(Written April 23, 2024)
The world of music is ever-expanding and yours may just be beginning! Throughout my music beat journey I’ve had to branch out for the sake of my stories but today is not one of those days. Today I will help you branch out and extend your arms open to new music, whether it be completely new or just new to you. No, I am not recommending any Taylor Swift songs even as a Swiftie, my music taste is beyond just Taylor Swift. These songs aren’t all from artists I listen to frequently, some songs are from artists that I’ve barely come to know, so we’re technically in this together! Featuring on my story we have R&B vibes, pop bangers, hip-hop hits, fresh new music from up-and-coming artists, pop-rock to air-guitar play along to, and some bubblegum-y and sweeter R&B to top it all off. The songs vary from this year to 2012, but they all hit different aspects. Whether you’re looking for a pick-me-up or a bop to dance to, I’ve got six songs up my sleeve, and so much more if you’re willing to try it. Get ready for the befores, afters, and everything in between.
First up and starting off strong, we have the masterpiece known as Good Days by the queen herself, SZA. It’s an ethereal song and simple yet complex lyrics make up the song, ultimately bringing it to life. In fact, Good Days doesn’t need any words to make it good. As the intro and outro unfold, which make up a lot of the song, you feel lighter and nostalgic, floating away to begin your good days. This morning I had it on repeat because I love the intro, the outro, and everything in between. At first, I got so many lyrics wrong because SZA’s enunciation needs a little more love (maybe it’s just me) but overall it’s top-tier. Being one of the singles off of SOS, you’d think it’d have a little more love. Okay, I may be wrong on that aspect but despite the billions of streams (and counting) the song has amassed, it doesn’t seem to be talked about enough to me. It’s a really infectious song and I will tell anyone who will listen about it. I don’t exactly remember how I came about this song but I think I Shazam-ed it from a video I was watching, and I absolutely loved it. That, or I actually managed to get that far on SOS when I tried listening to it. Not that SOS is bad or anything, but I’ve got a busy life and music can’t always be a priority, unfortunately. Other hits on SOS include the very successful Kill Bill, Shirt, Snooze, and Blind. One song that is actually quite underrated on the album is Nobody Gets Me, which is such a raw and vulnerable song that seems pretty rare from SZA (from what I’ve heard, sorry Sizzlers, or whatever y’all call yourselves). If you like R&B, need to get over a breakup, feel tested, or just need something ethereal in the background of your life, SZA’s got your back. Favorite lyrics: “Tell me I’m not my fears, my limitations/ I disappear, if you let me/ Feeling like, feeling like Jericho/ Feeling like Job when he lost it/ Gotta hold my own, my cross to bear alone.” Verse 3 is lovely as well, and the intro and outro, of course.
I discovered this song while watching the finale for the first season of The Summer I Turned Pretty. Now, it is explicit because of a bad word towards the end of the song, which, mind you, is only said once. There is the mention of drugs and firearms but it’s a good song regardless. I promise I do not condone the use of any of these things, but I love the song. I cannot lie. Sometimes when it plays, I put it on repeat and let it play a couple times, and then finally let it go on to the next song because it is just so good. It’s fun to dance to, which is why it is no wonder that they used it for the debutante escort dance scene in the first season finale of TSITP. The song when used in the scene was altered at the drugs-firearm-swear part which makes it more enjoyable I guess, but it really doesn’t affect the whole experience much. There are definitely radio edit versions and stuff so feel free to look those up as well. I mean it isn’t peak songwriting like the folk-more albums or anything, but it’s a vibe that I like and the lyrics are fun. The backing vocals are a huge boost too and the high note at the end is divine. If you need something to dance to, like upbeat songs, or are just in a good mood, Bazzi and I Like That will help keep you at that high for a little bit longer.
Favorite lyric: “One ‘good night’ is worth a thousand words (a thousand words)/ One good girl is worth a thousand birds (a thousand birds).”
Swimming Pools (Drank) – Kendrick Lamar
Swimming Pools is phenomenal. A great song and a message stronger than the liquor spoken about. In the song, Kendrick addresses an addiction to drinking and the difficulties that come with it, showing that drinking isn’t exactly what it’s cut out to be by family and friends. The song has recently just gone viral again, despite being released in 2012, as it should. The ironic thing is that despite the song being about alcoholism and the negative effects that come with it, it is played at many parties and bars. With reason, though. Swimming Pools is an infectious song that resonates with many. A lot of people have said that Swimming Pools helped them with their struggles. Really, the way I found out about this song was – unfortunately – TikTok. I love it though, despite the fact that I don’t listen to a lot of rap, Swimming Pools is the exception. In the song, Kendrick battles with his demons who constantly try to keep him wrapped up in the daze of his seemingly endless hangovers and addiction. His conscience also features in the song, telling him that if he doesn’t stop soon, he’ll drown in his own swimming pools of liquor. Most of the song really conveys that feeling of drunkenness, like, you can feel the drunkenness. Well, not that I’ve ever been drunk, but if you wanna know what it feels like, it probably feels like what Swimming Pools sounds like. If you like rap, want to try it out, or need to get out of an addiction, or are just genuinely struggling, give Swimming Pools by Kendrick Lamar a shot (see what I did there?)! Favorite lyrics: “Two chopper, 200 shots, bang/ I ride, you ride, bang/ One chopper, 100 shots, bang/ Hop out, do you bang?/ Two chopper, 200 shots, bang.” (It’s nothing special, I know, it’s just one of the catchy parts.)
