Wrap-up season is officially upon us! While I’ll be getting into the TV/film and bookish goodness very soon, today I’ll be focusing on my favorite albums of the year. I don’t talk about music too much on the blog, but I would love to incorporate it more. Music primarily gets discussed here on Fangirl Fury in music-inspired book reviews, music-inspired book tags, and in the life happenings sections of some of my monthly wrap ups. I am by no means a music connoisseur—I have no idea how to talk about music using music terminology/lingo – but like many, I absolutely love listening to it. In the future, I’d like to include occasional blog posts about what songs and artists I’m currently listening to.
My 2019 favorites are split in three categories: albums that came out in 2019, music that I discovered in 2019, and music I especially revisited in 2019. I’ve also tried to keep my favorite songs to a 5 song minimum.
2019 Releases
Lover // Taylor Swift- While I enjoyed the single releases leading up to Lover, I was a bit nervous how the album would come together because “Me!,” “Lover,” “You Need to Calm Down,” and “The Archer” all sounded so different. However, this album completely delivered! As long as I don’t have anything too crazy going on in life by then, I am determined to go to Lover Fest. It of course has its own sounds, but if I had to describe it in T-Swift terms, Lover combines the sound of 1989 and Reputation but its messages and song lyric quality is very similar to Red.
Favorite Songs: “Lover,” “Soon You’ll Get Better,” “I Forgot That You Existed,” “I Think He Knows,” and “Cornelia Street”
Sing to Me Instead // Ben Platt- After devouring The Politician in September and October, I went on a Ben Platt kick and found myself head over heels in love with Sing to Me Instead. I love the music video so much for “Grow As We Go,” and “Run Away” is actually incorporated into The Politician– River and Payton play it together on the piano.
Favorite Songs: “Grow As We Go,” “Run Away,” “Better,” “Honest Man,” and “Share Your Address”
Music from The Politician // Ben Platt and Co. – Spoiler for my favorite 2019 TV and movies wrap-up, but The Politician is one of the many shows that stole my heart this year. One of the many reasons why is the show’s incorporation of music- while it wasn’t necessary to the plot, the covers were just so well done.
Songs/Covers: “River,” “Unworthy of Your Love,” “Vienna”
Happiness Begins // Jonas Brothers- Although I grew up as a Jonas Brothers and was excited about their reunion, I didn’t really have too many expectations for Happiness Begins. However, Happiness Begins was my go-to album for the summer and was blasted in my car on every beach day.
Favorite Songs: “Hesitate,” “Comeback,” “Trust,” “Rollercoaster,” & “Strangers”
Thank U, Next // Ariana Grande- Thank U, Next dominated my listening in Feburary 2019 when the album dropped. I wouldn’t call myself the biggest Ariana Grande fan, but I’ve been listening to her music since middle school and have really enjoyed each album. My best friend and I may or may not have a coordinated dance to “bad idea”
Favorite Songs: “bloodline,” “bad idea,” “fake smile,” “ghostin,” and “in my head”
New to Me 2019:
Golden Hour // Kacey Musgraves- I am a country music fan through and through, but I go through periods where all I want to listen to is country music. I forget what made me decide to listen to Kacey Musgraves’ Golden Hour, but I did love her performance of “Here You Come Again” with Dolly Parton and Miley Cyrus at the 2019 Grammys. This album got me through spring semester finals season after binge-listening to it one night in April. This album is another case where I love every single song and don’t have an exact ‘least favorite’.
Favorite Songs: “Space Cowboy,” “Velvet Elvis,”“Golden Hour,” “Rainbow,” and “Lonely Weekend”
A Brief Inquiry into Online Relationships & I Like It When You Sleep, for You Are So Beautiful Yet So Unaware of It // The 1975- Somewhat like my love for country music, I go into drifts where all I want to do is listen to alternative.
Favorite Songs: “Love Me,” “Somebody Else,” and “It’s Not Living (If It’s Not With You)”
Musicals: Anastasia (Broadway) & Mamma Mia 2– I saw Anastasia on Broadway right before its closing back in March, and I still find myself often listening to “In My Dreams, “In A Crowd of Thousands,” and “Journey to the Past.”
It took me a year but I finally watched Mamma Mia 2 this summer. I’m actually not the biggest fan of the movies themselves, but I absolutely love the music. My favorite songs include “When I Kissed the Teacher” and “One of Us is Lying.”
Revisits in 2019
Red // Taylor Swift- Blame it on the Lover anticipation, but I found myself falling back into my favorite Taylor Swift album this summer.
Favorite Songs: “All Too Well,” “Girl At Home,” “Holy Ground,” “Come Back…Be Here,” and “The Moment I Knew”
Pray for the Wicked & Death of a Bachelor // Panic! At the Disco– I spend more time driving in the summer than I do during the rest of the year, so I’m always trying to switch up my car playlists. Panic! At the Disco has often drifted into my studying and school playlists this semester.
Favorite Songs: “LA Devotee,” “The Good, the Bad and the Dirty,” “Dancing’s Not a Crime,” “One of the Drunks,” and “Old Fashioned”
What music and artists did you absolutely love in 2019? Any of the above? Share in the comments!
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