I matched with a girl on Hinge and immediately started talking about music. I gave her a playlist challenge and decided to throw the challenge out to my friends over Twitter. As a result, I deleted Hinge along with my minimal desire to online date. The challenge is as follows:

• Curate a playlist that describes your personality

• 12 song limit

• Title must be included

• Any streaming platform is welcomed

Falling Off the Cone - Playlist Breakdown

• SPRORGNSM - Superorganism
  Superorganism is one my favorite bands to come out of 2017. The leader singer, Orono, is an angsty Japanese sad girl who met a bunch of European musicians over an online music forum. After the musicians sent Orono a music sample, she circled it back with lyrics within an absurd amount of time (somewhere near an hour?) and Superogranism was born.
  This was the first song that came to mind when I started gathering songs for this playlist because of it’s eccentric style. There are odd noises included which adds to the song’s flare which I am attracted towards. The angst filled lyrics are clearly written by the lead singer. At heart, I’m still an anxiety riddled high school student who wants to be left alone in his room at the end of the day with a journal in hand listening to The Smiths or The Pixies. Isn’t that what everyone still does anyway?

• Disco Yes - Tom Misch
  Ahh yes Mr. Tom Misch. Easily one of my favorite artists to groove to in my bedroom on a Friday Evening. His jam session from Soulection is my most watched video of year. And his NPR Tiny Desk performance is worth watching to see him groove in an acoustic setting.
  Disco Yes is one of those songs I never get tired of hearing. My mood instantly shifts whenever it comes on, infecting me with an urge to dance even if I’m on Muni. I heard this live once and I hope I get to hear it again.

• Kids -Rich Brian
  I reached out to Seki after first hearing this song. I was absolutely mind blown over this one line:

  “I won’t lie/This shit is fun/Tell these Asian kids they could do what they want”
  Imagine being an Asian American teenager in today’s world. Imagine having an icon like Rich Brian in the media inspire you at a young age showing you that the sky’s the limit. Rich Brian’s rise to fame over the internet is bafflingly unreal. Kids might feel like a victory lap due for his recent success but that couldn’t be farther from the truth. He’s just getting started with his career in America and there’s more work to be done. Shoot, I’m in my midtwenties and I’m inspired by him.

• With You (Jai Wolf Remix) - Dirty South
  This is the first song Jai Wolf usually plays during his live sets but with an orchestral twist to it. His live edit is the reason why I started listening to this song more and more. This is one of those songs that I can’t not dance to when I hear it. My head is bobbing at minimum if I’m somewhere in public.
  Jai Wolf is arguably at the top of the list of my favorite EDM artists. I’ve had the opportunity to see him perform in intimate settings at the Ace Hotel back in 2015 when he was more prominent as a Soundcloud artist. Watching him develop as an artist inspired me in ways I can’t put to words. Jai Wolf, Louis the Child, and Manila Killa were my favorite artists that I personally felt connected to from 2015-2017. This was a time during their rapid music career progressions similar to my own (non-musical) career. Growing with your favorite artists is a concept I still can’t fully describe.

• BDE Bonus - Mac Miller
  Mac Miller epitomizes my high school music taste. His recent passing struck a cord internally to the point where I had to excuse myself from my desk at work to silently mourn in the bathroom stall. He was one of the first artists I connected with personally. I rooted for him throughout the years, wishing him the best despite wearing his troubles physically. After his NPR Tiny Desk came out, something was off. A month later he was in the ground. 

  BDE (aka Best Day Ever) is a song about hope on an exhausted day. Mac’s success wasn’t handed to him on a silver platter. His work ethic was the contributing factor that brought him a cult fanbase. At young age he was a dreamer and he inspired a generation of rap fans with this one song, myself included. 

• Luv (sic) - Nujabes ft. Shing02
  The Luv Sic series by Nujabes and Shing02 could be on this list but part 1 stands out to me. The two lines in the chorus describing the feeling of speaking of love to musical rhythm is a meta piece of poetry I greatly appreciate. I have the writing skills of a 10th grader and my understanding of love is undesirable. Combine both of them together and you’ll have a mediocre tumblr post from 2011. Luv Sic is a beautifully written allegory about falling in love with music from Shing02’s perspective. My own love story with music is like the Nick Jr. version and this one airs on Nick at Night. I love music and if I were to ever write a love story about it, this song and series would be a primary source of inspiration.

• Pantera - Kartell
  I honestly can’t say that French House music is a representation of my personality but it’s a side of my music taste I continue to explore. Following European artists like Kaytranada, Darius, FKJ, led me to discovering Kartell on Spotify. The groovy tone makes it easy to listen to at any time of day. Hearing Kartell out on a late night excursion is included in my ideal night out but that won't happen here in the states. Maybe back in LA but for sure not in SF. This one remains on the list because I think it represents the tip of the iceberg for the future of my music findings.

• I Wanna Go - Summer Heart
  i highlighted I Wanna Go in my recently finished book. I took a photo back in 2014 that resembled the emotion behind this song, strung out vocals mixed with a nostalgic undertone that resembles a fond summer memory. My college roommate showed me this song unknowingly striking an internal emotional chord that still vibrates today.
  I love this song. This song will remain one of my favorite songs over time and maybe in a decade it will still be my favorite song.

• San Francisco Street - Sun RaiI live in San Francisco right now but the music video was shot somewhere down the 101 or 405 in Los Angeles. Both aspects converge into a spot on this playlist since I’ve lived in both locations.

• Lights Out, Words Gone - Bombay Bicycle ClubI met a girl my freshman year of college who was obsessed with Bombay Bicycle Club. This was my first introduction to good music outside of the overplayed radio hits I was familiar with. The LA native raved about the lead singer’s unique vocal abilities so much, I attended the free concert BBC played for UCLA in the quad during lunch one day. I just so happened to be carrying my camera when I arrived at Bruin Plaza and made my way to the front to snap some photos of the band. My photos eventually made my way to their tumblr page, but because my tumblr was quietly murdered, all of my photos were removed as well.
  Lights Out, Words Gone is one of two songs I distinctly remember from that day. Hearing the groovy bass lights a small flame of happiness inside of me because I can hear the sounds of a good memory that hasn’t faded one bit.

• Sunday Candy - Donnie Trumpet & The Social Experiment
  This was the first song to be released from one of my favorite projects involving Chance The Rapper. I think I’ve played this song delightfully every Sunday since its release. Chance poetically wrote this for his grandmother in the most endearing fashion.
  I stanned Chance from 2013-2017 and I still do, just not as much. I firmly believe our music tastes evolves over time. I don’t listen to rap music as often as I did but I still listen to Chance when I’m in the mood. I still love this song and can rap almost every word. Plus I love my grandma, Does that count as a personality trait?

• House of Gold - Twenty One Pilots
  The first time I heard Twenty One Pilots, I was hooked on their experimental catchy songs from Vessel. Their Wikipedia page categorizes their music as “Schizo-pop”. Can’t argue with that description. I was fortunate enough to see them in 2014 with a friend for my 20th birthday. Easily one of the most wildest concerts I’ve attended. Tyler Joseph climbed to the balcony in a ski mask hoodie while the drummer floated through the crowd on a plank with his drumset on the platform. I thought i was going to sprain an ankle.
  House of Gold made this playlist because it’s a song Tyler Joseph made for his mom. I love my Hawaiian mom and the ukulele in the song reminds me of her. I resonate with the lyrics and the entire message he’s sending with the song. Vessel is one of my favorite albums to this day (on my top 10 favorite albums list) and this is my favorite song from the album. The music video is quite entertaining as well. In fact, go check it out here.