Summer is something we all look forward to after nine months of hard work in school. Even if you’re done with school and you have a big adult job, summer still brings warm weather and fun activities. The term “hot girl summer” is what most of us as striving for, but to each of us it means something different. For some of us, that means bikinis and beaches all day and looking for a fun summer fling. For others, it means tote bags, bookstores, and picnics. It’s all about who you are and what you are passionate about. For me personally, I plan on doing it all, and that’s okay too. The only thing we are all missing is the music that is going to play in the background all summer. The music you play at 2AM gliding down backroads with the windows down, when you’re laying in the sun at the beach, or wherever this summer’s adventures take you.

I have always been a playlist gal, I love making them for every single occasion. Wherever I am, music always follows. I’ve created a summer playlist since 2018, making this year number four. This summer, I plan on being on aux everywhere and I need to make sure I have music for every occasion. With that being said, I figured I would show you how I created this year’s summer playlist, and hopefully, this will help you create yours.

AN EXPENSIVE INTRODUCTION

You know that music that plays at the beginning of the show about rich kids that live a life you dream about. I’m talking Gossip Girl and The OC kind of vibe. Well, I figured the only way to introduce your ideal summer is with that expensive introduction. Frank Ocean’s Sweet Life and Super Rich Kids hit the spot, which is why I started this summer playlist with those songs.

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Calvin Harris also creates absolute bangers for summer, and his music fits very well in the “expensive introduction” category I’ve created here. In fact, his album Funk Wav Bounces Vol.1 is such an amazing album for summer, you can’t go wrong. That’s why my playlist begins specifically with these five songs. There are obviously other songs that I’ll probably pick up from TikTok or other rich kid TV shows I watch this summer, but I wanted to show you exactly the vibe I was talking about.

MORNING COFFEE

The next section of this playlist is a compilation of songs I tend to listen to in the morning to get me up and dancing. These kinds of songs get you moving and excited for the summer adventures ahead of you. Songs from Harry Styles’ Fine Line album like Sunflower, Vol. 6, and Canyon Moon along with feel-good songs like A-O-K by Tai Verdes and Juice by Lizzo. I call this section ‘Morning Coffee’ because that’s literally the playlist title for my songs exactly like this (formally called smile and boogie- playlist linked here if you’re interested.)

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I also slipped in Something I Want by Grace Potter from the Tangled soundtrack because that song literally pulls me out of bed. It’s so good.

POP PRINCESSES LOVE THE SUN

This next section is essentially just Katy Perry and Taylor Swift’s summer bangers. I’m talking California Gurls and New Romantics. These are essential to any summer playlist and will be screamed in my car every single day. I’m not kidding I could never overplay the 1989 album ever….like ever.

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Any skips here?! Nope, none. Also, I would have preferred filling this section of the playlist with 1989 (Taylor’s Version), but we know what happened next….anyways side note someone break my heart before Red (Taylor’s Version) comes out thank you!

WINDOWS DOWN SHADES ON

The next section I have for you is when I’m driving during a hot summer day with the windows down and my shades on. These are songs that I can blare in my car but balance out with a chill beat. I’ll listen to these on the way to grab ice cream with my friends or just jamming by myself. These songs have a very specific vibe to them. Mac Miller’s K.I.D.S and Remi Wolf’s I’m Allergic To Dogs! are two albums I’ll refer to when looking for songs that fit the vibe I’m talking about.

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I also added Hey Ya! by Outkast to this section because it’s the kind of song I think is best listened to with the windows down and the shades on. Again, these are songs I think are best played when the sun is still up; they’re chill yet never fail to get you energized for the day.

SUPERCUT SONGS

The next batch of songs is very similar to the last bunch, except these songs have a little bit more energy and spunk. They’re the songs I’d put in the background of my summer recap videos, which was the reason for the title of this section. These are songs perfect for supercuts. These songs can be played at all times of day, they’re the ones you put on when you’re high on life baby!

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Good songs for late night 7-11 runs, basement parties, and songs that missed their clubbing era during the pandemic (yes, I am talking about Levitating (feat. DaBaby) by Miss Dua Lipa).

SALT IN THE AIR WIND IN MY HAIR

I may or may not have just ripped this title straight from another playlist (linked here), but it’s only because it seemed like the only fitting title. These songs are the ones I’ll play at the beach when everyone is laying out, reading books, and just talking. They’re great for background music and just good tunes to marinate in while you’re enjoying a sweet summer day.

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This section has a lot of Surfaces music along with two of my favorite Ed Sheeran songs…yes Ed Sheeran has good music I don’t want to hear it. I also have the song Up Up by Sandollar which I heard first on the Outer Banks series. I’ll probably go through the rest of that soundtrack and add it to this section because that’s really the sound I’m going for. Of course, I also had to throw Solar Power in because it fits right into this section of the summer playlist and I needed some Lorde in there.

MR. WORLDWIDE

If you know me, you know I have an obsession with Mr. Worldwide or Mr. 305…AKA Pitbull. I’m really not sure when this obsession started or why, but it’s there, so I ran with it. Since all of his music is very much “let’s have the best summer of our lives”, I gave him his own section.

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I figured this kind of music would be the best kind to end the summer playlist, and today’s blog post with. If a summer night needed an artist to resemble it, it would be Pitbull. Wherever you need music this summer, Mr. Worldwide won’t disappoint.

YAY! I hope you all enjoyed this journey of creating the ideal summer playlist for all of your insane, crazy, memorable adventures. I am so excited for my summer, especially now that I know I’ll have great music playing in the background. Although many of the songs in today’s blog post were more on the mainstream side, I also really enjoy looking for smaller artists with amazing summer jams. I’ve expressed my love for Maude Latour many times, but her song One More Weekend is a great song to fit in the “Expensive Introduction” category. I also love Steve Lacy’s music and his songs Lay Me Down and N Side. I’m always looking for new artists and new music, so please leave me your summer song recommendations!

Get ready for the best summer of our lives.

And make sure you’re listening to my SUMMER OF 21 playlist.

xoxo, megs