Yes, I understand that it is the middle of December. Do I care? No, because summer’s rolling up in six months, and my license and I will be going out for some serious sunset drives. These are the songs that you blast with your windows down and your best friend in the passenger seat. Imagine the end of the coming-of-age movie when all’s well. The vibes are immaculate, the girl and the guy live happily ever after (until the next movie), and there’s not a care in the world.
With this playlist, I turned the tables on the sad, lonely playlist from a couple months ago. I wanted to come up with the best feel-good songs and imagine all of the summer memories just waiting to happen (at least, after I get my license over spring break). When trying to figure out which songs to pick, I actually asked myself, “Can I see myself listening to this song while driving in a red convertible with the top down on a sunset ride with my friends?” If the answer was yes, then the song made the cut. This one goes out to the main girl and her best friend because what’s a coming-of-age movie without a driving montage with them featured in it? Is this also a playlist to make you feel like the main character? Yes.
Hope you all enjoy this one! Stay tuned for summer drives in 2021, y’all, I’m calling it.
1. “Nobody Compares” by One Direction
If you weren’t expecting some good ol’ 1D on this playlist, do you know me at all? I heard this song for the first time a few years back, and it’s been one of my favorites ever since. The best thing about this song is the chorus because it’s so loud and upbeat, and the guys are clearly smitten for whichever girls they wrote this song about. I can clearly imagine myself being behind the wheel with this song on blast, and even if I don’t have anyone to sing this song for, it’s definitely one of the best ones to jam out to.
2. “Rollercoaster” by Bleachers
I first heard this song while watching the movie Love, Simon, which is one of my favorite movies and has one of my favorite movie soundtracks (outside of musicals, of course). This song screams young teenage love, just fast-paced summer love. If I ever drive down the Pacific Coast Highway, this is the song that’ll be playing in the background. Also, the song is called Rollercoaster, which intensifies the whole fast-paced feeling and makes the song bring up even more good memories because going to amusement parks with your friends? Best thing ever.
3. “The Night I Met You” by Becoming Young
I found this song on TikTok. This song gives me a very similar feeling to “Rollercoaster”, just young and free. It talks about summer love, summer night drives, and staying up all night. The last one is really cool because I think of it as when you’re with the right person and you’re having fun, you don’t want it to stop and the time passes by way too fast.
The Night I Met You's cover art, but in real life -- pictured: China
4. “Heads Carolina, Tails California” by Jo Dee Messina
I needed to have a country song on here. I was scrolling through my playlists, looking for songs to put on this playlist, and I came across Danielle Bradberry’s cover of “Heads Carolina, Tails California” from The Voice. First, The Voice season 4 was the best. Second, the title basically says it all, but this song is the epitome of that “wind in your hair” feeling, like the whole world is in front of you and you just have to choose where to go. Flip a coin and if it’s heads, you go to the Carolinas; if it’s tails, then you’re off to California. As long as you’re going somewhere else with the right people along with you, you wouldn’t change a thing. I couldn’t imagine myself doing that, but maybe when you’re driving with your friends around town you can live vicariously through this song and act like you’re about to do the same.
5. “Perfect Strangers” by Jonas Blue and JP Cooper
What happens in this song is what I hope will happen whenever I meet someone new. I guess it’s all about meeting the right person at the right time, but this song kind of tells you to not overthink it. It also has those lighthearted, summer love vibes because as the song says, maybe you’re perfect strangers, but maybe it’s not forever. You can still hope you’re perfect strangers, though.
6. “Unbelievable” by Why Don’t We
My boys right here. Why Don’t We is one of my favorite bands, and I’m so sad that they haven’t been putting out as much music in 2020. “Unbelievable” is a song of theirs from 2019, and it’s definitely one of the most upbeat. To me, it kind of resembles how books and movies seem so real yet so fictional. I’m never going to meet a Peter Kavinsky or a John Ambrose McClaren, but it also seems so possible. This song is about how you’re with someone and even though you wake up next to them, it seems like a dream because you think they’re so out of your league. It’s that blur between fiction and reality, but while the guys in this song get the dream life, I’m stuck here with “it was all a dream” as my life motto.
7. “Brooklyn in The Summer” by Aloe Blacc
I feel like the previous songs were very upbeat and high energy, and although this song is relatively upbeat, it has more of a chill, almost R&B feel to it. If I were to describe the song in one word it would be “vibey” just because it has a nice beat that works to create that more chill feeling. I feel like I had to put this song on this playlist because it has summer in the name and the lyrics feel almost like Aloe Blacc is reminiscing about summers in Brooklyn.
