TUESDAY TUNES: Songs for Midnight
Welcome to Tuesday Tunes, our monthly series bringing you songs to match whatever challenge or triumph you may be facing as you navigate life in your twenties.
2018 was terrible and beautiful.
For me, this year was one with a lot of heartbreak. My family was rocked by the onset of a long-term illness. My friends in different cities felt so far away. My wonderful job burned me out. I overstretched my own boundaries and then isolated myself to compensate. I didn’t show up for people. I cried a lot. It was a year that I won’t be sorry to kick to the curb.
But, as with all hard times, 2018 was not without its good. I laughed really hard sometimes. I fell in love in Brooklyn and Connecticut and North Carolina. I helped create more books and continued the work I love to do. I held my friends’ hands and cried on their shoulders. I started to repair broken things. I did show up for people—I think, I hope. There was joy, even in small ways and small moments, moments that I’m still clinging to as the clock counts down on the year.
I didn’t just feel one way this year. I can’t fit these twelve months neatly into one emotional box. My joys were tinged with sadness; my pain was its own kind of refining fire. For everything I felt, for everything I suffered and everything I loved, I want to walk into 2019 sharper and shimmering for it. And I want my New Year’s Eve, and yours, to be about all of that.
Here’s to one last night of feeling everything, at least for this year. Here’s to the fires we walked through and the infernos ahead. Here’s to the love and laughter we experienced and all that’s still to come. And, of course, here’s to good music. No matter what you’re feeling on December 31st, I hope some of my favorite tracks of the year can be your background.
“2009” // Mac Miller
For the nighttime nostalgia that descends after your first glass of wine and before you put your party dress on. After Mac Miller’s passing this fall, I was struck by how thoughtful this track felt, like the slow unfolding of growing up. Catchy, reflective, and an homage to an artist whose beginnings we’d only begun to see.
“What I Want” // The Band CAMINO
When you’re trying to shake off the melancholy so you can get out the door and socialize, the best medicine is a song that is equal parts emotional and energetic, something you can sing out loud to but not mess up your makeup crying. “What I Want” is that song.
“Party for One” // Carly Rae Jepson
If you’re still thinking of Carly Rae in terms of “Call Me Maybe,” then a) you are late and b) you are wrong. This latest single will light up your NYE gathering and get everyone dancing, plus make you feel as confident as you deserve to.
“Lovers” // Anna of the North
It’s 11:59, you’ve made your way over to that cutie smiling across the room, and let’s be honest, you’re ready to take chances and make out. Grab your Peter Kavinsky, hot tub not required (but totally recommended).
“I Won’t Run from It” // Big Red Machine
For starting clean, chasing dreams, and ending one night so a brand-new day can start. “Give it a minute; we’re dancing in it.”
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Melissa graduated Boston College in 2016 with a double major in English and philosophy. She loves Ultimate Frisbee, Hamilton, Harry Potter, and ice cream, and thinks most problems can be solved with a nap, an iced coffee and the right Spotify playlist. She hopes to work in publishing.