My Spotify — 2022 Wrapped

Others say that the kind of music you listen to is a reflection of your current mood or situation. When we can’t verbally express ourselves, we usually seek something that will let us feel good or not feel alone. I guess this is where music became a savior; music relates to our minds and soul. It soothes the troubled one, it says, “I understand you.”

Recently, Spotify released Spotify Wrapped 2022 where the users can see their listening activity on the said music streaming platform for the whole year; what kind of music they listen to, what’s their top played music, who’s their top artists, and so on so forth.

I am a user of Spotify for a long time but I often change accounts to get premiums without paying any cents. I am a certified cheapskate, lol but I have no choice because I am a broke college guy who still gets his allowance from his parents. However recently, I decided to finally settle on one account and just endure the annoying ad interruptions so my listening activities will be recorded and I can have my Spotify Wrapped at the end of the year. I am curious how my 2022 experiences will affect my music preference.

Today, I am excited to share with you my 2022 Spotify Wrapped.

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For this year, I listened to 5 different music genres. The first one on the list is Pop, next is Original Pilipino Music (OPM), K-Pop, and so on and so forth.

Usually, I always listen to mainstream and western music so maybe that's the reason why Pop landed on the top spot. I also enjoyed OPM because they are the most relatable; the composers are Filipinos and I can easily understand the cultural contexts of their songs. While K-pop music has an upbeat composition that always makes me listen to it for days. Insert The Feels by Twice.

The Lo-Fi VGM and Indie Pop are the genres I stream when I am studying or just tired and bored with mainstream music.

To be honest 79% is quite low compared to others who scored around 85%-95%. Sometimes I stream on YouTube when I am using my laptop or I just want to watch their music video.

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Leaves by Ben&Ben is my top song for this year. This is a great OPM that peaked around 2017 but is still relevant now. It is about healing and forgiveness. The line that struck me the most is this: "No, you never really love someone until you learn to forgive." It was hard to accept at first but eventually, you need to forgive because it will help you to move forward. Any hatred in your heart will just make the situation worse — speaking from experience.

I never thought that this music I often disregard back then will be my anthem for weeks. This musical composition of Ben & Ben accompanied me to my lowest point this year, and somehow let me feel that I am not alone and it's okay to feel this way.

As I mention earlier, When we can’t verbally express ourselves, we usually seek something that will let us feel good or not feel alone. I guess this is where music became a savior; music relates to our minds and soul. It soothes the troubled one, it says, “I understand you.”

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My Spotify Wrapped is exposing me, huh? You can obviously guess that I am heartbroken for this year just based on my top 5 played songs, lol.

I can say that this list says that I underwent five stages of grief 😆.

Leaves by Ben & Ben stand for my Acceptance stage, come into my arms by November Ultra represents my Depression stage, Glimpse of Us by Joji somehow represents my Denial and Bargaining stage while All too well by Taylor Swift and Happier Than Ever by Billie Eilish portrays my Anger.

Hello, Swifties! She's my top artist for this year and I can't deny that. She's a great singer and songwriter. She can deliver music that can be felt and understood by her listeners. She's also creative with lyrics and metaphors and lately, I discovered that she likes to put 'easter eggs' in music videos.

Thanks to your All Too Well 10 minutes version, Taylor!

The top spot landed on Typical Pinoy Crap Podcast. I'm a fan of this podcast because he discusses typical societal issues in the Philippines and shares his opinion about them. Often, he will read the letters his fans sent to his inbox and then gives advice in a humorous way. It's like a friend is just talking to you when you listen to him.

The second one is just a white noise I listen to when I am about to sleep. The third one also deserves recognition. They often talk about the current happenings in mainstream media — celebrity issues, current talks of the town, etc. They give their own opinion about it but also in a humorous and easy-to-digest manner.

The Nomad is my listening personality and based on the description, it's pretty accurate. I don't settle with one music and enjoy a variety of choices. When I got hooked on the beat and fell in love with the lyrics, I will surely listen to that for days or even weeks.

Here's the summary of my Spotify Wrapped ⬆️.

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I appreciate that Spotify offers this kind of marketing initiative that enables its customers to reflect on their listening habits, or more specifically, what they have felt and experienced over the past year. Checking my Spotify Wrapped this year give me a bitter sweet feeling; despite going thru all those shits, I still made it. I am looking forward what life may bring and what music I will listen next year.

Until next time, bye!