1. Pop Smoke — Shoot for the Stars, Aim for the Moon

My favorite album of the summer and quarantine has been “Shoot for the Stars, Aim for the Moon” by Pop Smoke. Not only is he an amazing artist but he knows how to create music for any vibe. He had been a sensation in 2019 when I first discovered him. He immediately blew up when he released his album “Meet the Woo.” He built a fan base very quickly. It was like a wave of people starting to love his music and he would be played at everything from parties to just car rides with your friends. It made a lot of people connect because everyone could share good music. Unfortunately he passed away on February 19. It was a Sunday morning and when I woke up everyone was talking about it. He was shot and robbed. It’s so devastating because he just became famous and was building a platform. That death was what anyone was talking about for the next few months and made 2020 worse than it already was. This meant we were never gonna get new music from him ever again. It’s like saying your favorite candy that you ate everyday was never going to be sold again. But luckily he had one more unreleased album that he recorded. It was dropped by his managers. We got to listen to new content of his for the last time. It blew up so quickly and everyone still plays the album to this day. My favorites on the album are “Enjoy Yourself” and “The Woo.” And we’ll never get someone as unique as him back. — Emily Ammar ‘22

2. Bad Bunny — YHLQMDLG

So throughout this whole quarantine I’ve been listening to one specific album on repeat, YHLQMDLG by Bad Bunny. At first it looks like he just smashed the keyboard and that was his album but it’s actually an acronym for “yo hago lo que me da la gana” which translates to “I do whatever I want.” Throughout the album Bad Bunny collabs with many artists, one of them being Daddy Yankee. While the songs are very rhythmic and have a nice beat to them, some of the songs have started a bit of controversy in the Latin community. The reason being is that in the Latin community, machismo is set really heavily in its roots where older generations are more conservative, “traditional” and set with gender norms. However Bad Bunny is known for wearing nail polish and sometimes acrylics and bashes these traditional roles. With “yo perreo sola” he created a music video which caused even more controversy since he crossdressed as a woman. However in the music video himself he sends a message at the end saying that “if she doesn’t want to dance with you, respect her decision, she dances alone.” The music video also features women from all different backgrounds. His music inspires others and bashes gender norms plus his music is very good which is why his album has been one of my favorites this quarantine. –Kiara Cordero ‘21

3. Porter Robinson — Secret Sky Set, May 9, 2020

Personally I listened to a few different artists and a few different songs, all of which made quarantine life a bit more bearable, the ones on this list are the songs (or artists) that stuck out to me the most over quarantine. First of there are four songs from an artist called Porter Robinson that I love, First one is called “Goodbye to a World.” It falls under the category of electronic music, and it is a very beautiful track that always makes me feel happy and warm inside when I listen to it. The next song from him is called “Something Comforting” and it is also a very beautiful and warm track.  It reminds me of a warm and windy summer day with my friends. It sounds like the memory of a good time if that makes sense (probably doesn’t). The third song by porter is one called “Shelter” and honestly I’m not entirely sure how to explain this one. It is like hanging out with your best friends on a sunny spring afternoon just doing anything that feels fun. The final song  is called “Mirror” this one feels very difficult to describe however I will try, this song feels as if you have had a very bad day but then go to your “happy place” or a mirror world, a happier one where we could live in peace. Essentially it feels like you are walking alone on a fall afternoon by yourself, and that you are thinking about your past actions and all the sad and happy times all at once and make peace with it. –Jakob Teixeira ‘22

4. Lucy — PANORAMA

My favorite album during quarantine would have to be the PANORAMA by Lucy. First off, some background info, Lucy is a 4 member k band, that debuted on May 8. They all participated in the survival show JTBC SuperBand. The title track “Jogging” is such a refreshing summer song with amazing violin skills that drives the song. The vocals blow me away every time when listening to it. The b-sides are as good as the title track, each song on the album is supposed to represent a time in the day. For example, “Jogging” is meant for early morning to get you pumped up for the rest of the day. “Watermelon” is meant for lunch, “Straight line” is meant for the afternoon, “Missing Call” is about sundown, “Enough” is meant for after sunset, and “Flare” is about a night festival. By far my favorite b-side is definitely “Missing Call.” The artist was going for a city pop vibe which they definitely nailed. It also features another artist named Suran, her voice combined with the main singer’s voice absolutely completely this song. Every song on this album fits so well with the theme of summer, definitely my favorite album of the summer. –Abel Salazar ‘22

5. Polo G — The Goat

My favorite album of quarantine was “The Goat” by Polo G. His music gets me in a different and better mood. His rapping is all true, he speaks from the heart and I just feel the connection to his lyrics. My favorite song on the album is probably “Wishing for a Hero.” It’s kind of a remix of Tupac’s song “Changes.” The song actually speaks a lot about what’s going around in this world.  –Devin Rowe ‘23

6. Hyakkei — Standing Still in a Moving Scene

One of my favorite albums during this quarantine was one made by a japanese band. The band is called Hyakkei, and the album is called “Standing Still In A Moving Scene.” One of my friends actually showed me this and we’ve listened to it together a couple times. The band doesn’t actually do any singing or rapping, because the album is just kind of like instrumentals. They use many different instruments but the guitar they use is what I adore the most. Listening to this album in the background, no matter what you’re doing, makes it a very peaceful time. Even though I’m not Japanese, I listen to a bunch of Japanese music. I don’t mind not understanding what they’re saying as long as I like the melodies and cadences of the song. However with Hyakkei, I don’t have to worry because it’s just instruments anyway. I also really love the title of the album, because it makes me picture a cool scene in my head and I think it just sounds cool in general. They definitely get extra points for that. Overall, I really love this album, it makes me feel good and it’s very tranquil. I would recommend it to people who love songs with no words. –Ronnie Nolan ‘21

7. G Herbo — PTSD

  This summer been crazy ever since covid-19 started and not being able to do stuff that we want. Throughout the summer I listened to many different music such as rap and soft music. My favorite album that had dropped this summer was PTSD by G Herbo. The reason I like this album is because I can relate to the songs and they have meaningful messages. This music helps me out with my anger and makes me feel more confident when I am working out and stuff. Music brings you in your own little world  and helps you with stress and heartbreaks . Music brings me inner peace and cools me down. –Rodney Mendes ‘21

8. Kehlani — It Was Good Until It Wasn’t

“It Was Good Until It Wasn’t” by Kehlani saved a lot of girls’ broken quarantined hearts. I listened to a lot of music these past few months. Music and the new album drops saved many students throughout this lonely time of quaratening. Some students had it harder and had to stay home, couldn’t even go outside, or grocery shopping. Music was the only way we were connected to the world or at least felt like it. –Kemilly Pinto ‘21