As promised (and I’m really trying to keep to these), here’s a breakdown of #September2020! It comes in at 84 songs.
I’m looking back at this playlist and it already feels so long ago. Before we start, I’m sharing the Apple Music link here. It’s more fun to hear the songs too. And now, let’s get into it :)
First up, “If Love is Overrated”. I found this song while looking for a new album to play as I worked out. I wanted something drastically different, so I skipped through Apple’s latest releases and saw “All Rise” categorised as jazz. This song stood out to me. It is absolutely stunning and resonates with me deeply. “If love is overrated, let me be the one who is naïve.”
It’s followed by Camila Cabello’s “Shameless”. Part of the video was retweeted onto my timeline, and I will admit, that one video is some of her best work. The track is all about being consumed by lust. It’s fiery, it’s dangerous, it’s sneakily intoxicating. Camila has this knack for making songs sound exactly like the feeling she’s describing.
We then have 8 tracks from D’ZRT’s debut album. D’ZRT are the first band I loved. They were a Portuguese group who first came together as a band on the most popular teenage TV series in the country at the time (for my Portuguese folk, wasn’t Morangos com Açucar the absolute greatest?!). D’ZRT continued on to be a legitimate boy band and release subsequent albums. I love their second album too however this one has a special place in my heart. 10 year old me used to come home from school, put the disc in a CD player and jump around singing.
My Portuguese roots are coming through strongly in this playlist. The next song is “Tudo Vai Passar” by Rita Guerra. I’m very sure I shazamed this from a telenovela while I was at my cousins. My mum used to listen to her back in the day (we’re talking 2000’s). Again, 10 year old me loved Portuguese pop culture, including the power ballads. As these breakdowns continue, you’ll start to see how and why hearing lusophone music at an early age and simply being brought up with Portuguese culture at home while simultaneously growing up in London with British culture, heavily influenced the way I consume and interact with not just different music, but culture as a whole.
“Mountains” , Carolina Deslandes ft. Agir. Although recorded in English, both artists are Portuguese and well known in Portugal. I was in the motherland at the end of August and heard this track again on a radio station. They love a good throwback and so do I.
Next up is afro-pop album, D’Ouro by yet another artist who is wildly popular in Portugal. Deejay Telio put out this banger back in 2015 called Não Atendo, (all about switching off your phone to not be bothered by calls because you just want to have a good time) and followed up with tune after tune. Props to him because there’s even a Yxng Bane feature on this new album.
Then, we have Big Sean’s Detroit 2. I don’t even need to say anything about this one. He’s the greatest. I wrote a post with all the best lines here. ZTFO forever.
"Condolence". This song might be a weird one for you guys. It’s eerie however around the 5 minute mark it switches to a lighter, uplifting mood. Listen to the lyrics. Shoutout to my rockstar cousin for sending me this and knowing I’d love it too. There’s this one line: “No wonder why you've been buggering me, this walk is a previous journey, and I won”. We love it too much.
4Taste. Another one of my Morangos com Açucar bands. They’re pop-rock. They’re too cool. Again, it’s the D’ZRT story. CD in, press play, jump around. Sabe bem ter o dia para desfrutar! (Google translate it.) P.S: "Diz Me Que Sim" is one of my favourite songs ever.
This next song was sent to me by a Twitter mutual, well she sent the entire EP over for me to have a listen to and I’m glad she did. We both agree this is the stand out track. “Give You Me”, a painfully gorgeous classic sound.
I’ve looked at the next song and chuckled. If it isn’t my cousin and I’s favourite toxic male. My dear, we’re, slow dancing in a burning room.
"No one" was my mum’s favourite song in the world when it was first released. To this day, the bridge still squeezes my soul.
“Where is the love?” HAS to be the anthem of all time. 17 years later and every word is still significant. I’m taking this moment to say that Mr Will.i.am, even without keeping up with him, just know he is beyond.
Giveon plays next. “World We Created” has just closed out. I do need to re-add this to a playlist at some point. A diamond of this elegance commands complete focus.
Fletcher. Fletcher is a gift. I’ve had "Forever" (both versions) on repeat for the longest. The piano acoustic is particularly beautiful. "Bitter" is infectious. If you follow me on socials, you’ll have seen me being entertained by Fletcher’s madness, telling myself I shouldn’t like toxic LOL, but jokes aside I do really like her. She’s brave. The entire EP is honestly phenomenal. "Feel", "Sex with my ex", "Shh, don’t say it" – there’s something about every song, and some hard-hitting lyrics too. To be honest, I think me and Fletcher are yet to cross paths.
The next song is "Find U Again". This track with Mark Ronson is absolute gold. The retro vibe, Camila’s delivery in the verses, the chorus, the production– it’s all perfect. “Have mercy on me please, I messed up to the third degree. This crush is kind of crushing me, I do therapy at least twice a week. There’s a U shaped space in my bed, always U shaped thoughts inside my head.” Genius.
Quick fire ones next.
Don’t hate me, but “Ringaling” is the one song I like from Nines’ album. "My heart is numb has no feeling“ popped into my head randomly in the kitchen one day and so "Patience" made the playlist, and "Mood" is just a really fun record.
"Waiting for Tonight" was courtesy of my Media Trust masterclass with Facebook. As was the next album you see on the list. My fellow trainee Aaron (you can find him here – another talented content creator) used "Wrong" for his Instagram reel, which then inspired me to listen to Laroi's entire project. Standouts are definitely "Wrong” and "Need You Most" (which samples Neyo's So Sick really well).
And that officially wraps up this breakdown! Happy listening guys :)
#October2020 is live, linking it here. It's a blend of genres already but we'll get to it in the next one of these!
All the love and if you made it this far, thank you.
Best,
Steph
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