Music has always been my escape, when things got rough or if I just needed to tune out the world I could always put on my headphones and turn my music up as loud as I want. Sometimes it was Eminem, *NSYNC, Linkin Park, Fall Out Boy, or any 90’s R&B artist but whoever it was got my sole focus for that time. The world didn’t exist outside the four walls of the room I was in and it might seem selfish, but sometimes that’s what I needed to stay sane during a crazy time.
Pop music always holds a special place in my heart; I don’t know what it is about it that brightens my mood instantly but it does. The sound of it has changed a bit over the years, but one thing that stays consistent is the catchy upbeat tempo and sappy/cutesy lyrics that bring the goofiest grin to your face and make you want to jump around like you’re 10 years old again. Well after all of last week’s events that’s exactly what we need, or at least what I need.
Some of my favorite young artists dropped new projects at the end of last week and I wanted to share them with y’all. Justin Bieber is back with vengeance! His album ‘Purpose’ is like the hybrid of ‘Believe’ and ‘Journals’. It has a lot of R&B influence, especially on tracks like “Company”, “No Pressure”, “No Sense”, “Trust” and the Nas feature “We Are”. I still can’t believe he got a Nas feature! Then there’s Hailee Steinfeld’s EP ‘Haiz’. Her summer anthem “Love Myself” is a belt-in-the-car favorite, but I’ve been singing “You’re Such A” since Friday.
You’ve had to have been living a rock if you haven’t heard Alessia Cara’s “Here”. It was everywhere…she was everywhere! She released her album ‘Know-It-All’ and I love it. “Here” and “Outlaws” are kind of dark pop, but tracks like “Seventeen”, “I’m Yours” and “Wild Things” are songs l see being her bigger hits. In fact, I had “Wild Things” on repeat while I cleaned my place this weekend.
And last but, certainly not least ONE DIRECTION DROPPED A NEW ALBUM! I had my doubts when it came to them continuing on as a group after they became a foursome (see: *NSYNC), but they not only continued the tour they were on at the time, but went back in the studio and recorded a full album. “Drag Me Down” was one of my summer anthem, “Never Enough” is a on constant rotation, and I personally prefer the acoustic version of “Perfect” over the studio one, but this album is everything we’ve grown to love from 1D.
If you feel yourself needing to get lost in some good pop music take a listen below. I’ve compiled some of my favorites into a Spotify playlist for y’all.