Top20

Top 20 before Shuffle Mode:

-Majical Cloudz - Downtown

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Rihk7_2BVw

-Seether - Broken ft. Amy Lee

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPC2Fp7IT7o

-Arrival | On The Nature of Daylight

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDMe_nUpzMM

-Striking Matches - Bad

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GXGycCEzDs

- Duke Dumont - Ocean Drive

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDxJlW6cxRk

-Erykah Badu - On & On

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CPCs7vVz6s

-The Killers - Shot At The Night

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Leo22AXLEXg

-Lil' Flip - Sunshine

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pV9L70wzOvo

-Ludovico Einaudi - Experience

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_VONMkKkdf4

- Mark Morrison - Return Of The Mack

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uB1D9wWxd2w

-J. Balvin - Rosa

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6qLlbaOEYg

- Plan B - No Quiero Que Te Vayas

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y9rof5t7fIc

-Tego Calderon - Al natural

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIVbxYCSnkA

-YAGA Y MACKIE- SIEMPRE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VbfjrjlPubc

-Hector & Tito - Cae La Noche

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6Xj0_xKPOk

-JOE VERAS- EL HOMBRE DE TU VIDA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rJoxLY42MQ

- VIVIR LO NUESTRO-INDIA & MARC ANTHONY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6KiifAS_pxQ

- Antony Santos - Corazon Bonito

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ylCmpTvDrvA

-Elvis Martinez - Maestra

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTmxPsdpXVQ

-Dimension Costena"Tululu" (Original)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0hlExZS5RuE

First, I have to start by saying and I'm sure others will agree that to pick any playlist is beyond difficult; which is why I leave my entire iTunes on shuffle mode pretty much every time I flip open my laptop or click on the apple music icon on my phone. So instead, I decided to share my Top 20 songs that must be played whenever I listen to my music for longer than an hour; whether they are the first to be played or mixed in somehow. For the few people in the world that know me I pretty much can't survive without my music. I'm pretty sure no one knows what my ears looks like including myself. Music plays a big part in our lives especially in the world we currently live in with not being able to connect with people through music physically (shout out to the internet for being invented in the first-place cause to be in quarantine with no music would be the worse! Of course, if you are like me and saved your CDs from the past two decades then we good!) I’m sure you all will agree that my Top 20 is pretty eclectic and all over the place; a lot like myself. I truly listen to everything from House to Motown to Country to Trap and in case you all didn’t catch it, I am a Latin American woman, why of course that includes Spanish speaking music in my Top 20. Music is memory. When I hear any song, I can always go back to the first moment I heard it and I love the feeling when I remember a vivid memory; it’s the closest thing to time travel we have! My memory sucks due to a seizure I had about ten years ago, that’s why I truthful love all music regardless of genre. When it comes to music, I don’t think it's fair to not listen to every kind of music that is out there. Music to me is one of the best ways to get to know someone. Listening to someone’s music, to me, is like bumping into a stranger and asking for their name before you apologize for bumping into them (call me old-fashioned I guess....) I think we all lose sight of common curtesy over the years as we grow up and let trends and the discovery of social media abnormalities dictate how we interact with each other. I mean honestly, when is the last time any of you went up to a stranger and simply ask them for their name and nothing else? If anyone out there actually raise their hand to this question here is a high five from a far from me to you! Now that I’ve gotten that rant out of the way let me begin my more detailed musical rant which is what you all are waiting to actually read!

For starters, the first ten songs if some of you out there are movie buffs like myself a few of them are from movies and a couple of series on Netflix; I definitely challenge you all to look them up if you are up to it and enjoy some quality cinema. Additionally, fair warning I am a bit of a romantic for those people that aren't into the lovey dovey stuff, so if you do look up the songs you will see real quick how much of a romantic I am. I will go into real detail for four of the first ten songs and the same for the Spanish songs, now let us begin.

