Courtesy of Rent A Swag

Tom Haverford, mogul extraordinaire, once said, “Every song I download has to pass a series of rigorous tests to answer one simple question: is it a banger?‰” No matter who you are or what you do, situations arise more often than not that require a killer bangers playlist. Even though I‰’m a grandma and know a minimal amount about what‰’s cool, I feel it‰’s necessary for me to share my meticulously crafted playlist and draw up a roadmap for creating your own.

Imagine yourself in a situation: you and a few friends are getting in an uber to the club/party and the driver offers the aux cord. By some divine power it lands in your hands, yet you have nothing prepared. All of your friends like different music so you have no idea where to start. Suddenly Becky takes it from you, starts playing her favorite country song, and the mood is instantly ruined. With a prepared banger playlist, you can be the hero of the group and prevent Becky from killing everyone‰’s vibe.

Of course it‰’s hard to please everyone, but there are cardinal rules that can guide you in the right direction. Let me refer back to Tom Haverford and his essential qualifying questions. “How many beats per minute? How many drops? How dope are the drops? Are there any acoustic instruments used? if so, it‰’s not a banger.‰” Taking these into consideration as well as the study of universal “good time‰” tunes, I‰’ve figured out a formula of the best types of music to play for maximum hype–and oh yes, this is definitely as serious as I‰’m making it out to be.

Let‰’s get into it:

Track 1: Emphasize beats per minute with the first song since it sets the mood for the rest of them. Definitely keep it upbeat and strive for the “oh shit‰” factor (it‰’s the best feeling when you play a song and everyone positively reacts). Your best bet would be a song that‰’s decently popular at the time.

My picks: Jumpman – Drake and Future, Truffle Butter – Nicki Minaj, Drake, Lil Wayne, 679 – Fetty Wap

Track 2: This is a good time to play an EDM song with a really cool drop that will make everyone want to dance. My favorite genre to play is trap because it‰’s not as chill as house but not as seizure-inducing as dubstep. Soundcloud is the best place to find new music, but most well-known stuff can be found on Spotify as well.

My pick: Boy Oh Boy – Diplo and GTA (s/o Town Danceboutique and its go-go dancers), Febreeze – Jack U and 2chainz

Track 3: Make sure to fit in a throwback everyone will know the lyrics to. There‰’s nothing more fun than getting the words mostly right to a song you and all of your friends are familiar with or have memories tied to. Safe bets are early 2000s hip-hop.

My picks: Tipsy – J-Kwon, Work It – Missy Elliot, Drop It Like It‰’s Hot – Snoop Dogg

Track 4: To bring everyone together, play some sort of anthem. This often includes songs tied to a certain city, area, or school. For example, an AU frat party is incomplete without “Jordan Belfort‰” because the notorious wolf of Wall Street is an alum. In the Bay Area, “Tell Me When To Go‰” and “Fellin‰’ Myself‰” are go-tos. Find out what‰’s special and make sure you don‰’t leave it out.

My picks: Jordan Belfort – Wes Walker Dyl, California Love – 2Pac, Roger, Dr. Dre

Throw in some miscellaneous tunes and you should be set. Get out there and start the party.

Spotify playlist: https://play.spotify.com/user/1224601037/playlist/5UVbD7IGxVDzZoPFtiGvlA