Summer officially begins this week. The songs of the summer are already here. We’ve asked some of our favorite DJs, musicians and BYT staff members for their picks for the songs of the summer. Hop on that horse and take a musical ride through the summer of 2019 and the summers of years past.
DJs and Musicians
DJ Matt Bailer
2019
Can I just say LIZZO? Anything and everything by LIZZO? LIZZO IS THE SONG OF THE SUMMER. Her show at the 9:30 Club last month was the best concert I’ve ever seen, and her entire vibe of positivity and self-love is what I want defining this summer. Plus her music and her voice are incredible. Is she eligible for president? LIZZO 2020!
All Time
Oh gosh. I’m gonna have to go back to 1987 for that timeless Whitney Houston classic “I Wanna Dance With Somebody.” Wikipedia says it was released on May 4, which is perfect timing for Song Of The Summer. I distinctly remember going to Ocean City that summer as a 10-year-old music lover who didn’t have cable at home, and spending a significant portion of our vacation inside the house at the beach mainlining MTV and seeing that video every 5 minutes or so. To this day, anytime I see the video I’m immediately transported back to Ocean City and the summer of 1987.
Jamal Gray
2019
Meche Korrect “Flex”
This is my favorite local song for the DC Summer. I’m biased, cause I produced this song
All Time
Maze ft Frankie Beverly “Before I Let Go”
This just reminds me of every Black cookout or family gathering. Summer is not complete without this.
Jack Inslee
2019
All Time
Chris Kelly
2019
“Old Town Road” by a country mile
All Time
Brandy/Monica “The Boy is Mine” and/or Lisa Loeb “Stay”
Lemz
2019
Robyn “Between The Lines (Louie Vega Remix)”
Been hearing this EVERYWHERE, not many DJs I’ve met not playing this.
All Time
Jade “Don’t Walk Away”
This has been a soundtrack to many a lovely summer afternoon
The Lothario
2019
“Baila Baila Baila” by Ozuna
It’s dance enough for nighttime but chill enough for daytime. It’s the song version of the tuxedo t-shirt.
All Time
“The Boys Of Summer” by Don Henley
Something about this song makes me invent scenes in my head where I’m driving a convertible in an East Coast Malibu-type place. Very summer.
Tezrah
2019
“Old Town Road” (if you consider it a summer release). “Truth Hurts” by Lizzo. Also “Juice” by Lizzo. She’s all the hotness right now.
All Time
My favorite songs change depending on my mood, but “DNA”(Alex Metric Remix) by Empire of the Sun is one of my favorites. You can listen to it at the pool, lounge, happy hour, and club – it is a feel-good song that fits in everywhere!
TWiN
2019
Post Malone & Swae Lee “Sunflower”
It has a feel good vibe and beat to it. Plus it’s from a great movie!
All Time
Rihanna featuring Calvin Harris “We Found Love”
BYT
Afriti Bankwalla
2019
“Never Really Over” by Katy Perry
Katy’s back, and I’m so here for it.
All Time
“Heart to Break” by Kim Petras
Kim Petras’s “Heart to Break” was the song of the summer directly following my 21st birthday, and I absolutely loved hearing it in every gay club I entered that summer. It’s the perfect bouncy, light, bubblegum-pop track keep you singing along and dancing all night. So, since Britney Spears’s “Stronger” wasn’t a summer song, I’ll have to say “Heart to Break” holds that special place for me as forever the best summer anthem.
Megan Burns
2019
I haven’t really been on board with the concept of “summer jams” in a very long time, because as a heat intolerant human, this season is my own personal hell. HOWEVER, if we are going purely on which pop gem I feel will be on heavy rotation for at least the next month or so in my headphones, then Kim Petras’ “Do Me” is pretty high up there. SO GOOD.
All Time
Other (slightly older) songs I will always associate with summer vibes in my “grown-up” life: Solange “Losing You”, Blood Orange “Best To You”, Goldroom “Fifteen”, Empress Of “With Him”, Le Youth “Cool”, Katy Perry “Teenage Dream”.