With “Downtown” by Majical Cloudz it's a rather chill song, its slow and to the point; it keeps me mellow when I need a moment of peace to get my thoughts together. You can say it’s a bit of a reminder song saying, “girl take a pause and see what you remember from what you just did.” Also, it gives me a short film moment without having to login to Netflix; all soundtracks do that for me; I can go straight to the scene that the song played in. For "Downtown" its played during a beautiful scene of resurrection. Actually, I made up a game of it with my sister whenever we drive anywhere even to the 7-11 that’s around the corner from our home. She has to try to guess which movie or TV show the song is from and she has to say which scene. Here is my favorite verse from the song:

And I'm running with you

As fast as I can

Singing to myself I wanna hold your hand

And we're going downtown

'Cause we feel like running around

Is it really this fun when you're on my mind

Is it really this cool to be in your life

Now with “Broken” by Seether ft. Amy lee, all I gotta say is this....CLASSIC! Need I say more? Like it just hits you deep from the very first line. My whole is body is bopping and it does not stop until I’ve heard it for at least three times in a row. Coincidently, I’m listening to it right now while I’m writing about it and I always type the fastest when I hear this song; when I was in crunch time in school this was the first song played and the last to get me through the night when it came to term papers.

I wanted you to know I love the way you laugh

I want to hold you high and steal your pain away

I keep your photograph, and I know it serves me well

I want to hold you high and steal your pain

‘Cause I’m broken when I’m lonesome

And I don’t feel right when you’ve gone away

You’ve gone away

You don’t feel me here anymore

For “Experience” by Ludovico Einaudi its strictly an instrumental song full of every instrument a composer like Einaudi would use cello, guitar, piano, violins; a full on symphony. I am a lover of film scores. I have a whole separate playlists if I had to make one just for film score type music. I just love what a full symphony can make you feel. It touches every nerve in your body. When I’m about to go through the thick of it all, I play this song, when I sprint up a hill I play this song, when I’m angry or tired from an all nighter, I play this song. This song is great to relieve the stress; to simply let go of all the negativity. With “Return of the Mack” by Mark Morrison this is just a feel good groovy song. You just want to get up and dance and just move your hips and just feel sexy! The time this song got me through some brain power struggle was couple of years ago when I was on an archaeological dig in Peru. I was up late going through some bone fragments and ceramics and girl needed a break. I tucked everything away for the night and I grabbed my crack iphone4 that I was using as an iPod during my time there (can’t have nice things in certain part of the world) and I went to the roof. I just danced and danced for about an hour, listening to it over and over again and the next thing I knew it was 3am and I was ready for the day of course by the time the day was over I was dead but it was worth it.

So I’m back up in the game

Running things to keep my swing

Letting all the people know

That I’m back to run the show

‘Cause what you did, you know, was wrong

And all the nasty things you’ve done

So, baby, listen carefully

While I sing my come-back song

Its time to add some Latin flavor to your lives! These ten Latin songs are a bit raunchy and loving at the same time. Please look up translations if you would like to know what they are actually saying if you don’t like my simple to the point translation. However, Latin music can be felt regardless of a language barrier. It’s all in the tone of the artists; that’s how you know if a Latin song is any good. These ten songs are a mix of Reggaeton, it’s the equivalent to trap music; along with Bachata and Salsa. Trust me, to all the people of the vocal community world if you learn to dance these three types of Latin dances you will have men and women at your feet because believe me it’s so hard to find a good dance partner without having to teach as you dance.

“Rosa” by J. Balvin is part of his new album “Colores” from earlier this year. As soon as I heard it pretty much sums up my current relationship with my partner for the past two years and probably will be true for the rest of my life in regards to her. I play this song to get me pumped for any activity regardless if it’s reading or a workout. It gets me pumped because it reminds me of her and well I’m in love so sue me! It really gets me through planks, the first hour of a job, even when I’m using the bathroom (sorry if that too much info!) It’s definitely a future karaoke song even though it already is!

Yo no sé qué me pasa cuando cerca te tengo (leggo)

Pero me atrevería a jugarme la vida por un par de besos

El efecto que causas (come on), el no verte defectos

(Come on) nada te cambiaría, quiero hacerte mía en este momento

To sum it up basically says I’d risk anything for this person and make them mine.

