes The Sun” by The Beatles
8. “Dog Days Are Over” by Florence And The Machine
9. “I’m Gonna Keep On Loving You” by Kool Blues
10. “The Edge of Glory” by Lady Gaga
11. “You’re My Best Friend” by Queen
12. “Jack and Diane” by John Cougar Mellencamp
13. “Son’s Gonna Rise” by Citizen Cope
14. “Changes” by David Bowie
15. “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg” by The Knocks
16. “ Staying In Love” by Raphael Saadiq
17. “This Must Be The Place” by The Talking Heads
When you’re with your friends it seems like nothing can go wrong, but after a long time in a small car, you’d be surprised. That’s why you need music to keep you pumped up and excited for your upcoming destination. You all might have different music tastes – everybody’s got that one Nikelback loving friend…I’m totally kidding, nobody likes Nikelback. But you know what I mean, there’s alternative/indie, country, soul/R&B, pop, hip-hop and I don’t really know how to classify bands like The Script but include that genre too. Even though groups of friends have interests all over the board, it’s not necessary to cover all interests, but rather to play those songs that you can dance to and the ones that you all love to sing along with. This playlist will ensure that after however many hours in the car together, you guys will still be able to call each other the best of friends at the end.
1. “Give Me Everything (ft. Ne-Yo, Afrojack, Nayer)” by Pitbull
2. “You’ll Go Crazy (ft. Young Jeezy)” by Santigold
3. “Superbass” by Nicki Minaj
4. “Mornin’” by Star Slinger
5. “That’s The Way It Is” by Celine Dion
6. “Ego (Remix) [ft. Kanye West]” by Beyonce
7. “Swimsuits” by The Cool Kids ft. Mayer Hawthorne
8. “Dilemma” by Nelly and Kelly Rowland
9. “Gifted (ft. Kanye West, Santigold & Lykke Li)” by N.A.S.A.
10. “Skewed Empathy (Skratch Bastid Mix)” by Crystal Castles & Outkast & Raekwon
11. “Best Love Song (feat. Chris Brown)” by T-Pain
12. “Roses” by Andre 3000
13. “Let Me Take You Out” by Bryan J & Travis Porter
14. “What Would You Do?” by City High
15. “Hold the Line (ft. Mr. Lex & Santigold)” by Major Lazer
16. “On the Floor (ft. Pitbull)” by Jennifer Lopez