Sad Woman September: A case study for hyper-specific playlist making

In my life I have met two types of people: those who intricately craft a playlist, who will put their life and soul into this playlist, and then those with one mega playlist. For the former there is no such thing as a mundane Spotify playlist, even the playlist cover to their study music will have something silly or meaningful (i.e. a really aesthetic picture that they took last Wednesday in Cafe Milano that they have been dying to utilize). The latter are the people who make a single playlist every now and then. Sometimes they go a little further and put songs with similar vibes in one playlist but it still feels wrong; there is no cohesiveness, it is simply somewhere to store songs.

I am the former type of person. Playlist making is a hobby. Though playlist making is very fun, it also helps me look into how I am feeling and is a tool I utilize to introspect and sometimes even to realize how I want to handle certain feelings. I’ve noticed that people who have similar relationships to music and their playlists tend to be quite in touch with their feelings as well.

One can also use the beauty of playlist making to create curated playlist for friends! Curating a playlist for a close friend is emotional but very fulfilling. You hear them talk about their favorite songs and bands all of the time and through this accumulation of knowledge you start to mentally make them a playlist, or at least I do.

With all of that being said, you must go into the playlist making process with a purpose. My purpose today is to examine the ‘Unlovable Woman in September’ phenomena. Below is a tweet by @dootnoot_ on Twitter:

This resonated with me. I’m not sure what the reason for that is, but that is why we are making this playlist! I am going to treat this playlist-making session as a case study, something that people with big incoherent playlists can use to expand their music taste (because playlist-making is also a great way to find new artists).

Step 1: Find Your Inspiration! ★

For me the inspiration was the tweet. I subconsciously related to it a lot and had a visceral reaction when I first read it. However, your inspiration may come because you have a little crush at the moment or are experiencing some burn out. Whatever that feeling is, try to figure it out, at least a little. We are going to fully tap into it!

Step 2: The First Song ❣

This is the song that should first come to mind when you think about this playlist—if it’s not a song it should be an artist. The first person that came into my mind was Fiona Apple, she exudes a ‘sad woman in September’ energy. Whether it’s her lyrics that express longing—a feeling that is especially prevalent once autumn begins to roll around—or her sultry voice, Fiona Apple will leave you pondering amidst the trees with red turning leaves. I added “Why Try To Change Me Now” as her song most representative of this feeling. It’s a calm song I can drink tea to and lyrics like the opening “I’m sentimental, so I walk in the rain,” make me ponder about the type of woman I am not only in September but also in my life (very sentimental).

Step 3: Set The Vibe ☆

Based on this first song, the vibe should be more or less set for the rest of the playlist. Now you can add some familiar artists and songs that you love. Beach House also plays into a melancholic mood which is the vibe of the playlist I am trying to cement. The sad woman archetype is about longing. Beach House’s dream pop sound makes for great romanticization of longing. Pining and aching for love is also something that comes in fall. I chose two of their most yearn-heavy songs. Though yearning is mostly used to describe a longing for a person, there are also feelings you can yearn for. In my case I think I do yearn for something sentimental in the fall whether it’s with friends or someone I like… a lot.

Step 4: Take Your Time ❤

Now, if you want to get to the bottom of those feelings you really need to spend time with this playlist. You should have a few hours to focus completely on this one playlist. You’ve picked those first few songs and there is a vibe going. At this point I will listen to the playlist for the first time. It’s only 3 or 4 songs, but these songs make up the most substantial vibes.

Through this first listen I took notice of the vibes for ‘sad woman september,’ yearning and longing, but only for the feeling you get when you like or love someone. Sure love is great but a lot of the time it is easier to get caught up with the romanticized version of it since it is a lot easier lingering around that feeling instead of with an actual person. With this in mind, I go through my favorite songs and add more. Maybe some that illicit nostalgia or that I have not thought about for a while. For this I will listen to a few of the songs in my cumulative ‘liked songs’ playlist and add some based on the initial vibe. Typically it will end up being more songs than you will keep in your end product. Listen through the playlist again and figure out whether the playlist ‘flows’. If a playlist flows the music should feel as though it is all connected, in the end this playlist is a blob of your emotions so don’t worry if there is an outlier in the playlist, feelings aren’t always cohesive either.

Step 5: Look! Look for New Music and New Sounds! ♥

I have narrowed down the songs on my playlist to what I think is most representative of the emotions and feelings and sounds that come with being a ‘sad woman in September.’ During this last step some of the songs I added included:

“Ghost” – Sky Ferreira (a realistic take on what longing is, pure pain and weeping).

“A Teenager in Love” – The Pains of Being Pure At Heart (fun and upbeat, being in love is so fun! This is kind of a reminder that longing isn’t ALWAYS pain and weeping).

“Romantic” – Mannequin Pussy (channels all of those emotions of yearning into an angry and loud song, no time to be angry when you’re screaming).

The playlist’s mood and atmosphere is now solidly set! Wow! Now is the time to bounce around on whatever streaming platform you’re on. Spotify has a great recommended section under your creation and clicking through some of the artists on your playlist and going on their profiles to find similar artists or playlists they’re featured on is great! Once again add more songs and listen yet again.

Step 6: Playlist Cover and Reflection ✰

You’ve listened to the new songs on your playlist and maybe you’ve found some fresh artists too! During my time making this I listened to Jenny Hval for the first time and liked her music so much that I added one of her songs to my playlist. I like adding playlist covers to my playlists as it makes them a little more personal. I tend to add pictures I have taken in the last few days but I was on Twitter, once again, and stumbled upon a picture of Kristen Dunst at the American Psycho premiere and it honestly made sense. The picture is ‘sad woman September’.

Now for the best part: the reflection. So maybe you were confused about a feeling or a situation before making this playlist but now you have had a few hours with your feelings and your music. It may feel easier now to put how you feel into words. Before making this playlist, all I knew was that I was having a ‘sad woman September’. There were many things I felt could be a reason for this but through making this playlist I realized it’s just human emotions happening. Longing is one of my most common emotions. Once a new season begins this emotion resurfaces again. Thanks playlist making and my new “sad woman september” playlist for helping me figure this out!