Next is my all time favorite Reggaeton group Plan B. I’ve been listening to them since middle school; of course back then like so many other pop songs in the early 2000s their lyrics were soooo dirty and i had no clue! I was still innocent back then (wink wink!) Remembering those days, dancing to their music, it just has me like "Damn! you poor oblivious child." Anyways “no quiero que te vayas” is one of their less raunchy tracks. The bounce to this track is epic and just makes my body roll. I used to play this the most when I used to take math classes. Listening to this while working on some calc problems yo! It saved my nerdy behind! I will say rapping to Reggaeton and doing math worked for me a lot more than rapping to Biggie. Bold statement I know but it’s only because if I play Biggie I will grab my hairbrush and start rapping and get in karaoke mode and I would never finish anything!

Si la gente supiera que hasta con mirarme tú me tocas

Nadie sabe, imaginan los sabores de tu boca

Cada abrazo, cada beso que mi mente alborota

La fragancia que despide tu presencia en mi ropa

Desenfoca mi orgullo por el piso desemboca

Cuando a solas olvidamos en la cama se encojota

Las ganas cuando nos vemos hasta la luna, eso se nota

La distancia entre nosotros y el deseo nos acopla

Now that the raunchy stuff is taken care of, now it’s for that heartbreaking bachata that gets in your soul so deep and hard you swear you could have written it yourself and sang it to your love one, begging for forgiveness type songs. I’m only 28 years old and I’m now just knowing what love is but growing up to this music and seeing how my parents, specifically my mom, my aunts and uncles would swoon and get so hype when these songs would play; it was Christmas morning when Bachata would play. I mean who wouldn't want Christmas morning every day through endearing music that wasn't holiday music? As soon as I could cure my two left feet syndrome, I was on the dance floor grooving and singing my life away. I’m proud to share my culture on this platform especially through music.

“Maestra” by Elvis Martinez is an all time classic and when I hear it, shoot any Latin woman hears it she runs to the dance floor and grabs whoever is available. Now in regards to how it helps me with being focused it just keeps me loose and in the moment; gets my blood pumping and my brain just ready to dance in my seat and learn. I truly believe if schools allowed a ten minute mandatory dance party, kids would learn so much more. This song is basically about a man looking for his first love, search for a woman to takes his virginity and just love him.

Abuse de mi inocencia

No importa, lo quiero hacer

Usted, me enloquecido

Maestra, enseñeme…

Cuando la vi

Usted mi hipnotizo

Mi corazon palpito

Que linda emocion

Mi cuerpo temblo

Loco por sentirla y hacerle el amor

The last song on my Top 20 is a song from my country Nicaragua called “Tululu” by Dimension Costeña. Technically this song is none of the dance styles I mentioned at the beginning. This would fall under Punta, a dance style that super fast paced; your on your toes the whole time and your hips get so worn out it’s ridiculous! This song is my celebration song; I play this as soon as I’m done any task that was a hell of a journey and caused me so much brain power that it’s just time to let loose and be thankful it’s over and done with. I am proud to be from Nicaragua and it’s only right that I mention it in this playlist; especially since it’s my top 5 songs played on my ITunes. Well that’s my whole spiel yall.

These Top 20 songs get me through all the emotions that we go through when there are tasks to be done: laziness, frustration, anger, playfulness, sadness, and just plain happy. These songs simply help center me during the whole process. Shoot while writing this I played all 20 of them before I went on to listen to some Dokken, Alice and chains then made my way to some Young M.A and Heather B (look these artists up to they are worth the listen) Music connects me to my emotions like I’m sure it does to so many of you. I’m not much for showing emotions so I’m grateful for having found all the music that I have over the years. Every single track I have in my iTunes to my old dusty CDs, they help channel everything inside me and allows me to be me when things get hard so that staying focus is my top priority. Music keeps us all united; thank you all for taking the time to be one with me for a moment out of your day. It was a pleasure to interact with you all. Remember knowing someone’s taste in music, you're learning who they are the longer you listen.