Music is something that connects us all. Even when you don’t realize it, music is connecting you to someone or something important in your life. It might be a silly commercial tune or an annoying song with an annoyingly catchy chorus that gets stuck in your head. No matter what kind of music it is, it’s important. If you are like me, music is something that is a big part of your life. I listen to music any time that I can. When I look around campus walking to my classes I notice everyone else is too. As much as I love music, I recently have found myself in a music rut. My playlist with more than 300 songs is not exciting to me anymore. I find myself skipping every song that plays. Because of that, I have found some tricks that I have been using to help me find new music to listen to while also allowing me to discover old songs I forgot existed that are simply nostalgic.
This first tip is a no-brainer that you probably hear all the time: play whatever music you’re in the mood for. If you are feeling upbeat and in a great mood, play some upbeat hits that always seem to keep your good mood going. Some of the songs that I play when I’m in a good mood are “Sundress” by A$AP Rocky, “Enter Galactic (Love Connection Pt.1)” by Kid Cudi, and “Sober” by Childish Gambino. If you are in a sad mood, put on some Olivia Rodrigo orsome of those great Taylor Swift heartbreak songs. This tip is pretty straightforward, but again, it can sometimes be helpful.
If you can’t tell what mood you’re in, go to your favorite artist and play one of their albums you might not know all the songs to. I have been doing this a lot just because there are many artists I like, but I don’t listen to every single song by them. SZA’s CTRL album has a new place in my heart because of this past week. I randomly came across her song “Prom,” clicked on the album, and it’s been on repeat ever since. You never know, your new favorite song could be waiting for you inside an album you thought you knew very well.
This last tip helped me find “Round & Round” by Selena Gomez, and “Sweet Nothing” by Calvin Harris again. It doesn’t matter if you have Spotify or Apple Music, any streaming service should have playlists already made in a “browsing” section of the app. Go to these random playlists and just hit play. I’m an Apple Music user and I came across a throwback playlist made by the app and I felt like I had discovered a gold mine. So many great nostalgic songs were rediscovered. This is my new favorite thing to do when I’m bored and feel like I have no music to listen to.
Finding new music is hard, especially when you don’t like to branch out of your comfort zone. Music holds a certain power that many of us can relate to and share. After all, sharing music taste with someone is an instant green flag along with an instant boost of dopamine. Music is amazing and when you seem to be in a music drought, like I am right now, it’s very frustrating. Hopefully these tips find you well and you can use them to the best of your abilities.