St. Vincent DeJamz

St.+Vincent+DeJamz

As you stare down the road ahead and see a hefty set of final papers and exams in your path, it’s easy to immediately ignore all of your responsibilities and focus on the summer that’s just a few short weeks down the road. Because of my sheer inability to rid my mind of this time of relaxation and freedom, I’m going to just lean in and embrace it – literally. The heart wants what it wants, after all. Behold, four songs that all feature “summer” in the title to really help you dive into your desire to skip class over the next two weeks.


Summer Love-Justin Timberlake

The hardcore awkward middle school phase that I am still struggling to break free from is revived in full while listening to “Summer Love,” one of Timberlake’s more mainstream hits. This song was a product of Timberlake’s career post-*NSYNC and pre-2013 comeback, or the “JT Sweet Spot” as I like to call it. If you’re having a hard time remembering exactly what this song is, I urge you to throw it on because one second into it you’ll practically be 13 and angsty all over again.

Cool for the Summer-Demi Lovato

If you ask my best friends from high school, they’ll tell you that I have forced them to promise to play “Cool for the Summer” at my funeral, whenever that may be. And I’m proud to say that they are wholeheartedly telling the truth. While the lyrics make literally no sense in the context of a funeral, the song is just too good to not be officially sent out on. Demi Lovato transcends this earthly realm with some of the notes she hits on this certified summer hit and you can never convince me otherwise.

Summer-Calvin Harris

A completely different style song than the rest of the bunch, Calvin Harris’ “Summer” is as authentic as you can get with mainstream dubstep beats. It is a smooth song that was crafted to perfectly go hand in hand with a nice summer drive where the windows are down and the radio is up. Harris has plenty of other hits under his belt that are great for the warm, wonderful and sunny days ahead, but “Summer” is just too on the nose to overlook.

Summer Friends (feat. Jeremih & Francis & The Lights)” – Chance the Rapper

It wouldn’t be summer in Chicago without Chance the Rapper, because if I’ve learned one thing since moving here, it’s that essentially Chicago is Chance and Chance is Chicago. As such, “Summer Friends” is Chance’s contribution to my musical summer escapes. This relaxing song is perfect to listen to while sitting around a fire with friends, fending for your own against the mosquitoes that you can’t see but know are out there.