Unless you’re, like, a Percy Jackson & The Olympians Disney+ show fan, or you were a Nickelodeon kid, you probably don’t know who Dior Goodjohn is. I didn’t either, I will be honest. I did watch PJO and I liked it and also have read the books, up until the The Battle Of The Labyrinth (hats off to Rick Riordan), and so that’s how I found out that not only does Dior play Clarisse LaRue in the Percy Jackson series, but she also makes music! One night, I decided to check out Dior’s song, Focus, and it was good for someone who’s just starting out. Focus is the only song she has released as of late, but even then it has amassed over six hundred thousand streams on Spotify. It’s a short little bop and the lyrics are simple, but it’s definitely worth your time. If you’re an Ariana Grande fan, a pop enthusiast, or just need a room-cleaning anthem, go support Dior Goodjohn on the start of her musical journey! Favorite lyrics: “Angles and angles they all good to me,” and the ending “muah!”
One day I was casually scrolling and suddenly came upon a video where this guy was saying, “what if One Direction and 5 Seconds of Summer made a song together?” He went on about how maybe we would never have known because 1D is broken up – and has been – so he decided to make our “dreams” come true. Then he played a clip of the song and I honestly really liked it. So I went to his account and started going through his videos and many of them were about his new song, WANT YOU!, coming out on July 28, in the summer of 2023. That was a great summer. Peak girlhood, I’d say. The song came out, I watched the music video, and genuinely vibed to it throughout my summer. It gives off get him back! and imgonnagetyouback vibes except instead of like “getting someone back” as the play on words, it’s wanting the subject. Do you want them to be with you, do you want them to get out of your thoughts. That’s what this song is. Alex says “I want you gone, girl” and “want to get over you” but he also says “I don’t want to, but I want you,” showing that he has mixed feelings just as getting someone back means getting revenge and rekindling romantic flames, depending on the context. I adoooreee the guitar in this song, it’s so good and fun. A good little bop needs a guitar solo or it isn’t complete. The lyrics are pretty simple but they are great and surely connect with a lot of people. Alex Sampson may have emerged from TikTok and social media, but he is one of the good TT singers out of thousands of mid ones. He released an EP (extended play, like a short album) called Blurry Vision this year which includes Til The World Gets Sick Of Us, WANT YOU!, The Girl Who Cried Love, BLIND, Lemonade, and Play Pretend. The Girl Who Cried Love and Lemonade are the only songs on the album that weren’t previously released as singles. They are all pretty good regardless so I totally recommend Alex Sampson and Blurry Vision. If you like guitar solos (like me), head-banging bops, and pop music, as well as some heartbreak, get cozy with Alex Sampson and his new EP, Blurry Vision. Trust. Favorite lyrics: “If you feel like you miss me and wanna text me, don’t/ Just get in your car and run over your phone,” and “I want my favorite sweater back, and my Netflix password too (too).”
don’t miss me – Claire Rosinkranz
To wrap this all up with a big ol’ bow we have… Don’t miss me!! I love this so much, and it makes it better because it’s Claire Rosinkranz. She is so underrated, like criminally underrated. “Who is she?” you may be asking. Claire R. became known after her song Backyard Boy blew up. You may have heard it and it went viral for good reason. It’s also a cute little bop, but it’s simply a taste of what Claire has to offer. Her debut album, Just Because, came out last year, which features Swinging At The Stars, the only song I’ve listened to from JB at the moment. It’s good though, so I can only expect the rest of the album to be lovely as well. She’s released two EPs which are BeVerly Hills BoYfRiEnd and 6 Of A Billion. She also has a vast collection of singles, but let’s get back to don’t miss me. I just can’t help but dance to its fun, bubbly, UK R&B vibe every time it comes on. Like the other songs, I’m sure many people can relate to this song – starting things with someone isn’t like you, you wanna be with someone for affection but don’t want to face the hardships and miscommunications; it’s fairly common. Honestly, who wants to deal with all the mess of relationships? No one, but if it’s real, if the love’s true, then you guys will be able to work it out together. Claire just hasn’t found that yet, and it’s okay to search. It’s like the Tortured Poets, I’m not all that glad with people having to go through things like that, but life and the experiences and breakups and relationships produce songs. That’s what it’s all about. I just genuinely love this song, and I’m glad I could share it with you. If you like R&B, pop, and can relate to not wanting to fully commit to the messy parts of relationships, you and Claire can share that. Favorite lyrics: “I’m so unpredictable, one day, I’m irresistible/ The next, I hate myself/ Never good for someone else,” and “But suddenly he’s got me folding/ ‘Cause I only want him to hold me.”
There’s got to be more, got to be more…
Again, I’m so glad to have been able to share this with you because I like to put people on to some of the music I’ve listened to, in case they like it and I have another way to connect with them further. Music being something that I love and sharing it with people I love, it makes me happy. I hope that you like these songs and thoroughly enjoy them or at the very least consider having them as some sort of background music. Originally, I was gonna share six artists that I recommend but it was sorta overwhelming, and I thought it would be for you all too, so I disassembled it and wrote it about these six songs. I’d like to listen to more of these artists’ discography, the journey of new music being endless and all. Next time, we’ll be discussing one of the biggest threats hanging over the music industry, where it came from, and so much more! I’ll spare you the details but if you want them, please stay tuned! We’ve got some much more to explore from the boyband-verse to the music of Latin America. I can’t wait to share my work with you once more and I hope you feel that way too! GO STREAM “FOUND HEAVEN” BY CONAN GRAY!!! I’ll see you all as soon as possible, bye <3
–Good Days – SZA | Official Music Video (explicit)
–I Like That – Bazzi | Official Music Video (explicit)
–Swimming Pools (Drank) – Kendrick Lamar | Official Music Video (explicit)
(No Focus music video, sorry)
–WANT YOU! – Alex Sampson | Official Music Video
–don’t miss me – Claire Rosinkranz | Official Music Video (explicit)
