Well everyone, here we are, summer is upon us once again. And what a summer it will be! I asked the Mixed Mag staff to pick an album/song that they believe deserves to be blasted through the speakers this summer. Last year there was A LOT of good music being played, but unfortunately they didn’t have their time to shine. This is dedicated to all the songs that should be played at a rooftop bar, block party, and a dramatic and melancholy drive home from a fun night. Let this inspire the soundtrack to your summer…
- DO WHT U DO: Yoshi T.
This song was not only my Summer 2020 anthem but my number 1 song of 2020 as a whole. Wow, what a feel good anthem. Yoshi is not only one of my favorite musicians, but he is one of my favorite people on this planet, and boy did he DELIVER with this single. His soft vocals are supported by the incredible production (produced by Theo Rogers and mixed by Elijah Judah, two names you might as well learn now as they are on the rise to being music’s top producers).
This soft summer anthem is perfect for a tipsy rooftop moment, with the summer breeze caressing your skin and beautiful melody reassuring you that everything is alright. This song holds such a special place in my heart, and I hope everyone gets to take it out for a spin and share it with their friends. Also… shoutout to the album cover, picture taken by yours truly 😉 –Joana Meurkens (Artistic Director/Co-founder)
Listen to DO WHT U DO here: Spotify / Soundcloud
2. SUMMER ALBUM: Slime Language: Young Stoner Life, Young Thug & Gunna
SONG: Came and Saw feat. Rowdy Rebel
THIS ALBUM!!!! I love that we got a little Summer pre-game but honestly I envision myself driving into the city on a humid July night with friends, with the rooftop down and singing along to “Came and Saw”. This song screams NEW YORK SUMMER HEAT with the drill plus Rowdy Rebel on the track. This song is a Champion song about facing some real-ass challenges and still coming out a KING so with the return of New York City post-pandemic, it’s only appropriate that we all find time to blast this song while reminiscing all we’ve been through and celebrating our bad bitch selves. Like Rowdy says, “You cannot step to the steppers/You can’t put dirt on a n***a that’s clean!” –Kimber Monroe (Co-Founder/Director of Operations/Fashion Editor)
Listen to Slime Language 2 here: Spotify / Apple Music
3. Kiss Me More by Doja Cat Ft. SZA
Maybe this song is already going to be a summer anthem? Maybe it was released too early for it to be a summer hit? I honestly don’t know what the time frame is that makes a song a summer hit. All I know is that everytime I hear kiss me more I feel like dancing and due to being vaxxed I would most certainly like to dance to kiss me more at a bar or club.
Just imagining being at a bar or club or even an outdoor party, just being slightly drunk and hearing the first few chords of kiss me more start to play is definitely a little fantasy of mine that I would love to have happen this summer. I also know my drunk a** is not going to stop requesting this song, and for me a summer anthem is one that gets played nonstop to the point of death and annoyance. New York is returning so please for the love of God let me hear kiss me more a thousand times this summer or until I get bored of it…- Maya Renee Castro (TV/Film/Theater Editor)
Listen to Kiss Me More here: Spotify / Apple Music
4. Soweto Blues: Juls, Busiswa and Jaz Karis
My favorite songs right now are the ones that inject sweet melodic tones of Jazz into their own musical styles. Right now, no one does it better than British-Ghanaian record producer, Juls AKA Juls Baby. “Soweto Blues,” is a footwork-inducing, feel-good BOP that makes me feel liberated and makes me want to grab a random shawty on the dance floor and dance with her.
For the first minute or so, it just vibes–no words. “Come outside, let the darkness of the world escape your eyes” are the first words of the song…and by 2:47, you can hear the Soweto influence and I feel like I am at a DJ Ganyani, ready to fall in love.- Stephanie Eyocko (Food Editor)
Listen to Soweto Blues here: Spotify / Apple Music
5. Slide: Calvin Harris feat. Frank Ocean & Migos
I define the summer anthem first by its presence then by its pressure. I remember how this song flooded out of every cracked Sedan window, the way the opening keys trickled onto the carpeted dance floors of my college parties and soaked itself into the fabric like spilled Tequila. How my homies and I stepped into the darkness of a club with chains wrapped around our damp necks like armor, foolish yet fulfilled in our own vanity. The boy with a pipe was everywhere and so wherever it touched became sticky with summer, and I was in love with the heat. I’m not saying Slide deserves a summer because it already had one. I am only asking you to take me back, I want to put a spotlight on the slide one more time. – Tayo Omisore (Poetry Editor)
Listen to Slide here: Spotify / Apple Music
Check out more staff picks from previous issues:
Musicians That Bring You Comfort (Issue 6)
Best Albums of 2020 (Issue 5)