What’s in a playlist?
A lot, according to Jian Ghomeshi, the host of CBC Radio’s National Playlist. Through daily ist discussion and listener voting, his show creates a ten-song National Playlist every week.
“It’s the most bizarre thing,” he told the Journal. “People have this thing about lists, they get very personal about it. Especially when you call it the National Playlist. People get possessive about it and even emotional about it.” He said the show routinely receives letters that are several pages long arguing for or against a song.
Since the advent of the digital music file, listeners have been able to personalize and prioritize music in a way never before possible—whether it be on their iPod or their PC’s media player. As our musical culture becomes more and more song-based and we spend less and less time listening to full-length artist albums, playlists give listeners more freedom to mix songs and set the order in which they listen to them.
The current trend of playlists in the media, including the National Playlist and John Sakamoto’s Anti-Hit List in the Toronto Star, fuels this focus on songs. These lists are different from the American Top 40 style lists because they are defined by listeners’ discussion, not by expert opinion, album sales or radio play, which Ghomeshi says gives them more validity.
“I believe when you have a list that isn’t determined by sales or by Noxema ads, then people buy into it,” he said.
The other major difference is that today’s playlists are not afraid to cross musical genres and eras, Ghomeshi said. The Anti-Hit List frequently features “mash-ups”—two songs by two different artists, mixed together to create one. This week’s National Playlist has a 35-year musical spread including Neil Young’s song “Heart of Gold” from 1972, as well as a song “Inside and Out” from Feist’s 2005 Let It Die album.
Ghomeshi said this reflects the average person’s mp3 playlist—it’s not defined by a certain artist or style.
“I think this is the way people listen to music these days. Grab an iPod away from a 16-year-old and you’ll get 50 Cent followed by the Grateful Dead followed by the Tragically Hip,” he said.
There is something revealing about creating a list. When John Cusack’s character in High Fidelity, Rob, lists his top five songs about death, we know it’s not about the songs—it’s what those songs say about Rob. The kind of music someone chooses for their personal soundtrack says a lot about their background, their personality and where they want to go in life.
“I think that lists are an ultimate way of defining what we like and dislike. They are a mechanism for self-identification,” Ghomeshi said.
“It’s all about jockeying for who and what we are, and [when] it comes to a broader list that isn’t just personal but national, we’re taking into consideration who we want to be as a country.” Montreal native Jeremy Abrams agrees. He co-founded audiostiles, a business that programs its customers’ iPods with an individualized playlist based on a questionnaire. Questions include “What do you listen to when nobody is around?” and “For what purpose do you want your music?” Abrams, too, is mixing established artists with independent labels, crossing other music boundaries and discovering songs for real life.
Ultimately, playlists are about defining what makes a great song. There is no artist loyalty, no discussions of mediocre albums. Each song has its three or four minutes to independently prove its worth.
“I look for honesty in music—if I believe the artist and where they’re coming from,” Ghomeshi said. “Whether it’s a punk song or a pop ballad, I find if I believe the artist I’m much more likely to buy into the song. I’m a sucker for great melodies and grooves [and] I celebrate inventiveness, when there are artists really creating.” He cited Sufjan Stevens’ “Chicago” as an example of this magical combination of both honesty and inventiveness.
Though these are Ghomeshi’s preferences, they may not be what defines a song for someone else. Creating a list is a surefire way of inciting debate and discussion. When there is value put on one song over another, people want to make sure their opinions are considered. Their enthusiasm is reflected each week in the number of votes ed and letters written to the National Playlist.
“Lists are completely subjective. All lists provoke and incite debate—they draw people in,” Ghomeshi said.
“There’s no sacred cows. You’d think there are certain artists or songs that are untouchable and there simply isn’t. Joni Mitchell’s ‘A Case of You’ references Canada. She’s one of our icons, it’s off a classic record, and sure enough, it’s amazing watching the letters. No one agrees on it.”
Playlists are all about broadening our horizons and really getting to know music, while at the same time getting to know ourselves. As Rob from High Fidelity put it, “what really matters is what you like, not what you’re like.”
—With files from audiostiles.com, cbc.ca
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