Article: Rabea Jung | Some people enjoy creating playlists, some do not – which one are you? [Photograph: Rabea Jung]
Music can be very personal. Whether you create intricate playlists fit for every mood or scenario, listen to what your friends recommend, or are a shuffle fanatic, there is a good chance that you will find yourself or your friends in these following stereotypes.
The Casual Listener
Music does not have the heart of the casual listener. They maybe have two or three short playlists and follow some artists and pre-made playlists, but really they don’t open the app all that often. The radio already plays the charts, so why would they need an app anyway?
The Mood Curator
The mood curator does not have to wonder what the soundtrack of their life would sound like, because they have already created their own. A lover of various artists and genres, they have a playlist for every mood. Happy? Fake Happy? Sad? They have just the right playlist, depending on if you want to stare out the window melancholically, are feeling stressed out or just need a good sob. They always know where their mind is because of the playlist they choose to listen to that day.
The Scenario Person
You could not count on one hand how often you’ve heard “Hang on, I have a playlist for this“ from this friend. The Scenario Person loves to romanticise their life and is ready for every situation they have dreamt up with their wild imagination. You want to feel like the protagonist of a Jane Austen novel, a James Bond villain or perhaps a mermaid falling in love with a pirate? A rockstar on tour missing their partner? A forest fairy endangered by deforestation? Thanks to their playlists, you can.
The Lurker
The Lurker is more interested in seeing what their mutuals are listening to than actually listening to music. Rarely will they make a playlist themselves, they’d rather snoop around their friends’ profiles to see what they have been feeling lately. There’s a good chance the lurker also loves pre-made playlists from random people or whatever their music app of choice recommends to them.
The Podcast Person
This person has never listened to music a day in their lives but loves podcasts. They know all the lore between podcasters and problematic influencers, might be chronically online and are probably into true crime as well.
The Audiobook Stan
This person always has their ear in a book. The Audiobook Stan is self-explanatory. They are too busy to listen to music, because they are behind on their yearly reading goal and need to compensate by listening to audiobooks.
The Artist Curator
These people know what they like, and are not really interested in discovering new artists or genres. They have a few playlists filled with the songs of their favourite artists – maybe even of their favourite artist’ favourite artist – and that’s enough for them. This person might be deep into fan culture or simply likes the comfort of the known.
The Favourites Lover
Playlists are way too much effort for this person, they just like the songs they like and put their favourite songs on shuffle. Their liked songs playlist is filled to the brim and their music app constantly asks itself what it was made for, because it is just not utilised to its full potential.
The Album Lover
Not interested in playlists, the album lover simply saves all their favourite albums and listens to them all the way through. This might seem weird to some, but they appreciate the thought behind a good album and like to enjoy it the way it was intended to.
The Rewind in Mind
This person cares more about aesthetics than anything. The Rewind in Mind would not be caught dead listening to pop music because their teenage Tumblr self would never forgive them. Instead, they love to put a lot of effort into choosing artists that might make them seem interesting to the people they are trying to impress. They know that it’s less dangerous with the lights out, and love to wear vintage band tees. Occasionally, they have to look into the mirror to remind themselves they’re there, because all this curating can be taxing.