A friend of mine recently asked if I could put a Spotify playlist together for him. He was hosting a small party at Julia Davis Park in Boise, ID for an organization he’s part of. His guests consisted of families, young couples, older couples and so on. He’s not a DJ, couldn’t hire one and had no idea how to entertain these people. I wanted to take care of him and knew this would be a great opportunity to build a playlist that nearly anyone could enjoy.
It also got me thinking about one of my favorite apps, Spotify. The one thing I really love about it is that there is SO MUCH music you can access. The problem is that it can be a bit overwhelming. I also find that the popular playlists are usually narrowed down to a specific genre. That’s great if I’m in the mood for a certain style, but can be problematic in situations like the one my friend was in.
I wanted to do something about it. I not only needed to help my friend out, but this was a great opportunity to make a playlist that entertained a diverse crowd. Is it perfect? No, and it never will be. Musical tastes are very personal and everyone has an opinion about what is good and what is bad. The idea wasn’t to make a playlist in which everyone likes every song. But, to create a playlist that is fun and acceptable for many people. For example, Uncle Joe might not particularly like the first couple songs, but tracks 3-5 are right up his alley. If I can create that experience for nearly everyone at an event then it’s a winning playlist in my eyes.
The Spotify playlist I created consists of Pop, Classic Rock, 60’s-2000’s Hits, Indie and more. As of right now, there around 100 songs and I plan to add more as time goes on. So, simply save the playlist, hit “shuffle” and you’ll be good to go!
Enjoy!
~DJ Eric Rhodes
