What a time to be alive! Thanks to social media like Twitter and Instagram, famous and non-famous people alike are much more transparent. Back in the dark ages of the 1990’s, if I wanted to know what Alicia Silverstone’s favorite album was, I’d have to hope some interviewer asked her that question or I’d have to fork over 10 bucks at a book store (think Amazon but with walls) for her unofficial biography! Now, your favorite movie or tv star won’t shut up about the new Dr. Dre album on Twitter. It’s actually encouraging when most people openly embrace the transparency, even the President of the United States.
It’s not like popular music and the President haven’t ever mixed before. Bill Clinton performed a saxophone solo on the Arsenio Hall Show while campaigning, and Richard Nixon fought communism alongside Elvis Presley. But those historical events pale in comparison to what the American public was blessed with today: President Obama giving us his official list of Summer Jams today on the music streaming service Spotify. Not only that, he gave us TWO playlists, one for blistering Summer Days and another for cool Summer Nights.
The quality of the playlists is surprisingly great. A wonderful mix of genres and eras (It spans from the 1950s to the last few years). Crowd-pleasing all around, while not relying on generic pop standards that one might assume would be here.
I’ve always prided myself on the ability to put together the perfect playlist for just about any situation, but I’m honestly really jealous of President Obama’s ability to put together 20 songs that mesh so well together despite being a really mixed bag.
The White House now has an official Spotify account that you can follow, so I’m now hoping that whoever takes Obama’s place in January 2017 continues to provide the American People with the choice summer jams every year.
Now that I’m thinking about it, if the presidential candidates each provided their own 20 song playlists next summer, it would be the best possible way to win my vote (no Eagles, please!).
Obama’s Summer Day Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/user/thewhitehouse/playlist/4RGLH5YuS6ldp7aCKaTWas
Obama’s Summer Night Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/user/thewhitehouse/playlist/3fAriv8eMWELCwbWrhMKy2
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