WKNC 88.1 FM - North Carolina State University Student RadioGreat tunes to add to your own playlists
Halloween: Costumes, candy, spooky movies and fun music.
I love Halloween. No contest, Halloween is my favorite holiday. As such, I always make a huge deal about it every year. I usually have several costumes ready for any eventuality, eat way too much candy, make all kinds of fun treats and snacks and, of course, I make a bomb playlist for my annual Halloween bash.
September: the official start of Fall. It’s that time again where I share my favorite songs for the month. I am quite proud of myself this month because I think I branched off of what I had been listening to the last couple of months.
Around the Fall time and transitioning into the Winter, I tend to move away from indie and low distortion/high reverb songs with the gentle or smooth vocals. I gravitate toward nu metal pretty religiously. Something about the colder, windier weather, the colors of the leaves changing, and the days getting shorter just calls for distortion and screaming for me.
That being said, I have curated another playlist for “DJ Dragonfly’s Favorites” and there is mostly nu metal. I have also included some grunge, of course, as well as some pop, rap, classic rock and so on. Some of these songs have explicit content, so fair warning to everyone.
Additionally, this time around I have a couple German songs. My regular readers would know that the middle of September until the first Sunday of October is Oktoberfest. Because of all the various playlists I have been making for personal use as well as sets on the radio, I have been listening to more German songs than usual.
I think the odd songs out in this playlist would probably be “The Largest” by BigXthaPlug, “Bad Romance” by Lady Gaga and “Walking On A Dream” by Empire Of The Sun. My friends have been playing “The Largest” and “Bad Romance” quite often lately for various reasons and so as a result, I have been listening to them more than usual. I have a soft spot for a couple of Empire Of The Sun songs and I guess that has bled through this month.
I hope everyone enjoys this month’s playlist.
— dj dragonfly
The leaves are turning, the air is chilling and people are wearing sweaters again. Out with the flip-flops and in with the fuzzy socks, it’s time for Fall.
I love Fall. I love Fall so much I wish it could be Fall all the time. Sadly, that’s not possible here in the great NC. That being said, I have decided to make a playlist full of Fall favorites (not a Halloween playlist) to make the season just right. **Warning: This playlist may contain adult material.**
Summer is officially coming to a close. I can’t speak for everyone but thank goodness. As I have stated previously, Summer is by far not my favorite season. This Summer in particular wasn’t pleasant.
Nevertheless, August has come and gone. We are stepping into the colorful embrace of autumn and with that comes the monthly “DJ Dragonfly’s Favorites.”
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I love a good cover song. There are so many different avenues an artist can take when they decide to cover a song. They can try to keep it as similar to the original song as possible or they can go a completely different direction. Some of my favorite covers have been changed so much that you can clearly see the artist’s personality.
Once again, we are at the tail end of a month. I can’t speak for anyone else but for me, July has been on the uphill in comparison to the rest of the summer. That being said, my music taste for the month has also been altered. While many of my favorites are still the same from last month, I have accumulated many others.
I think that my favorites from this month are a bit more well-known. I have some recent releases, classic oldies, and of course some songs from pop culture. My genres also cover a rather broad spectrum. Anything from classic rock with The Clash to indie with Flipturn and even some songs in other languages. Some of these songs have explicit content, so fair warning to everyone.
In a world where taste changes all the time, even day to day, I think it’s pretty cool to document the current favorites every now and then. Looking back at these old favorites can make us see the growth we have had as people. Another upside to these records is we might rediscover some gems that we might have forgotten about.
I am someone who loves to share and exchange music. I love discovering new artists and seeing who my friends like to listen to. Everyone’s music taste is different, I would find it difficult to believe that there could be two people with the exact same taste.
I love to expose people to new music and to my favorites and so I have made a playlist of my current favorite songs. I have to say there is some variety and I like to think that my music is fairly well-rounded but that is up to my readers to decide. Some of these songs have explicit content, so fair warning to everyone.
When we think of the legends of Rock n’ Roll, some of the names listed might be Elvis Presley, Jimi Hendrix, Robert Plant, Mick Jagger, Axel Rose, Slash, Eddie Van Halen, Jon Bon Jovi or Kurt Cobain. A simple Google search would show mostly men popping up. I checked and found only two results with any women. Unfortunately, this isn’t surprising. Music, especially rock, has tended to be a male dominated field.
“I grew up in a world that told girls they couldn’t play rock and roll.” – Joan Jett
Since her statement, there have been many noteworthy and successful women in the rock music scene. Sadly, there is still a long way to go. As a woman in the rock music scene, I find it particularly important to have someone to look up to and to be inspired by.
I made a playlist with some bands of various popularity and time periods who have women in strong roles. Many of these bands have women in the front-person or singer’s position but not all. I’ve included women as drummers, bassists, guitarists, keyboardists and even fiddle/violin players.
Content Warning: Some of these songs have explicit content
We all have our good and bad days. Some days, you feel like skipping down the street or singing in the shower while others make you feel like the whole world is against you.
Oftentimes when I’m feeling the former, I like to listen to happy and upbeat music. I like to be embraced and supported by similar energies. A good example of this would be “Walking On Sunshine” by Katrina & The Waves.
When it comes to feeling the latter, what should one listen to? If someone is sad and down in the dumps, should they listen to “Washing Machine Heart” by Mitski? Likewise if someone is upset or angry, should they listen to “Bleed the Freak” by Alice in Chains? Would it be better to listen to someone happy and upbeat to facilitate that emotion?
Sunscreen, cicadas, tan lines, and watermelon slices.
Summer at a quick glance is supposed to be a wonderful time filled with laughter and fun. School is out for most and this is the time when we go home to our hometowns and spend time with our old friends and family. Some of us get jobs too and some of us keep pushing through classes.