Breaking Down "happy" ft. Mariana Uemura

The following post, written by fourth-year Queen's student, Mariana, sheds some light on the types of music that'll make her smile. She also runs a food and lifestyle blog with fellow Queen's friend, Heather - check it out here.

You know those songs that never fail to bring a smile to your face? For me, these are it. Whether I’m blasting it full volume in the car with my best friends, dancing alone in my bedroom, or trying to cheer myself up after a tiring day, these songs never fail me. There’s something about the energy in these songs that I can’t help getting caught up in and some of them are even a bit nostalgic. Of course, there are millions of other songs I could have added to this playlist but I feel like these 40-ish (I may continue to add more as I find them) summarize my favourites from the past couple of years. It’s mostly indie rock since I wanted this playlist to sound somewhat curated but as you’ll notice, they don’t all fit under the same genre.

It nearly killed me to do this, but here are my top five songs on the playlists as of recently:

Rollercoaster - Bleachers

If You Wanna - The Vaccines

Let’s Dance to Joy Division - The Wombats

Passenger Side - Smallpools

Girls - The 1975

"Whether I’m blasting it full volume in the car with my best friends, dancing alone in my bedroom, or trying to cheer myself up after a tiring day, these songs never fail me."

There are so many songs that could go up there but these ones are definitely fail-proof. Everytime I hear these songs in a movie score or at the mall or at a bar or anywhere unexpected, it’s a sure way to make me smile. While my music taste ranges from Top 40’s to punk rock to edm remixes to musical soundtracks and everything in between, the familiarity of indie rock always feels like home to me. If I’m ever at a loss for what to listen to, this is my go-to to get inspired again. So hopefully you guys also find some joy in this playlist and I hope it makes you want to dance (or at least tap your toes). :)