'Swagger': A Playlist for the October 2017 Issue

For our October 2017 playlist, we asked contributor Duy Doan to curate a selection of music for us. You can read about his approach to creating the playlist below. Click here to open the playlist in your Spotify app.

Escape feels irresponsible these days. I feel guilty every time I see a headline about a catastrophe or tragedy and I don’t click on it. But escape, in moderation (I'm trying to convince myself), is a valid coping mechanism.

I listen to music every day, on my hour commute in the morning to work, and then again on my return home. I listen to the same songs over and over, with the hope of sustaining whatever vital emotion I'm getting from the music.

When I look at the October 2017 issue of Poetry, I'm moved by each poet's brilliance and creativity. It's a little baffling: How did all these poets get into the headspace to write these poems? What did they tap into?

Personally, I rely, very often, on music to get me into the right place to write. I rarely listen to music while I'm writing; it's mostly before reaching for the pen: "pump-me-up songs," less like listening to music when you're working out, more like listening to music before performing or while you're making yourself up for a fun night out. When I'm too filled with sadness, I can't write (or read). If I'm writing something that has difficult subject matter, I can't be plugged solely into the emotion behind the poem; in order to keep the poem moving, what I need is the confidence or swagger to take on the subject matter.

So, for this Spotify list, I've put together a group of songs that give me the verve I need to pick up the pen and write. Again, these are songs that precede the act of writing. Sia and Lali Puna make me feel urgent and enlightened. Lykke Li and Drakkar remind me of friends and loved ones: solidifying new friendships, celebrating old ones. Shura and Solange summon the thrill of romance, of being in love. Cailin Russo and M.I.A. charm me . . . M.I.A. puts it perfectly: "No one on the corner has swagger like us." I hope this list can help other writers and readers feel this way too!