What I'm Listening to This December

Tune In's a monthly-or-so column for me to share what I'm listening to (and sometimes watching.)

Hey y'all!

November was tough, to put it lightly. But I'm actually really happy in the aftermath right now, and having the blog live has gone such a long way in making me feel so connected to and confident in the many iterations of myself over the years. So December is looking much better and stronger.

This month, I'm largely done with gift guide season (luckily) so am narrowing on my book revision efforts. I have some new hobbies and routines I'm dying to institute on O'ahu. I'm shipping three giant boxes of books back to myself to build out my library on-island, and will host family during part of the month too. Lots to look forward to, and hopefully this current mode of security / relaxation / letting everything roll off my back will continue. As in The Count of Monte Cristo, the suffering leads to the bliss.

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I'd say this month was more about song-specific hyperfixations rather than playlists themselves, with old favorites re-entering the rotation. So I'll share a playlist or two, but these are largely what's on repeat (and you best believe I will be sharing my Spotify Wrapped when it hits my inbox.)

Songs on Repeat

Songs About U — Tink, Summer Walker

• I almost took a heels class in town and this was the song the choreography was set to. I ended up having too much to get done before leaving town so ended up skipping dance (miscalculated the drive some), but I've been listening to it nonstop since anyway and daydreaming of the routine. It's the perfect pace and sultry mood for the type of music I would have loved taking a femme class to, ugh—a bit jazzy and longing, and just stretched out enough. So I've been addicted.

Silver Springs — Fleetwood Mac

• I recently read (and watched) Daisy Jones & the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid for the first time, and absolutely adored it. I thought the characterization was superb in that you saw and understood why personalities clashed, but nobody was particularly in the right or wrong; the portrait of L.A. in the 70s was absolutely stellar and satisfied my craving for a sense of place. And since it's loosely based on some Fleetwood Mac tension (resurfaced by this trending audio snippet from this song), I obviously have been listening to it on repeat.

Orange Blossoms — GoldFord

• I can't entirely decide whether this one is a MOUNTAIN SOUNDS song or an O'AHU BEATS song, which means it's très up my alley. A little folky, a little rhythmic, undercurrent angst. It reminds me a lot of Side by Side actually, which is a favorite. Or maybe Little Moon.

Good News — Shaboozey

• I adore Shaboozey, partly because I viscerally need to go line-dancing soon. When I'm home, I listen to a lot of country. It's what I grew up on. Nowadays, I love that there's some zesty country—very danceable. Plus, recently I've been really big into connecting with and honoring my Southern roots. I'm very protective of that aspect of my identity. I heard this the other day and have been playing it constantly.

In the Dirt — Russ

• Russ's Tunnel Vision has been my de facto theme song for the last year, at least. If it's not my top most played by the end of the year, I'd be truly shocked. I adore his wordplay and cleverness, and he's a good artist for some head-down, work-hard inspiration. (Fun fact: that album is actually inspired by The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho.) We love a literary man! But recently it's been In the Dirt for me, all the way.

Love Me, Hate Me — Bryce Vine

• I have never been one to have celebrity crushes, and I'm repeatedly told that mine (the one and only Bryce Vine) is incredibly off-brand. He is, kind of. Not my usual type. But for some reason, I heard Drew Barrymore in college and became obsessed. Plus, he was sort of just close enough that it was sort-of realistic enough. The day he was announced as my college prom* (don't question it) concert in March 2020 (hahahaha), I had dozens of people texting me going "This is finally your chance!!!!!" and very gently told my formal date, "Hey, you're great—but if I get the chance to kiss Bryce Vine, I simply have to take it." And he gave me full permission, because this was such a stars-aligning, cosmic, Grace-never-has-a-crush-and-it's-him moment. I could have made it happen, y'all. I'm so convinced.
  
  Unfortunately, fate (and COVID-19) had other plans and I missed my backstage pass to Bryce Vine, and will likely never be in that proximity again. But I can still worship him musically. Catchy, literary, off-brand male fixation. Anyway, he's back in the rotation and I especially love this one, which I also listened to on repeat around that time four years ago. Poetic!
  

The Current Playlists

Like I said, I've been on more of a song-centric kick than a playlist-centric one lately. I always make playlists instead of queuing songs, so I end up having a thousand with sporadic names. I might name a playlist based on who I'm with at the time I'm setting up a speaker, or whatever's going on, or whatever random phrase happens to pop into my head. So:

Cormac fucking mccarthy

I needed a masculine, independent, but still (grounded? earthy, almost? old-fashioned? throwback?) feel. And my library hold for Blood Meridian had finally come in. Needless to say—the title. The songs mentioned above are all on here, by the way.

Notable Songs:

• i drive me mad — renforshort
• Chainsmoking — Jacob Banks
• Crystalised — the xx
• Dirty Love — Mt. Joy
• Wish I Knew You — The Revivalists
• Weekend (ft. Miguel) — Mac Miller
• Red Dirt Road — Brooks & Dunn (shhh, don't question it—just let it wash over you)
• Homemade Dynamite — Lorde, Khalid, Post Malone, SZA
• 4ever — The Veronicas
• Cold War — Cautious Clay
• Beggin' for Thread—Gryffin & Hotel Garuda Remix — BANKS
• My Notes — Atmosphere

Kama Runs

I have about a thousand running/workout/exercise playlists, similarly only varying by a couple of songs. I love rediscovering an old one and getting an immediate rush of energy. It's a balancing act: enough adrenaline and novelty to give me some spark during a workout (or to totally disassociate imagining accompanying choreography I've either learned or witnessed), but not worn out enough yet that I get tired when hearing it. So here's the current rotation. Don't overthink it; just let the music carry you to that 190 bpm heart rate.

Notable Songs:

• Loveeeeee Song — Rihanna, Future
• HeadBand — B.O.B., 2 Chainz
• Lil Freak — Usher, Nicki Minaj (I want to learn the choreography for this so badly; there's a girl on island who taught a routine to this and it looked incredible, but I was already out of town.)
• Batman — LPB Poody, Lil Wayne, Moneybagg Yo
• Chill Bill — Rob $tone, J. Davi$, J Spooks
• Really Really — Kevin Gates