spring-bops-pick-me-ups

Happy Monday to you all, I hope your weekend went swell. We are back to my little segment with you all revolving around music. Since music is a universal language, and I sorta wanted to spice up the variety in what I will write about for this segment, I decided to curate a playlist for you all!

The overall intention of this playlist is to emulate that it is now springtime (yet, I did not know that until recently, because I been at home for the past two weeks practicing social distancing – which you all should be doing too FYI). ANYWAYS, I call this playlist “spring-bops-pick-me-ups” to represent that it is now springtime. I wanted to emulate the soundtrack you would have if you’re walking around your hometown or sitting in a cafe drinking a latte listening to their playlist (aka this playlist.) 

There are only 10 songs (I’m sorry), so I could only pick a few. I created the playlist to have a story to tell (sorta), but from how I’d perceive the order of the songs based on the melodies and overall production. The numerical order has no precedence, and they’re all amazing songs that should be appreciated equally with the same amount of hype any songs should get. And as a little bonus, all the songs have artists that are by Asian Women.

Distracted by Annie Dang

To start this playlist off, Distracted is Annie Dang’s debut single. The 20-year-old singer-songwriter released this song in 2019. In Distracted, the lyrics express an example of how she makes her frustrations into a more playful approach. With the addition of the catchy beat throughout the song and her voice complimenting the overall acoustics, this is one song for sure to play on repeat. 

Sweet Time by Raveena

Sweet Time is a single that Raveena released in 2017. The R&B and soul singer-songwriter presents Sweet Time as a song about self-love with a classic ‘90s R&B element. This element is also represented in the music video that she self-directed! Raveena wanted the song to embody “women coming together to support and celebrate each other's beauty and strength, through a feminine, dreamy, escapist lens which was well presented very well to contribute to the song.

prom dress by mxmtoon

prom dress is apart of mxmtoon’s 2019 album, the masquerade. mxmtoon originally wrote this song during her senior year in high school, off of a tweet involving her crying in her prom dress. From finding irony and a deep connection regarding the tweet, it inspired her to write a song about it. mxmtoon found that image of being upset in a moment that represents a “happy” and a notable moment of high school to be resonating for her, which resulted in the creation of prom dress.

Vintage by NIKI

Vintage is from NIKI’s 2018 album, Zephyr, which was originally released as a single before the album. Vintage was heavily inspired by Ghost Town DJ’s My Boo. Overall, the song’s main focus is about reconnecting an old flame. Furthermore, Vintage includes a big sounding synth, and inspiration from Destiny’s Child and Aaliyah, causing the song to be super catchy and a mad bop (in my opinion).

Ordinary by UMI

Ordinary is apart of UMI’s single Balance that she released in 2019. UMI is half African American and half Japanese with her stage name arising from her middle name, Umi, meaning “ocean” in Japanese. She was originally drawn to lo-fi music and was inspired to create lyrics with this genre of music. Recently, UMI entered a more neo-soul, R&B, bedroom R&B sound making her music distinct and unique. Ordinary is an upbeat, catchy song that you should know (in my opinion.)

Blank Marquee feat. G-Eazy by Yuna

Blank Marquee is from Yuna’s 2019 album Rouge. Blank Marquee features rapper G-Eazy, whom she collaborated with in 2014 for “Lights and Camera (Remix)”. The Malaysian-born singer-songwriter created Blank Marquee as a song that calls out on the individuals that rely on friends to attain success or recognition. She calls it a very Los Angeles song, making the song very Hollywood sounding, but very enjoyable to listen to. 

I’M ALIVE by Tiffany Day

I’M ALIVE is apart of Tiffany Day’s EP I’M ALIVE. Overall, her current sound includes indie, bedroom and electronic-influenced pop, which is reflected in her music, thus making her an all-round artist in many music genres. I’M ALIVE contains an upbeat melody with hi-hats and kicks, making it one song to brighten your day. Fun fact, she’s also the singer of that one video of the girl singing Hallelujah in a well that you may have seen at some point in time. 

Paper by AUDREY NUNA

Paper by AUDREY NUNA is a single that she released in 2019. The song includes a melodic tune complimenting her vocals, which makes the song captivating for one to listen to. Overall, Paper has a contemporary R&B vibe with instrumentation that includes a baseline that is one that you cannot ignore. In general, AUDREY NUNA is a new Asian-American artist that is making way into the music industry that one should pay attention to.

TENNIS by OOHYO

TENNIS is from OOHYO’s album Far From the Maddening City. OOHYO (우효) is a South Korean musician based in London. Her music falls under the category of “synthpop" that has influences stemming from indie and k-pop (which I assume most of you know what k-pop is). At the beginning of the song, there is a slow build-up in the first verse and the pre-chorus. However, once the chorus comes in, it makes TENNIS a catchy song to listen to and one to keep in your music library.

As I Am by H.E.R.

The last song of this playlist is H.E.R.’s As I Am from her 2019 album, I Used To Know H.E.R.. The song discusses acceptance for their significant other while wanting them to reciprocate those feelings back. As I am also includes the desire to know that they will be with her forever, as accepting her as she is is the best that they will receive.

And that concludes my music recommendations! Hopefully, this playlist can help emulate springtime vibes for you all and to help you find some new artists to listen to! If you have any recommendations of your own, send them our way! You can send them to our Instagram (@overachievermagazine) or our Twitter (@overachieverM). Thanks again for taking time out of your day to read this, hope your day goes swell!