Nicole:
The only way that we can truly summarize our college experience is by exploring the music that’s been the soundtrack to it all. From chaotic late-night fire alarms to many floor-time sessions, our playlists became the soundtrack of our friendship and everything we went through together these past four years as roommates. So, here are the albums, songs, and oddly specific playlists that got us through each year:
2021
Our first ever playlist together we called, “STEMINISM”. The vibes are very upbeat and cool girl, but looking back on it, kind of still nerdy. With overarching songs from Fall Out Boy, Penelope Scott, and Lizzo, it provided us the perfect playlist for Gen Chem 1.
“everyone say thank you erin” was our second playlist together. It was created during a CVS run (because where else would inspiration strike?), and this playlist is pure sentimental chaos. The cover photo is the one and only time we got locked out together, also known as, our strongest bonding moment.
Our next playlist together was called “bajaha”. We were regulars in the BAJA Club, and we thought it was hilarious that “baja” sounded like “haha”, and I’m 90% sure this playlist was made as we walked out of Humphreys for the third fire alarm in one night. It’s got everything from the Brother Bear soundtrack to Bo Burnham to the Trans-Siberian Orchestra. Very chaotic playlist for very chaotic circumstances.
At the start of our college career, we made it our mission to attend as many EC events and concerts as possible. One of the first shows we went to was The Front Bottoms, but there was their opener, Sydney Sprague, who completely stole our hearts. We’d never heard of her before, but by the end of her set, we were obsessed. After the show, we bought matching shirts for her album, maybe i will see you at the end of the world. The best part is that we bought them directly from Sydney and her band. They were so kind and genuine, and that night turned into one of our favorite college memories. This album is a must-listen.
Erin:
For all the incoming first year students starting to meet other students on the “Class of 2029” Instagram and Facebook pages — be ready for the barrage of awkward questions. “What’s your major?”, “Where are you from?”, “Are you looking for a roommate?”, and my personal favorite: “What kind of music do you listen to?”
When I asked this question, it spurred an awkward conversation about the Dear Evan Hansen musical with my future roommate and eventually resulted in us seeing the show together in 2022 — so the question works! In this advice column, we will reflect on the last three years of Spotify playlists, impose our incredible mutual taste on the masses, and tell you what music you should grace your ears.
2022
If you like indie rock music I cannot recommend The Happy Fits enough — and this is exactly what I did sophomore year to anyone who would listen. One of these people was Nicole – and we even ended up seeing them in New York in December of 2022. Bonus band: if you like an indie/rock vibe and like bands made up of Stevens students, then you would love Phoneboy. They started at Stevens in 2018 and opened for The Happy Fits on their tour.
2024
No crashout is complete without a crashout playlist. Like most people making it through the college experience, junior year was just one long crashout that resulted in a lot of time on the floor eating ice cream. This resulted in the Spotify playlist “FLOOR TIME” featuring such gems as “September” by Earth, Wind & Fire, Pitbull’s “Fireball”, and “Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)” by ABBA (but the Mama Mia soundtrack version of course).
This has been a reflection of a cohabitation and the music it brought with it. We hope we gave you some good music to listen to and follow us on Spotify!
