If there’s one thing I love to do, it’s make a playlist. Spotify and I spend a ton of time together as I try to curate a collection of songs that perfectly fit with every given mood. I start every new month with the same tradition: making a playlist of songs I want to learn, ones I want to revisit, or others that I just can’t get out of my head. Each year, the playlist names have a theme, and this year I named them after adjectives that start with the letter of each corresponding month. Let’s take a look at the 12 playlists that shaped my 2025.
January: Jazzy Joyful Jammy
January is the start of all things new, and my January playlist reflected that perfectly. I set out to learn my favorite songs from SZA’s latest release, Lana, and Bad Bunny’s hit album, DTMF. I threw things back with a bunch of hits from the Beatles, and found a new artist who would dominate my Spotify Wrapped, named Malcom Todd. Along with a mix of many added random songs, I began to listen to my favorite Taylor Swift songs in Spanish. This playlist was scattered and definitely all over the place, but it was filled with all my favorites and new ones I would learn to cherish.
February: Fearless Festive Friendly
More Bad Bunny. More Malcom Todd. A little Clairo. Some old Harry Styles. Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl Halftime performance allowed “Squabble up,” “tv off,” and “peekaboo” to make this February edition. However, the main focus of my February playlist was my revisit to one of my favorite albums of all time: Cowboy Carter. This album blends Beyonce’s unique take on country music and her effortless attempt to genre bend. I love every song on this album and was extremely happy to see it win Album of The Year at the Grammys this year. What a fun month of music.
March: Magical Moving Musical March
March was one of my favorite months this year: I celebrated HuskyTHON 2025 and our 2.1 million dollars raised and visited my best friend Sydney in London as she was studying abroad. I also accepted an offer for my summer internship at Drexel University. All in all, I was so up! The music this month reflected that. The entire Morale Mix from HuskyTHON 2025 takes up the majority of this playlist, along with songs that remind me of HuskyTHON, including “Hey Jude” by The Beatles, “Forever” by Noah Kahan, and “Bloom” by The Paper Kites. I revisited The Beatles a bunch this month as Sydney and I visited Abbey Road during my time in London. This playlist reminds me of my March adventures and how much fun I had this month.
April: Amazing Admirable Adaptable
One of the shortest playlists this year with only 33 songs, there really is no way to categorize this month other than random! There are songs from every genre and artist you could think of. A little bit of The Chicks, some Lorde and Fleetwood Mac, even The Carpenters made it to my April playlist. The highlight artist, however, was ABBA. “Thank You For The Music” made it onto my April playlist, and after that, I never looked back. This song makes me feel warm and happy inside and perfectly communicates how I feel about my relationship with music. April, thank you for the music.
May: Marvelous Mystical Moving
May. This month, I was feeling extremely reminiscent of my junior year of college as things were coming to an end. I was nearing prime concert season, which meant it was time to study the artists I was about to see live. I saw The Driver Era and The Weeknd in May, so their songs made up most of this playlist. Finally, after falling in love with “Chest Pain (I Love)” by Malcom Todd via TikTok, I decided to explore his entire album, Malcom Todd, this month. He quickly became one of my favorite artists after a complete listen. His music is my ideal mix of indie, pop, and alternative.
June: Joy Jewelled Jumpy
Halfway there! June represented the start of summer, internship life, and graduation for my little sister, Mayson. Rap and pop were the main genres of this playlist with featured hits from Rae Sremmurd, Future, Travis Scott, and Playboi Carti. I also continued to listen to my favorite pop girlies, including Gracie Abram’s “Cool” and Taylor Swift’s “I Bet You Think About Me,” two of my most listened to songs this year.
July: Jovial Jolly Jam-PAcked
Coming in hot with 100 total songs, July was one of my favorite playlists I made this year. I feel like there were a ton of trending TikTok audios this summer, and my music taste definitely reflected that. “Whim Whamiee” starts this playlist off and sets the tone for a true hot girl summer. Lorde released her summer album Virgin, a big listen for me this month. In July, I saw Hozier in concert, so his music consumes most of my July playlist. I also revisited some of my favorite summer bops from beabadoobee, PinkPantheress, and Lizzy McAlpine.
August: Admirable Adaptable Academic
August. Oh, how I loved this month. I took a trip to Chicago with my best friend Erica for our first Lollapalooza, visited my grandparents in South Carolina, and started my senior year of college at the University of Connecticut. Songs from Dominic Fike, Gracie Abrams, A$AP Rocky, Role Model, and Tyler, The Creator dominated this month as I watched all of them perform at Lollapalooza. I also revisited Malcom Todd once again. See a pattern?
September: Sassy Stable Soaring
September! This month in music was extremely upbeat and exciting. I discovered “12 to 12” by Sombr this month, and it was one of my most listened to songs this year. I listened to some of his other hits this month as well. Additionally, Sabrina Carpenter and Dominic Fike came out with new albums around this month, so I was in musical heaven. Some of my favorites from Carpenter include “We Almost Broke Up Again” and “My Man on Willpower,” while I loved “Great Pretender,” “David Lyons,” and “Sandman” from Fike. And, of course, I’m still listening to Malcom Todd. Anyone surprised?
October: Obvious Optimistic Outgoing
October: a month full of whimsy. A new upcoming artist named Audrey Hobert got my attention this month, so I decided to add a few songs from her newest album, Who’s the Clown, to my October playlist. My Bad Bunny obsession was alive and well this entire year, but came back strong in October as I fully listened to one of his older albums, Un Verano Sin Ti. Taylor Swift came out with her newest album, The Life of a Showgirl, this month, and while not every song was a hit for me, the ones I did like are on this playlist and have been loved ever since. I revisited Malcom Todd once again! What else is new? Along with a mix of random favorites, Olivia Dean came on the scene for me in October. Her hit album, The Art of Loving, went triple platinum in my bedroom here at UConn. I truly love every song, and highly recommend everyone give it a listen.
November: Natural Nifty Nonchalant Neat!
November is a month that always holds great memories, as it is my birthday month! November playlists are always full of my new and old favorites, as well as birthday-themed songs, of course. Some Bailey favorites include “To Zion” by Lauryn Hill, “Bad” by Michael Jackson, “Cinderella” by Mac Miller, “Sarah’s Place” by Zach Bryan and Noah Kahan, “Sugar” by BROCKHAMPTON, and “New Romantics” by Taylor Swift. There really is no rhyme or reason to this playlist other than it’s full of songs I know and love well. And don’t worry, Malcom Todd made it to the November playlist too.
December: Delightful Dedicated Determied
My December playlist is still fresh in rotation and includes, once again, a random mix of songs. After seeing Wicked: For Good, I added my favorites from the musical, including “For Good,” “No Good Deed,” and “Thank Goodness/I Couldn’t Be Happier.” I am also in a Beyoncé moment right now. Maybe it’s finals season or Jordan Chile’s amazing freestyle on Dancing With the Stars, but I needed to be reminded of who runs the world and how much of a diva I truly am. I am also revisiting some of my favorites from Ariana Grande, The Weeknd, and Rihanna this month. This playlist will be on repeat as I enter the holiday season, see friends and family from home, and celebrate the end of 2025 and the start of 2026.
My year in music
There really is no way to pin down my taste in music, but that is what I love about it! Music is such a comfort for me and is there for me through every emotion, experience, and event I encounter in this life. I can’t wait to continue to make new playlists dedicated to my adventures throughout life, and I hope you all are there to listen with me.