8. “Magic In The Hamptons” by Social House ft. Lil Yachty
I associate this song with “Brooklyn in the Summer” because I listened to them both at the same time, and this song is also definitely very chill, even more than the previous song. It’s about real love, feeling young, and those good summer vibes, and it feels like a song I would listen to while at the beach with my friends. The chorus is also so catchy, and I wouldn’t be complaining if I had this song stuck in my head all summer.
9. “If I Ruled the World” by Big Time Rush ft. Iyaz
I had (and still have) a slight Big Time Rush obsession. This is one of my favorite songs by them, and I still listen to it all the time nine years later. This song to me screams summer fun, and it paints a picture of being really carefree and just partying at the beach with your friends. Since the song is about what you’d do if you ruled the world, it kind of imagines what would happen if anything was possible. You can never go wrong with a good boy band song.
10. “Good News” by Ocean Park Standoff
This song has a bit of a sadder topic, but that doesn’t mean the melody isn’t upbeat and the lyrics aren’t catchy. The chorus of this song is the best part, and I can vividly imagine what it would be like to play this on loop in the car. I think another side of this song is the relationship between the singer and the person he’s addressing because the singer is asking that person to give him some good news. It gives me a kind of “we’re the only two people in the world” vibe because it seems like the person is someone that the singer knows can cheer him up, and those kinds of people are who you want to have your sunset drives with.
Get it? You know, how this picture is the ocean in Ocean Park Standoff
11. “American Dream” by MKTO
MKTO came and performed on Nickelodeon five years ago and ever since, I’ve been in love with this song. It’s not their most well-known one, but it’s my personal favorite. It’s also, just like “Good News” not the happiest song because it’s about how the American Dream isn’t all that it seems, but man is this song catchy. It could’ve been a big summer hit in around 2015, but who says we can’t still listen to it in 2020?
12. “In Betweenin’” by AUSTN
Time to get back to those poppy upbeat songs. “In Betweenin’” is is about how you have feelings for someone but you don’t want to be in this middle ground between being just friends and being together. No in betweenin’, ya hear? It’s honestly a banger. It’s just such an upbeat song and hearing it makes you want to dance in your seat (if people even do that). Maybe some head bopping action? What I’m trying to say is that I can clearly envision myself driving down the highway with this song playing through the speakers. Given that my friends will let me have aux in my own car (there have been debates).
13. “Somebody” by Sigala, HRVY, and Nina Nesbitt
This song is from a few years back, but I first came across it a couple months ago. It definitely has a tropical feel to it, if you know what I mean. It sounds like something that would play at a restaurant when you’re down at the beach. The singing in this song feels like you’re yelling the lyrics to a song at a party with your friends, except it’s less screamy and more on key. When I can drive my friends around next summer, this will be on the playlist, I guarantee you.
14. “It Would Be You” by Ben Rector
I actually listened to this song for the first time today, and then I put the song on this playlist about two hours later. It’s about how if you had to spend your time with anyone, it would be that person. If the world ends, you’d want to be with them. Similar to “Good News”, the person that this song is addressed to is basically your person, and definitely the kind of person I’d want to vibe on summer night with. Except it’d be a friend, because who do you think I am?
15. “Favorite T-Shirt” by Jake Scott
If you haven’t listened to the playlist Just Good Music on Spotify yet, please do because it has all the best underrated songs. I found this song on there, and I’m so glad I did. This song is all about being way in love with someone and all you want to do is spend more time with them and get closer to them. This is what would happen in the romance novel version in my life, either when the couple just gets together and before anything bad happens, or after the happily ever after. All of the situations Jake Scott describes in this song are so cute to think about, and the song is upbeat to match the mood. Love this song.
Very necessary sunset picture for this post
16. “Up All Night” by Khalid and Disclosure
I love the mood of this song and the energy it gives off. This would be a song that I wouldn’t listen to while blasting music on the highway, but at the end of the night when it’s dark outside and you’re just sitting outside and talking. It feels like you could spend the whole night together, and you probably will. This song just puts me in a very calm yet great mood.
So that was the playlist! Hope y’all like the songs as much as I do, and let me know what kind of music you want me to share next!
Comments