Playlists: The Modern Love Letter
Image Courtesy: Pinterest
Believe it or not, playlists have always been around, but in many different forms like creating a mixtape or burning a CD. People tend to underestimate how much time and effort it takes to curate a playlist when it’s one of the more genuine expressions of love to exist in society today. There’s a quote that says something along the lines of “to be known is to be loved” and what better way to show someone you love them than sending a playlist of songs that you know they’d like or songs that remind you of them?
Image Courtesy: Lindsey Limbach
Amongst my friends, I’m known as the aux friend, the friend who is always finding new music and sharing it with everyone. I have around 150 playlists on Spotify, leaving only 64 public. My playlists range from playlists I’ve made for my friends, for my enjoyment, or for any type of niche mood or interest. I like to describe the playlists I make for my friends as movie trailers to show the type of person they are. You can tell by a playlist what someone’s humor is, what genres they like, or if their taste is all over the place. A personalized playlist holds power to make someone feel something, to let someone know that you put thought into what they enjoy, that you heard a song and thought of them for some time during your day. It can never hurt to show or remind someone you care, and what better way than music?
Image Courtesy: lpl44 via Spotify
You don’t only have to make a playlist for a friend or person you like for it to be considered a love letter. Making a playlist for yourself is a love letter because you create something for your entertainment. In other words, you know yourself and what you like. It’s one of the most therapeutic forms of self-care or self-love because it’s a subtle act of reflection and introspection. Playlists can become a window to your innermost feelings and songs can become pieces of you. Different people choose different songs for certain moods. Some people are the type to listen to sad music when they’re sad while others might want to listen to happy music to cheer them up. Some people do both and have two separate playlists for the different versions of sad they are (I’m that kind of person). This makes curating playlists such a wholesome activity because it’s done to provide joy or relief.
Image Courtesy: lpl44 via Spotify
Since playlists and music are so easily found on streaming services, it’s not difficult to overlook how time-consuming and thoughtful the process of making a playlist is. It’s all in the details: the date each song was added, the number of songs on the playlist, and the lyrics of the songs. On a surface level, you can’t see the person who curated the playlist combing through songs to decide which songs are qualified to make it on the playlist. You can’t see the person looking through Pinterest or their camera roll to find the perfect playlist cover. You can’t see if they laugh, smile, or cry at a memory associated with a song they selected for the playlist. However, the act of making a playlist can tell you one thing: this is the creator’s attempt at expression.
Playlists can also be a more desired form of love letter for people who have difficulty putting their thoughts into their own words. These people can use artists’ experiences and lyrics to proclaim their love or convey how much a friendship or connection means to them.
Image Courtesy: Lindsey Limbach
Next time you find yourself overcome with admiration toward someone in your life, make them a playlist. Tell them you see who they are as a person and that you pay attention enough to know what they’re interested in. Try to make them laugh with an out-of-place SpongeBob song amongst a variety of rap (or don’t if they wouldn’t find that funny). Put whatever spin you want on the playlist, make it your own, and make it special. Say “I admire you and the music you like,” with a modern love letter.
Strike Out,
Writer: Lindsey Limbach
Editor: Addy Crosby
Tallahassee