March Playlist | 2018

It's 2 AM in the morning, 2nd of April and I'm up finishing up this playlist post before it's too late. And now that it's time to sum up my past month, I realized that it was quite an eventful one. I think I gave 110% of myself in March and I am so pleased about that. Maybe it was because I became a bit more organized thanks to my Daydream Planner, or just because I was running around like a headless chicken trying to be at 10 places at once. If I had to describe March in three words they would be parties, midterms, and FWSK (more about the last one soon).
And now, grab a cup of coffee/tea/water/alcoholic beverage and read (or should I say listen) about what I've been loving this past month.

If you're not from Macedonia (but even if you are) you might be a little puzzled by the first song I'm going to talk about today. I contemplated whether to put it on the playlist but I gotta stay true and share *ALL* the songs I've been loving throughout the month, so I present to you "Emil, Vrati Se" by Macedonian singer and actress Ana Kostovska, circa 1986. Yeah, I went there - both Macedonian and from the 80s. This whole thing started with me listening to the local radio stations more often, and this song was being played on repeat for some reason, which ended up with it being stuck in my head for days on end. Then, a really cool event started happening called MK Shlageri (click here for more info) and I fell even more in love with the song, but this also gave me a chance to reminisce on my childhood and other older Macedonian pop music (I used to hate it when I was little, but now I sing along to every word with so much joy). Another reason why this song needed to be featured on this playlist was that the band in which Ana was a part of called Bastion (huge in the 80s, with adoring fans still to this day) reunited and promoted their self-titled album on vinyl after 30 years of its initial release. Of course, I had to go to the release because all signs pointed that this was something I needed to do, and I had an awesome time listening to the music my parents loved when they were around my age. All of these little things combined make up a weird musical coincidence, but then again I don't believe in coincidences.

Going along with the 80s theme, but in 2017 I present to you "Girl Like You" by Toro y Moi, one of the grooviest songs I've heard in a while. When I listen to this I get nostalgic about a time when I wasn't even born yet, which is still so fascinating to me. It also immediately lifts up my mood, I swear this song is like auditory magic!

The Neighbourhood released their album this past month and I became an overly excited 16-year-old all over again. I love that they kept their signature style, but I find it a bit more experimental now, which I don't mind at all. I love when artists and their music grow together with their audience (as long as they don't change their sound 180 degrees). My favorites from the album so far are "Blue" and "Softcore".

Continuing the talk about Macedonian artists, Bobi Andonov released yet another *fire* song called "Smoke" (get my subtle pun there?). Jokes aside, it's amazing - nothing less was expected. I gotta say that his style is totally up my alley, the right amount of sultry mixed with a catchy pop/R'n'B sound. Can't wait to see what else he releases this year!

As time passes I find myself falling more and more in love with Mabel. She has those badass vibes that I aspire to also have, but until then I'll just admire her music. "Fine Line" is such a cool song, and the video for it is even cooler. If you're in the mood for some subtle reggae sounds mixed with pop then definitely, check it out.

Along the lines of badass women, my current obsession is Essy, formerly known as Sierra from the duo Alex & Sierra (bf/gf, won X Factor US, had a few singles out, broke up). I wasn't really that caught up with their past music, nor was I really affected by their break up, but for some reason, I searched up Sierra on Instagram and found out she started a solo career after a long time. What really stuck out to me was the fact that she felt like she couldn't make music without her partner anymore, but learned to move on with her life and channel her emotions into her music (which for me, is such a powerful decision to make). So, even before I heard "Don't Hurt" I knew I needed to support this girl for being so brave, and to my pleasant surprise, I listened to an incredibly catchy and sultry song. All I have to say is You go, girl!

"Good Together" is a really cool electropop song by Sara Hjellström also known as SHY Martin. I did a little research on this girl and she's a singer/songwriter and has written songs for artists such as Astrid S, Kygo and The Chainsmokers (she deserves a "You go, girl!" too). Besides this being a really cool song, it also has an amazing choreography video to go along with it, which I am a big fan of!

I think 8 songs are enough for this month haha. As always, click on the link HERE for the whole playlist on Youtube or on each individual title above. Happy listening!