Matt Byrne
2019
I mean it’s gotta be “Old Town Road,” right? Gotta be “Old Town Road.”
All Time
For some reason I immediately thought of “Miami” by Will Smith but then checked and it was released as a single in November 1998. Looks like Mariah Carey’s “We Belong Together” is the universally agreed upon song of Summer 2005 and that song absolutely takes me places, so let’s go with that.
Kaylee Dugan
2019
This is very hard because Carly Rae Jepsen released an album last month, making the entirety of Dedicated the song of the summer… But knife to my back / piña colada to my throat, “Want You In My Room” is probably the winner. It’s a cool slurry of icy pop straight to the brain.
All Time
“Fins” – James “Jimmy” Buffett
Johnny Fantastische
2019
“Shwasted” by James Jameson
All Time
“It’s In The Way That You Use It” by Eric Clapton
Jeb Gavin
2019
Lizzo “Juice”
All Time
LCD Soundsystem “All My Friends”
I’ve been a tired, crazy old man for as long as I can remember, so it wasn’t out of place for me to have a midlife crisis at 17. Seven years later, James Murphy gave voice to my idiotically world-weary, crack-of-dawn drive back to the suburbs. The cycle of go to the party, feel out of place at the party, be frustrated by missing out on parties of yesteryear, and finally wondering if this is in fact the good old days about which I’ll eventually reminisce is baked into me on an existential level. I remember breakfast in Spain, a trip to and in the Poconos, clubs in Quebec, or 96 straight hours awake in New York and I don’t miss myself then. More than a decade on, I’ve come to realize what I miss is how I felt with friends, in the moment- whether or not I realized it. Missed trips, shows I could’ve skipped, parties to which I was or wasn’t invited or even alive to attend, none of them matter. When I’m driving at sunrise and I blast this song with the windows down, all of time scales down into seven minutes and thirty eight seconds of the hero’s journey, and after I am ready for that day to begin.
Ruben Gzirian
2019
“Crime Pays” by Freddie Gibbs & Madlib
All Time
“Crew” by Goldlink
This song came out on December 16, 2016 and the video had everyone wearing winter coats, but this song was everywhere in the summer and spring of 2017. I’d even argue to say this is probably the biggest hip-hop song to come out of D.C. maybe ever? Anyway, I love it for all the same reasons anyone else with ears does: the beat is simple but timeless, the chorus by Brent Faiyaz is silky and perfect, and Shy Glizzy’s feature is probably his best work ever. It’s the perfect song when you’re with your people or just driving around the city.
Tom Hausman
2019
I am NOT a fan of Todrick Hall – but that being said, his song “Nails, Hair, Hips, Heels” has been on repeat in my house, my car, and just constantly in my head. The song is infectious, danceable, repetetive, and hella queer! What more could you want from the song of the summer?
All Time
RAC’s “Cheap Sunglasses” has stuck with me ever since it was released back in 2014. It just has such a special place in my heart (and a lot of young, dumb Tom memories associated with it!) The tune is light and airy, perfect for driving (windows down,) through the suburbs or the mountains, or even just while stuck in DC traffic!
Sabrina Kent
2019
“Mother’s Daughter” by Miley Cyrus
This album is epic, she is epic, nuff said.
All Time
“Doin’ Time” by Sublime
The lyrics say it all.
Rohan Mahadevan
2019
As much as it pains me to say “Old Town Road” (Remix) . I am waiting for the song to go away, but it wont. Personally I think the new Katy Perry song “Never Really Over” could be a summer smash. It is early, so hopefully a new song will take over the summer.
All Time
Obviously because I’m CRJ hive “Call Me Maybe”.
Brandon Wetherbee
2019
“Old Town Road” by Lil Nas X featuring Billy Ray Cyrus
All Time
“Achy Breaky Heart” by Billy Ray Cyrus or “Party in the USA” by Miley Cyrus
Alan Zilberman
2019
“Now That I’ve Found You” by Carly Rae Jepsen
All Time
My all-time favorite song of the summer is “Steal My Sunshine” by Len. Yes, really.
