Music Is Magic: Curating a Road Trip Playlist to Awaken Connection
Genuine bliss washes over me when the perfect song crescendos into my ear and settles on my heart. The rise in awareness of the music rewires the soundtrack of my perpetual slice-of-life moments. You know those thoughtless and necessary moments that make up the majority of your life: Washing the dishes, running the 7th errand of the day, pushing through emails at your desk, commuting, or wherever your current scene takes you.
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When the perfect song roots in my brain, a transformation begins. In those few wide-awake minutes, the slothy mindlessness of the mundane in my life is paused. Time warps from sticky stop-motion to a dreamy, panoramic film as the new vibe kicks in. My heart and mind take snapshots with my ears and my eyes. I am suddenly awakened and snapped back into the moment. That momentary memory can be revisited again and again when the same soundtrack is played years later.
Music awes me. At its very core, music connects us to moments in time through the poetry of the lyrics, the emotion of the melody, and the rhythm of the beat. As films and movies allow us to see wider and deeper into slice-of-life moments, music is often part of the soundscape of our life’s soundtrack.
There’s music in my life nearly every minute of the day. I often wake up with a song in my head. Sometimes there’s a reason for the song, yet other times it feels very random. I let the song wander in my mind as long as the earworm would like to linger. Sometimes it fits the vibe of the day, and sometimes it leads down a rabbit hole of music I didn’t know I needed to hear.
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One of my favorite things in the world is planning and anticipating road trips. For each trip I’ve taken since my days of clipping a Walkman to my waist, a portion of planning has always involved making the perfect soundtrack for the adventure. As soon as a road trip is announced, one of the first steps for me is seeking out the musical vibe I sense for the experience. With eager anticipation, I begin curating music into a playlist.
Richly diverse as each of us, the world of music is a deep dive into an abyss of soundscapes that connects us to ourselves and to one another. We are drawn to what calls to us, to what awakens our senses to the presence of the moment. The magical thing about music is that without even conscientiously thinking about it, music supports our emotional world. It accompanies our experience.
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In my world, curating playlists has become a family affair. My children have been scooped up into the road trip playlist tradition. Since the day they started dancing, they have been choosing music to add to our lists. This has become an art and a practice in opening our hearts to one another.
Over the years, my husband has chosen fewer pieces of music to add to our lists. Maybe it’s the “DAD!” comments on his choices that hold him back. Tongue in cheek, there’s only so much “bawitdaba-da bang-da bang-diggy-diggy” headbanging we can take. We still enjoy his songs regardless of embarrassment. We’ve found ways to suck him back into the vibe.
In each mix, I always slip in tunes that I know he will love. In adding songs he also enjoys, we are drawn back together into the vibe of the moment. I sometimes see him drumming his fingers on his knee, or opening the window and letting the breeze blow through his hair while the music plays. Although he doesn’t say much, I see he is letting go of expectations and is quieting his busy mind for a while.
Taking time to see each other's bliss creates space to share moments like this together without a word, letting the music carry us away. To me, being present in the same moment and experiencing the music and the road trip scenery is a powerful accompaniment to our reconnection.
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Do you believe in magic? Curate a playlist for your next road trip.
If you’re a playlist aficionado, you likely have a method to your madness. But if your playlists feel like a hot mess, hang tight. My teen sons and I have a method for curating your perfect playlist.
Find the Vibe
We like to start with a song that drives the inspiration. When I ask the boys to help me start a new playlist, they always ask for the vibe or the inspiration. We each play the song that pops into our heads. This may take a few days to discover, but when one of us hears it, we know it, even with our different tastes in music. Each of our songs will be incorporated somewhere in the playlist as it comes together.
This process has become so joyful to me because it helps me pause and become immersed in the present moment. I let many various pieces of music shared by my boys wash over me and fill me with magic. The most heartwarming piece of this process is how sharing music together brings a meaningful connection between my teens and me.
Heat It Up with a Slow Burn
Like a film soundtrack, my sons and I agree the playlist feels best with an emotional slow-burn crescendo. Lift the music as you go. Think of it as a workout: warm it up, hit it, then chill.
Why give it a slow burn? In life, we don’t feel that just-right moment right away–we wake up to it. I add songs to my playlists that draw me in, building into the moment. And like a favorite slice-of-life film, I let the embers glow as the moment fades and the feeling is left to seep into the experience of my road trip.
After an inspirational piece of music is discovered, there are always other songs that have filtered into the back of our minds. Those are placed in the list as they flow into memory. We add songs, then synchronize them later.
If you’re struggling to find songs that fit, take a peek at your favorite radio station's current playlist on their website or social media. If you have a music streaming service, most will begin suggesting similar tempo songs. Take a look. It will help you keep the vibe flowing in the right direction. The inspiration will spark song ideas you may have forgotten.
The Middle Is Where It’s At!
Continue working towards the middle of the playlist–the pinnacle of reaching that emotional connection that inspired you to create the list. The middle may be where your inspirational song fits, or not. Keep your options open to place it in the perfect spot.
Once you reach the middle, keep up the tempo for 3-5 songs. Make ‘em dance! Let them feel you! Aim to hear them say, “This is my jam!” Then begin tapering it down once again. Let’s be honest, in my 20s I used to be able to dance all night. Now I gotta cool down before bed somehow.
Long Live Dad Jokes!
And those embarrassing dad songs? Add those surprise tunes where they fit the tempo, generally in the first third and the last third of the playlist. Dad will not feel forgotten and will be headbanging in no time!
The final audiophile step is previewing your playlist for synchronicity. Feel free to play around by reordering the songs. Let your playlist tell a story. You’ll know when it feels right–The songs will flow together. And if they don’t? Play with the order until it matches your emotions. The brilliance of playlists is that they are a work of evolution, just like you.
Elaine Benes Can’t Dance
Have you ever seen an impressive cheerleading team competition where they play snippets of songs and then rapidly shift to another song just as you were getting into the vibe? It makes me wanna move like Elaine. That’s a hot mess of a collaboration.
The key to avoiding a hot mess playlist that hits and misses from song to song? Sync with the sentiment of the lyrics, tempo, and on-point rhythm–especially if your crew is inspired by a variety of genres. You don’t want to create the Elaine Benes dance of playlists.
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Music gives you the freedom to feel cool and whole once again.
Whatever your vibe, lean into the magic and fun it creates. Hearing tunes brings you into the present moment with those you love, opens your mind to old and new memories, and tenderly feeds the desire to let go of your worries. Music mirrors emotions in ways we cannot fully describe through language. It is a magical anchor between our hearts and minds supporting us as we traverse the emotional planes of our lives.
What’s playing on your soundtrack? To hear a selection of our family playlists, visit our Spotify profile.