As a music lover – someone who seeks out emerging artists, consumes critics’ hot takes of new releases, goes to concerts everywhere from dive bars to stadiums regularly and is generally always listening to something – I am all about year-end “best of” album & song lists.
From Bob Boilen at NPR and Jon Caramanica for The New York Times Popcast, to Brooklyn Vegan and The Current, these round-ups remind me of music I loved, introduce me to music I missed and validate (or challenge) my taste. Finding out if their #1 matches my #1 makes me feel connected to the larger cultural conversation, part of the moment. I pride myself on being in the know about this stuff – it’s part of my identity, one of the last vestiges of my pre-parenthood lifestyle. Data about music? Totally in my wheelhouse.
So when my Apple Replay ’19 was ready, I clicked on the link eagerly, wondering which of my favorites from the past 12 months would rise to the top – betting on Vampire Weekend’s Father of the Bride or Solange’s When I Get Home. But maybe that phase when I pretended to get back into running would be reflected with Kanye’s Jesus is King and Tyler the Creator’s IGOR achieving rank. Or, was it possible I spent more time with Lana del Rey and Sharon Van Etten than I realized?
Well, all of these made an appearance on the list in some way shape or form. But the music that DOMINATED my 2019 was the soundtrack to the movie Sing.
Ah, yes, that beloved, animated tale from 2016 starring Matthew McConaughey as a koala who produces a singing competition. The dozens of songs featured in this jukebox movie range from Katy Perry’s Firework to Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah – and it’s become a minor obsession in my household thanks to our sweet (demanding) 2.5 year old. When not being requested for afternoon TV time, the soundtrack’s blasting in the kitchen during a post-dinner dance party or in the car on the way to….everywhere.
And that’s how my #1 most played song of 2019 wound up being Tori Kelly’s cover of Stevie Wonder’s Don’t You Worry ‘Bout a Thing.
So while my cool-mom status might not have been backed up by what I hoped to see revealed in the analytics, my toddler loves belting out Stevie Wonder’s uplifting lyrics – and that’s pretty cool.
All of this is to say: the numbers give you information, but they don’t give you the full picture. Let’s do the work to uncover the narrative behind the numbers.