MY FAVORITE SONGS OF 2023

This past year in music, it reminded me of a time when I was a strange, awkward teen listening to AM radio in the 1970's. Back then it was common for stations to play all genres of music, tossed together indiscriminately, where it would create the ultimate pop music playlist. Over time, music became much more segregated but largely thanks to TikTok, we had a jumble of various sounds finding their way into our ears; classic soul, hip-hop, country, dance-pop, world music, Latin-pop, a bit of jazz and older music which were tunes that didn't receive much attention when initially released or songs that were popular years ago but have been rediscovered by a new generation. I really love this trend of as I don't believe that most people only listen to one style of music. The possibilities of discovery are endless, making this new year exciting and full of promise.

Here are a few songs that I loved that I didn't get an opportunity to share throughout the year:

RANDOM SIGHTS + SOUNDS

Normani is back with some new music and she's got Cardi B along for the ride. "Wild Side" is a smooth r&b ballad, backed-up by a sample of the classic 1996 song, "One in a Million" by the legendary Aailyah, that gives off a 90's trip-hop vibe yet still feels very modern. The song is enhanced further by an astonishing music video. With an incredible array of sexy outfits, stunning wild imagery throughout the clip and slick, sensuous choreography by Sean Bankhead, the former Fifth Harmony member finally has the perfect showcase to display her bountiful skills as a musician and performer, certainly helping to enable the artist reach a new level of success.



Speaking of the 1990's, enjoy a sampling of a few hits by r&b girl groups from the era:







Here is a random collection of recent songs and videos I'm digging right now:









And we have Lil Nas X back with his latest song, "Industry Baby". Despite the controversy involving the video for "Montero (Call Me by Your Name)" and the promotional "Satan Shoes", Nas is not backing down and pushes the envelope even further with the video for this song. It is set in a men's prison with Nas being sentenced for being gay. What we get is a very queer version of "The Shawshank Redemption" including a semi-censored naked shower dancing scene (which is choreographed by Sean Bankhead) and a guest rap verse by Jack Harlow: