As has become tradition, former president Barack Obama has submitted his own end-of-year listicle highlighting his favorite songs of the last 12 months.
Some of President Obama’s favorite songs were also some of our favorite songs, such as Mitski’s “The Only Heartbreaker,” The War on Drugs’ “I Don’t Live Here Anymore,” and Lil Nas X’s “Montero (Call Me By Your Name).”
His playlist also includes songs by Brandi Carlile (“Broken Horses”), Little Simz (“Woman”), Mdou Moctar (“Tala Tannam”), Jon Batiste (“Freedom”), Nas and Ms. Lauryn Hill (“Nobody”), Courtney Barnett (“Write a List of Things to Look Forward To”), and Parquet Courts (“Walking at a Downtown Pace)”.
“Art always sustains and nourishes the soul. But for me, music and storytelling felt especially urgent during this pandemic year,” wrote President Obama. He added, “I’ve always enjoyed listening to a wide variety of music, so it’s no surprise that I listened to a little bit of everything this year. I hope you find a new artist or song to add to your own playlist.”
President Obama also listed his favorite movies of 2021, which included A24’s new Joaquin Phoenix film C’Mon C’Mon, Ridley Scott’s The Last Duel, Steven Spielberg’s modernized West Side Story adaptation, Questlove’s Summer of Soul documentary, and Pig starring Nicolas Cage.
I've always enjoyed listening to a wide variety of music, so it’s no surprise that I listened to a little bit of everything this year. I hope you find a new artist or song to add to your own playlist. pic.twitter.com/g6kBzAbrZG
Advertisement— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) December 17, 2021
Next up are my favorite movies of the year. Each of these films tells a powerful story, and I hope you enjoy them as much as I did. pic.twitter.com/peFGiaTvby
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) December 16, 2021
