Before we get into the playlist, I wanted to let readers know that the playlists I’ve been making are going to keep coming in the form of this new column, a place where I can share themed ideas expressed as playlists curated for moods, events or to explore new genres of music. 

Here’s the first installation for vaccinated friend groups reuniting after over a year apart. 

As April 19 passed, the next step in returning to pre-pandemic life was set into motion with all Americans above the age of 16 made officially eligible to be vaccinated. As more of our readers  get their vaccines, I put together a small playlist of songs that were works of collaboration, to celebrate reuniting with the people we all haven’t seen in possibly over a year.

‘SWEET’ – BROCKHAMPTON 

I wanted to open up the playlist with “SWEET” from BROCKHAMPTON because of the fact that all of their songs are posse songs. With their 13 members, they offer a unique perspective on how most rap songs set up features, produce beats and deliver albums. “SATURATION II,” the album “SWEET” is from, boasts an off-beat style of rap you could only find from a group that resembles a boy band in the rap industry.

‘Guwop’ – Young Thug

The next song is “Guwop” by Young Thug from Young Thug’s album “JEFFERY.” With features from Quavo, Offset and Young Scooter, this song is from a squad of artists known for pioneering sounds in their respective subgenres of rap. Pushing the boundaries of rap is nothing new for Young Thug and even on this group project, it sounds very different than the other songs that were coming out in 2016. 

‘Really Doe’ – Danny Brown

After Young Thug I thought I’d add some Danny Brown to the mix with “Really Doe.” Everyone has that oddball in their friend group and that’s exactly how I’d describe Danny Brown and his music. With a star-studded feature list of Kendrick Lamar, Ab-Soul and Earl Sweatshirt, this track has an old-school inspired beat with a raw drum track behind a xylophone, a catchy hook and a recurring theme. “Atrocity Exhibition” was an album that came out when I was in community college and a group of friends I had and I would listen to this album endlessly when we would hangout on our weekly Friday lunch hangouts, something I miss dearly. 

‘Don’t Hit Me Right Now’ – Dreamville

Moving on to some easier listening, “Don’t Hit Me Right Now” from the Dreamville album “Revenge Of The Dreamers III” is a three-minute track from Bas and Cozz featuring Yung Baby Tate, Guapdad 4000 and Buddy. Dreamville Records, the label that Bas and Cozz are signed to, puts albums together that are dedicated to posse cuts, essentially projects artists want to make with other artists they also love. The song seamlessly transitions from feature to feature with a smoothly sung chorus, it’s not too rowdy, not too slow, it’s just right.

‘Work REMIX’ – A$AP Ferg

Speaking of rowdy, “Work REMIX” by A$AP Ferg featuring A$AP Rocky, French Montana, Trinidad James and ScHoolboy Q, is exactly that. I knew I needed to put a song in this playlist that “went dumb” and this was the perfect mix of energy and ignorance that goes into a rap song to bump in the car with a bunch of friends. When I think of modern rap groups or cliques that loved making fun music together, before I think of the Dreamvilles or BROCKHAMPTONs of now, I think of A$AP Mob putting out music like this in the early 2010s. 

‘VENGEANCE’ – Denzel Curry 

Without noticing at first, I found that I was including songs that were marking interesting times in my life where I was surrounded by friends listening to music and when I listen to Denzel Curry, I think of going to concerts with them. “VENGEANCE” featuring JPEGMAFIA and ZillaKami is one of the smaller lists of features but I have always been told “three’s a party”. This song will always remind me of crowded venues, mosh pits and losing a shoe during Denzel Curry’s  performance of “Ultimate” just to have my friend trip over it again during the next song. Another thing I love about this song is the JPEGMAFIA and ZillaKami features that show off two wildly different but very cohesive rappers, that in my opinion, haven’t received enough recognition yet for their work. 

‘1Train’ – A$AP Rocky

Finally, I’m ending the playlist with the posse cut of all posse cuts, “1Train” by A$AP Rocky was revolutionary when it came out and still is to this day. This song has some repeat artists found in some of the songs earlier in the playlist, but when I was putting this together this was the first song that came to mind and the quintessential one to me. Featuring Kendrick Lamar, Joey Bada$$, Yelawolf, Danny Brown, Action Bronson and Big K.R.I.T., this cast of rappers were blowing up when this came out in 2013 and are still making great music today. This is the song that will always remind me of my senior year of highschool while rapping along to all six minutes with a car full of friends and is why I will always hold “1Train” near and dear to my heart when I think of songs that remind me of my friends.