Spotify Wrapped with the Emotional Context

In this wrapped, we fully acknowledge that our app provided you an escape from your inner demons.

In 2019, your sounds changed with the seasons! 

Winter: You know, the season with the snow and seasonal depression (Elliott Smith, Courtney Barnett, Radiohead, Post Malone)

Spring: The one where April showers bring not hearing back from any employers (Big Little Lies Soundtrack x 4) 

Summer: The hot and humid one with no travel stipend and a full-time unpaid internship (The Smiths, Weezer, Ariana Grande once, The Cure)

Fall: The one with the leaves and early seasonal depression (Daniel Cesar)

One lucky artist was your #1 for every moment you couldn’t be with yourself (James Blake)

You listened to them for however long Ramadan was this year (29 sunrises and 29 sunsets)

Your favorite song to listen to instead of making eye contact with that person on the subway (I’ll Come Too)

Maybe let [James Blake] know you paid them $0.0038 per insecurity. Say thanks on Twitter!

The top experiences you were scared of confronting were: 

1. Closure from a previous relationship (Bon Iver)

2. Your sexuality (Lizzo)

3. Letting go of a past self (Coldplay)

4. Your religious upbringing (Billie Eilish)

When it comes to people you shut out of your life, borders disappeared. You didn’t respond to texts, WhatsApp calls, or FaceTime from 62 friends. 

You were in your head for all 5 genres you listened to. You refused to let one coping mechanism define you. 

The top songs you escaped to when the going got tough (Literally any album by Enya)

Get your  “THE GOING GOT TOUGH, AND I GOTTA GET GOING” playlist.

Your top podcasts you can’t remember anything from (The Daily, This American Life, Stuff You Should Know, Ted Talks Daily)

You spent 136 minutes listening to the same two minutes of The Daily played over and over again, cause you couldn’t stay focused.

Thanks for blocking out any thoughts with us since 2012.

The 2010s would have been the same with or without you. Our Discovery Weekly is an aloof algorithm. NEVER FORGET THAT. 

Look at this CUTE graphic that proves how many minutes you’ve spent anxious. Now, come to terms with the fact that despite thinking you were happier than in previous years, your sad-minutes were pretty much just as impressive this year as they were last (55,061)

The music that kept you from yourself this decade (Sara Bareilles)

We’re so thrilled that our student rate for escapism is more accessible than the prohibitive cost of therapy!

Woman asks owner ‘what kind of dog is it?’ Knowing full well it was a god-damn Golden Retriever

15th floor- I enter.

I know I have 14 floors to make it to my sweet and beloved ground floor, ideally without bumping into any of my fellow condo-dwellers. But I know this is a Herculean task. It is 8:30AM.

13th floor - Woman and dog enter.

I know exactly what I’m looking at, but I’m trying to use Brené Brown’s power of vulnerability to say something more meaningful like what are some of your goals this summer? Instead, out of fear of silence, I say,

“What kind of dog is it?”

The lady says, “A golden retriever,” probably thinking I got my keys to planet Earth just yesterday. 

C’mon, of course I know what a golden retriever is, I have one I’m neglecting in my own apartment.

12th floor - Silence.

11th floor - Silence grows louder.

I’m so uncomfortable and the pup can sense it. I swear I saw its paw pull at its collar like yikes, tough crowd. I can barely breathe. I blurt out,

“Is it a he or she?”

“He.” 

“No way!” While in my head I think, of course way! I saw its little dog weiner when it came in. 

10th floor- Runner enters.

Phew… now I’m not the only one responsible for making conversation. Let’s see what he’s got.

9th floor- Silence.

I can’t take it anymore. 

“Going for a run?” I ask. 

He’s wearing running shorts, running shoes, and a shirt that says 10K.  I think the K stands for Kill me right here, right now. 

“Yep,” he says. 

8th floor- Door opens, no one enters.

I try the only thing within my power to make this ride go any faster. I spring for the ‘door close’ button, but my finger hits floor 3 by accident. Welp, that’s it! Now I have to get off at 3, because it would be too embarrassing to admit I’m a human.

I want to take the dog’s squirt bottle and spray myself with it. Bad girl, bad!

6th floor - No one enters.

“Almost Friday!” I cry out. 

It’s Monday. I’m a wreck.

5th floor - Woman enters.

I can’t keep my mouth shut,

“Is it supposed to rain today?”

I’M LITERALLY WEARING A RAIN JACKET

Everyone politely nods. 

FUCCCK ME.

The humiliation causes me to slip in an out of consciousness and I try to fix my eyes on something to regain balance. I look at the ‘maximum capacity’ and I’m not sure if it says ‘900kg or 3 people who have nothing in common.’

4th floor - Man enters. 

I’m drowning in embarrassment and grasping at anything to stay alive. “Did you watch the game?”

“Which one?” he says.

3rd floor- My forced exit.

As the doors open, I can see my refuge at the end of the hallway, the emergency staircase.

As the elevator doors close, I faintly say:

“The one where the team won,”

I know that doesn’t make sense but I’m finally comfortable cause the silence of a staircase is one I can live with.

The Difference Between White Names and Ethnic Names

The Difference Between White Names and Ethnic Names

Mirlande: A Black colored bird, a shining sea

Denise: A lady who rings through an amazon gift card, but forgets to activate it 

Aabhavannan: Light; also means torch bearer who brings light

Jess: A girl I met at a 2009 NYE party and kissed

Nadzieja: Filled with hope

Trevor: Always applies with the same cover letter 

Jiang: Flowing river with a constant speed

Veronica: Girl I gave one of my spiked seltzers to

Ajani: He who wins the struggle

Craig: Unfortunate hairline but enough confidence to overcome it

Dzidzorli: There is happiness

Seth: Severe halitosis

Ezekiel: A person who is made stronger by God

Trish: Always talking about a recent New Yorker article

Vilis: Helmet of determination

Miranda: The queen of the run-on-sentence

Nozomi: Reliable, dependable, trustworthy

Brandon: Told me my laptop is no longer under Applecare

Anahera: Majestic and powerful angel

Francine: Over-pronounces the word croissant

Eda: A wealthy guardian angel who is well mannered; to strive for wealth

Monica: Always buys the wrong glasses

Tigran: Shooting or fighting with arrows

Jess: Girl I kissed at 2010 NYE party

Dzsenifer: A small sea

Ross: Rolls the worst joints

Aahana: Inner light; Immortal; First rays of the sun

Wanda: Landlord does not want her to re-sign lease

Farvardin: One who protects the good and the pure

Mark: Invented the term “okay that was a practice round, now let’s play for real!”

Jemisha: Monarch of the night or queen of the darkness

Gwen: Bad at long distance relationships

Druk: Thunder dragon

Tilda: Always finds a way to bring conversation back to her one semester abroad

Caihong: A rainbow in the sky

Sean: Forgets to click ‘agree to the terms and conditions’ before connecting to hotel wifi

Onni: Windfall, godsend, cheerfulness, pleasure

Michael: Bullied for his rattail in elementary school but now you realize it was character building

Maali: To be blessed, sanctified

Melissa: Gives the worst Powerpoints

Amr: A companion and a friend for life who lives a very long life

Jess: She looks familiar? Well it’s a 2011 NYE party, it’s probably Jess

Judea: Kind to others, believe in charity, nobel, blessed and honored by others

Jess: It’s not my best relationship but it works