Now that I’ve done my job and helped you write your masterpiece, I can’t stand idly by and let you count Justin Bieber and BTS as your favorite artists. There is so much old-school music you haven’t explored yet. I want you to be the girl in your dorm who introduces everyone else to seminal works. So here’s the first of many playlists I plan to send you. This one is quarantine themed. And you can thank my dad for forcing me to listen to songs he loved from when he was growing up.

1. “Time to Get Ill” by the Beastie Boys

Rap trio from Brooklyn. This song is off their album License to Ill, which came out in 1986. Fun fact: Ad-Rock is actually my godfather. My dad grew up in LA and hung out with him a ton when they were making music in a neighborhood called Atwater Village.

2. “Free Fallin’” by Tom Petty

Something about the girl in this song reminds me of you. And in case you’re wondering, YES, it’s still on theme because it’s off the album Full Moon FEVER.

3. “I’m on Fire” by Bruce Springsteen

I’m not a die-hard Springsteen fan. Don’t tell my cousins in Jersey. But this is one of the first songs I learned to play on the guitar and I think it’s one of his best tunes.

4. “Whenever You Breathe Out, I Breathe In” by Modest Mouse

The saddest breakup song ever written. And also, the lyrics are kind of perfect for right now: I didn’t go to work for a month / I didn’t leave my bed for eight days straight…

5. “Close to Me” by The Cure

Get it? “Close to Me” by THE CURE?

6. “Sometime Around Midnight” by The Airborne Toxic Event

The band name is an obvious choice for a pandemic-themed playlist. Also, I thought it was appropriate, since midnight my time is when we usually talk. You’re lucky I’m a night owl.

7. “We Found Love” by Rihanna ft. Calvin Harris

If a global pandemic has a theme song, it should be this. It certainly feels like we’re in a hopeless place right now.

8. “Just Breathe” by Pearl Jam

My dad told me that when he was in college, it was very uncool to listen to Pearl Jam. But now that he’s older, he’s learned to appreciate them more. And, well, this one seems pretty apropos for this playlist.

Xo

Gids

Gabriela

Parisa!!!

Parisa

OMG, what?

Gabriela

GIDS? HOLY SHITTTTTTTTT. Your sister’s boyfriend wants to get in your pants!!!

Parisa

OMG, no, he doesn’t! It’s just a playlist!

Gabriela

Are you kidding me?

Parisa

You’re reading into it!

Gabriela

I adore you more than anything and you’re one of the smartest girls in our entire high school, so I say this with love:

Sometimes you are dumb as rocks!

Parisa

WTF. You’re being irrational.

Gabriela