If you’re a sane human being, you probably have different music playlists for different moods. If you’re a little more insane, you probably have different playlists for specific activities or situations you’re in. And if you’re psycho, you have no playlists at all and just shuffle through your liked songs. Chaotic neutral energy.
I’d say I’m a healthy insane.
I’m not too specific with my playlists, but the one that does have a very intense, specified vibe for myself is my “I am the main character” playlist.
It’s what you would expect from the title. Do you ever get that sudden feeling where you realize your life could be a melodramatic coming-of-age movie? This playlist is the soundtrack for the scene at the climax of the movie, where your character is realizing the nostalgia of their youth and the potential of their future. You can picture it: a scene of you running along a river on a bright spring day; you biking through your childhood neighborhood and letting the wind hit your face as you smile; or maybe the realization is a bit sadder than that, and you’re on the train or in an Uber staring out the window, watching the rain droplets slide down the glass.
Whatever it is, your playlist will only make sense to you. Every song is chosen because it means something to you – whether you resonate with the lyrics and it aligns with your life, or it was a song you used to listen to when you were younger, or it just somehow fits – it isn’t meant to be for anyone else. It’s yours, it’s unique, it’s meant to make you feel a certain way – a way that I can’t really describe other than it’s the climax scene of your coming-of-age movie!
Because of the quality of exceptionality associated with this kind of playlist, it wouldn’t really make sense to share mine. Instead, I’ll share some songs and explain the reasoning behind why I chose them so that you may create your own!
Green Light by Lorde
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This music video basically represents the exact scene I would see in a movie of myself. She sticks her head out the window of an Uber as it drives through the night, past stoplights as her hair flies and whips from scene to scene. In another shot, she dances like a maniac down the sidewalk and in the bathroom of a club. You can tell that Lorde has just lost herself in the music, something this playlist should make you do. TBH, I don’t think I would dance on top of my Uber while the poor driver takes a smoke break, but the rest of it fits. The song itself is just such a bop even though it’s literally about a breakup. I mean, the album is called Melodrama. You can’t expect me to not put this on this playlist.
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Young Man’s Blues by Parker McCollum
This is a sadder number about nostalgia for one’s youth. I can picture myself in a movie walking through the nearby farm fields and hiking trails of my town. I used to bike through many of the neighborhoods, so I see this song playing through the background of that as well. This song’s lyrics also speak more to me than Green Light – it’s a classic country song about missing your hometown and the relationships you used to have with people there. Some of my favorite lines are, “Growing up ain’t all it’s cracked up to be,” and “Sometimes I wonder if they even still remember my name.” Again, not everyone will relate to this, but it for sure hits home for me.
Things Won’t Go My Way by Peach Tree Rascals
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So, I’ve given you examples of happy and sad songs for your playlist. But what about that classic teenage emotion, angst? It wouldn’t be a coming-of-age movie without an angsty scene with an angsty tune. For me, that song is Things Won’t Go My Way by Peach Tree Rascals. The consistent melody of the guitar in the background along with the line, “I’m running I can’t keep running” begs the picture of my character running down the streets, hopping over obstacles, trying to get away from whatever anxiety is chasing her. The rap verse gives more movement to this song as well, the fast beat mimicking the heightened sense of anxiety of life not going your way. One of my favorite lines is at the end of the rap verse, “No control of this life we live, No control in this life we own, If we did then we'd still be kids, Riding round on our bicycles.” It echoes that same nostalgia as Young Man’s Blues, a longing for a life of simplicity when we were children, free of any worries of the world.
We should all have an “I am the main character” playlist. It reminds us of where we came from and where we’re going. It’s easy to get lost in the world we live in, particularly as college students (at UChicago, nonetheless) in a global pandemic. We become caught up in school work, social life, job searches, and staying physically healthy. Often, we forget to take quality time to ourselves. Having a playlist of music that strikes a chord within you is crucial to grounding. While we may sometimes lose ourselves, this kind of playlist can help us find it.
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