This past August, I was packing for a retreat and looking forward to one last adventure before summer was over. As I shoved everything I needed into my duffel bag and tried not to break the zipper as I closed it, I realized this would be the only occasion all summer I left New York City for more than a day. Roaming NYC can be electrifying, especially with all the places to see and fun activities to try. But as a native, living here can feel overwhelming, and the need to escape to some place calmer becomes relentless. I knew that during this trip, I wanted to completely disconnect from everything, and these days, not only does this mean physically removing yourself from a certain environment, but also putting your phone away.
While I was more than ready to toss my phone to the side, I was not prepared to go days without music. I wanted to feel the thrill of listening to my favorite songs without getting swamped by all the distracting content on my phone. As a child, I remember browsing through a binder full of CDs my mom kept in the car, and every time we drove somewhere, she let me choose one to put on. There was a kind of nostalgic charm in engaging with one electronic device at a time, because they were designed to only do one thing. I wanted to experience this again—the feeling of using technology to add to my happiness rather than drain my energy, to help me make memories instead of distracting me from them.
Next thing I knew, I had gathered everything I needed and burned my first CD only hours before leaving for my trip. Here’s a comprehensive guide to making your very own!
What You’ll Need
Portable CD Player: These can be purchased in many styles, colors, and vary in price. I recommend the KLIM Nomad Transparent CD Player. The audio quality is great and has a long battery life.
External Disk Drive: These do more than simply burn CDs, so you might often see them advertised as DVD players too. I’ve had nothing but a good experience using this CD Burner External Disk Drive.
Blank Discs: Finding the right place to purchase these can feel overwhelming, considering that discs can get easily damaged either by breaking or getting a few scratches on them. These Verbatim CD-R Blank Discs are well-packaged and, overall, have good reviews. It’s important to note that discs have a time limit, so if you want to create a longer playlist, I recommend upgrading to discs that can store more than 80 minutes of music.
Online MP3 Converter: You’ll need to get all the songs you want from YouTube and, using the links, convert them into MP3 to download the songs onto your computer. This free YouTube to MP3 Converter will save you time and money.
Slim Cases: These are a fun way to store your CDs, and since they’re clear, you can design a cover to slide into the front of the case. There are a lot of options to choose from online. Check out the Verbatim CD Clear Slim Jewel Cases that come in a pack of 25 for a great price. However, you can always purchase a smaller pack.
Let’s Get Started
1. Pick the songs you want to use and add them to a playlist on Spotify, Apple Music, or any other platform where you can see the track length (remember CDs have a limit).
2. Look up the songs on YouTube and copy the link.
3. Convert the songs to MP3 one by one and download the file to your computer.
4. When you click on each file, it will open on the music app or media player, depending on your computer software. On the top menu, click “create new playlist” and add all the songs there.
5. Plug in your external disk drive and place your CD inside (you may need an adapter depending on your computer). On the top menu, click “burn playlist to disk.” Choose your burn settings, such as the gap between songs and whether you want to display the song texts. Then click “burn.”
6. Your playlist should only take a few minutes to burn. After that, you’re all done!
If you’re a visual learner and found parts of this guide hard to follow, check out this reel by @thepalecave on Instagram. This creator’s tutorial applies specifically to MacBook users, so if you are a Windows user, take a look at this video by Carson Cameron Clark on YouTube.
Now, grab your CD player, go lie on some grass, and listen to some music!