An Overthinker’s Guide to Crafting the Perfect Playlist
Crafting a playlist can be an act of love that transcends the material. It’s a gift rooted in intimate knowledge of a relationship and is one of the most personal ways to show that you care. It’s also an incredibly daunting task. As Rob (Zoe Kravitz) from the 2020 version of High Fidelity explains,
Making a playlist is a delicate art. It’s like writing a love letter… you get to use someone else’s poetry to express how you feel.
Rob, High Fidelity (S1E2)
Such a time-consuming task easily leads to overthinking, so here is a guide to crafting the perfect playlist by Rob herself, the ultimate overthinker. Rob begins her journey by outlining a few essentials of every quality playlist.
The Rules:
- Gotta be entertaining, and tells a story
- Can’t be too obscure, but at the same time not overt
- You can’t double up on songs by the same artist, unless that’s your theme
The most important track is number one. It has to be familiar, but at the same time, unexpected. Most importantly, it has to make you feel good. Track two has to have an element of surprise to keep you listening. She continues through to the last song: The Closer. “Closers are tough. It’s the last thing they’re gonna hear and it’s the only thing they’re gonna remember, so you gotta bring your message home.”
Although Rob spends an entire episode contemplating the perfect playlist to gift, most of her advice is rather vague, proving that there’s no formula to an act of love. One theme stands out, though, and that is the thoughtfulness of her decision-making. Ultimately, this is what the playlist as a concept is all about. By simply making a playlist for a friend, partner, or someone you hold close in your life, the message that you care will shine through no matter what. One of the most intimate ways to show it is by saying: “I heard this, and it made me think of you.” A playlist is simply a compilation of songs that help establish that connection. So, really, a playlist is the perfect gift as long as it expresses the heartfelt sentiment behind it, no matter which rules you follow.