I believe this was the first song I saved to the 2026 summer's playlist. It was such an obvious choice, I'm not sure I even listened to it all the way through before adding it. Originally, I had grandiose visions of writing some groundbreaking thoughts about this song. Yet, as I listened to it over and over—waiting for the groundbreaking idea to come to me—I realized the simplicity of the lyrics was the groundbreaking idea. They were already saying exactly what I wanted to sa

There are songs you listen to, and then there are songs you live in. California Stars, by Wilco and Billy Bragg, built from the unfinished notebooks of Woody Guthrie, is the latter for me. I am a sucker for a good metaphor, and this song opens with one of the best: stars not as something you look up at, but as somewhere you can go. A bed. A place to lie down. That reframe gives me everything I need. Two Guitars Before the words even land, the song tells you how to feel throug

Have you ever noticed that sometimes the quickest way to make someone not do something is to tell them to do it? Tell me to "relax," and my nervous system immediately says, tenses up. "Absolutely not." It's the same reaction I have when someone says, "You should smile," or starts a sentence with, "Actually..." My whole body resists. So the first time I heard Julianna Calm Down by The Chicks, I had the same reaction. "Calm down? Excuse me?" But then I listened a little closer.