Reflecting on a Year Through Some Really Great Music

When I posted my Top 9 Instagram photos of 2018, I was brutally honest.  It had not been a great year for me, and though my photos told a different story, I thought I owed it to myself to be honest about how I'd really been feeling.  Not everyone appreciated this, but I know it was the right move because it allowed me to start a conversation with myself which lead to a truly revolutionary 2019.

Looking at this year's Top 9, I know each smile, every laugh was born of genuine joy and pure happiness.  That's not to say that there weren't tears in 2019, but they were the tears of progress, growth, and big, structural life change.

Part of what helped me process this year was great playlists and records.  With each season of change, I found a new collection of songs to keep me company, pump me up, or just help me feel less alone.

As the year comes to a close I've been listening back through them all, and I thought I'd share them with you. Maybe you're stuck and looking for some purpose, maybe you're nosy and want to know what I've been feeling over the last year, maybe you just like really great music. Whatever the case may be, welcome to my mind.

I didn't stop with the honesty after my Top 9 post, but took some time to process and wrote Something's Missing, accompanied by So Far.

This, in conjunction with continuous listening to Kasey Musgraves' Golden Hour and Brandi Carlile's By The Way, I Forgive You got me through the first half of the year. I can't explain to you how critical their spirits were for me.

Then came summer and The Highwomen dropped their first single.  I spent the next month listening to Redesigning Women more than is healthy for any one person.  It brought me back to life and I created Women on High.

After a truly awful September, I got to go to the Roots n Blues n BBQ Festival in Columbia and actually see Amanda Shires and Maren Morris. The best part of that weekend was remembering how much I love live music and performance, in addition to getting up the nerve to say "fuck it" and attend the festival alone. One of the best decisions I made for myself all year.

After Roots n Blues, The National Reserve became the sound of my fall. Their chemistry on stage together is what dreams are made of; watching them, you can see the payoff of all the hours they've spent playing together, the joy they feel just jamming together. Driving around to their record makes me nostalgic for my early days in New York when I used to sing backup for bands in the West Village and Brooklyn. It lifts you up without letting you bypass the messiness of life, and that's what I craved this fall.

Come winter, I needed a creative project, and I wanted a way to share the stories and voices of the women who had buoyed me up throughout the year. Thus, Sister Songs was born.  It may sound silly to say I'm very proud of this playlist, but I haven't worked so hard on something or pushed myself creatively in this way since my music minor.  So I hope you'll indulge me.

As we wrapped up 2019 I needed some songs to keep me grounded and help me ease through the holiday season, a touchstone for when I felt myself spinning out of control. So I put together some Music for Right Now.

I can't say what will happen in 2020, where I'll be this time next year, but I know that if I keep leading with honesty and great music I'll be right where I need to be. Happy New Year, everyone! - xo Sydney