Hillary Clinton's Spotify playlist is here — and it's pretty boring
Hillary Clinton's campaign playlist isn't exactly edgy. It's definitely trying to cater to the youth vote — the oldest track is Jennifer Lopez's "Let's Get Loud," from 1999 — but Clinton sticks mainly to safe pop hits from the past few years, like Pharrell William's "Happy" and Katy Perry's "Roar." Two songs by American Authors, "Best Day of My Life" and "Believer," tilt more toward the mainstream indie crowd. Marc Anthony's "Vivir Mi Vida" might as well be the token track for the Latino vote.
Women are featured as vocalists on six of the 14 tracks. And, like Obama's playlist before her, Clinton steers clear of rap and hip-hop (then again, throwing a Kendrick track on her playlist might've been too edgy).
As Jim Farber at the New York Daily News notes, some of the songs' lyrics might unintentionally backfire:
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A failed marriage, a streak of jealousy, a lack of strong convictions. These aren't just poor personality traits — they're also themes on Hillary Clinton's iPod. […]"I'm a little bit jealous/I'm a little bit slow/I'm a little bit hurtful... I'm going nowhere," is one lyric from "Believer" by American Authors. [...]Another chosen ditty, Kelly Clarkson's "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)," opens, "You know my bed feels warmer/sleeping here alone." Jeb Bush could play that tune at his campaign rallies, too — to highlight Hillary and Bill's much-discussed marriage. [New York Daily News]
Okay, maybe that's a stretch. But it's about as much fuss as one can raise. Clinton's playlist is inoffensive to the point of dullness. Her fans are surely hoping her song selection won't be representative of her campaign. Listen to the playlist in full below. Jeva Lange
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
-
Political cartoons for January 10Cartoons Saturday’s political cartoons include a warning shot, a shakedown, and more
-
Courgette and leek ijeh (Arabic frittata) recipeThe Week Recommends Soft leeks, tender courgette, and fragrant spices make a crisp frittata
-
Trump’s power grab: the start of a new world order?Talking Point Following the capture of Nicolás Maduro, the US president has shown that arguably power, not ‘international law’, is the ultimate guarantor of security
-
The billionaires’ wealth tax: a catastrophe for California?Talking Point Peter Thiel and Larry Page preparing to change state residency
-
Hegseth moves to demote Sen. Kelly over videospeed read Retired Navy fighter pilot Mark Kelly appeared in a video reminding military service members that they can ‘refuse illegal orders’
-
Trump says US ‘in charge’ of Venezuela after Maduro grabSpeed Read The American president claims the US will ‘run’ Venezuela for an unspecified amount of time, contradicting a statement from Secretary of State Marco Rubio
-
Bari Weiss’ ‘60 Minutes’ scandal is about more than one reportIN THE SPOTLIGHT By blocking an approved segment on a controversial prison holding US deportees in El Salvador, the editor-in-chief of CBS News has become the main story
-
CBS pulls ‘60 Minutes’ report on Trump deporteesSpeed Read An investigation into the deportations of Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador’s notorious prison was scrapped
-
Trump administration posts sliver of Epstein filesSpeed Read Many of the Justice Department documents were heavily redacted, though new photos of both Donald Trump and Bill Clinton emerged
-
Trump HHS moves to end care for trans youthSpeed Read The administration is making sweeping proposals that would eliminate gender-affirming care for Americans under age 18
-
Jack Smith tells House of ‘proof’ of Trump’s crimesSpeed Read President Donald Trump ‘engaged in a criminal scheme to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election,’ hoarded classified documents and ‘repeatedly tried to obstruct justice’
