As cliché as it sounds, it is once again that time of year! With Mariah Carey’s yearly defrosting, the abundance of Spotify Wrapped reposts on our feeds, and the typical “can we play Christmas music now?”, winter is here. In theme with the new season, our playlists shuffle anew, so let’s put on our headphones, press play, and take a listen inside Edison’s AirPods!
With 43 tracks by 44 artists, the playlist’s top genres were pop and rock. The most repeated artists were Lana Del Rey and Steve Lacy, seen on songs such as “Stargirl Interlude” and “Infrunami,” respectively.
Appearing on three tracks, Lana came out as the top artist. Her track “Buddy’s Rendezvous” with Father John Misty is theatrical, jazzy, and old-fashioned, made for a snowy night by the fireplace. In her famous 2012 cover of “Blue Velvet,” Lana is even more vintage-ly cinematic, with slow, dramatic vocals evoking the haziness of an old movie. “Stargirl Interlude” with The Weeknd is a more modern, dreamlike song, perfect for the reflection that comes with the end of the year.
Lana isn’t the only artist bringing us a mix of retro and contemporary music: the entire playlist is made up of old upbeat Christmas classics alongside current holiday pop music. Songs like Wham!’s “Last Christmas,” Mariah’s “All I Want for Christmas is You,” and Rick Reuther’s “Baby It’s Cold Outside” are just inseparable from the holidays. Justin Bieber’s “Mistletoe,” Ariana Grande’s “December,” and Sabrina Carpenter’s “Santa Doesn’t Know You Like I Do” are a more intimate take on the holidays, a balance of tradition with modern pop and playful romance.
The holidays wouldn’t be complete without some jazz. From legends Sinatra and Sade to modern artists like Silk Sonic (Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak’s musical duo) and Laufey, slow jazz is the epitome of a cozy holiday season.
Alternative contemporary pop also plays a huge role in Edison’s winter listening. Artists like Steve Lacy, SZA, Lana, Mac DeMarco, and The Marías all capture the emotional in-between that winter often brings. The holidays are associated with romance, relationships, and love; but for Gen Z, there can be a complicated disconnect and feeling of FOMO underneath it all. Songs like “Dark Red” (Lacy), “For the First Time” (DeMarco), and “No One Noticed” (The Marías) perfectly capture that feeling with their psychedelic dreamism. They’re slow, dreamy, and sad: perfect for staring out frosted windows and reflecting on the year.
That same nostalgia is what draws us toward 80s hits like ABBA’s “Fernando,” Cyndi Lauper’s “Time After Time,” and The Police’s “Every Breath You Take.” It’s not that these songs feel timeless; it’s that they don’t. Revived through pop culture moments like Stranger Things, these songs, with their old-school synths and earnest lyrics, have a comforting honesty from the past that’s hard to find now— yet something we all yearn for during the holiday season.
Our top picks from the playlist are “Early Winter” by Gwen Stefani and “About You” by The 1975. An 80s-inspired synth pop-rock song, “Early Winter” follows Stefani as she metaphorically compares the end of a relationship to falling leaves (hence, an “early winter”). A mix of Cyndi Lauper-esque vocals and 2006 new wave pop sensibilities, the song perfectly captures the reflection that comes with heartbreak, a mood amplified in the winter. Fun fact: “Early Winter” was co-written by Keane pianist Tim Rice-Oxley!
Blending dream pop, shoegaze, and a bit of pop rock, in “About You,” the band sings, reminiscing on a past toxic relationship. Although they want to leave their lover, they can’t simply because of the deep connection they have. Released in 2022, this song explores themes of love and resentment with a slightly downcast vibe.
Check out the EHS winter holidays playlist here.
