As Smithies continue to settle into the new semester, their listening habits are adjusting to new routines and adapting to new tastes. Here is a sample of what some Smithies are listening to around campus:
Gaby Lopez ’23
How do you listen to music?
Spotify.
When do you usually listen to music?
Sometimes when I walk to class, I don’t like to listen to music because I like to listen to the campus sounds instead. When I do, it’s usually in the afternoon or when I’m at the gym.
What artist have you been getting into recently?
I hear a song that I like and then just add that to my playlist and almost never go more into the artist. But I like Two Door Cinema Club a lot.
What is a song every Smith student should listen to right now?
I feel like everyone has definitely heard this but “Kiss Me” by Sixpence None the Richer.
What is your current hype-up song?
It’s a remix of Miley Cyrus on Black Mirror, “I’m on a Roll”.
What is your current song to unwind to?
I’ve been listening to music from home, so Mexican music like by Juan Gabriel.
What song describes how you have been feeling?
“What You Know” by Two Door Cinema Club.
What is your current favorite genre?
Indie but still upbeat.
How has your music taste changed since last semester?
I’m trying to listen to newer things. I just listen to WOZQ whenever I’m doing work, because I don’t like to know the words to the song when I’m working, because then I just think about the song. Even if I like one of the songs, I can Shazam it and add it then move on.
How has your music taste changed since coming to Smith?
I feel like my freshman year I would listen to the same thing over and over again while walking places, that way I was not alone. Now sometimes I don’t like to be listening to music. Sometimes in the dining hall I just like to hear the Smith ambiance a little bit.
Lily Bouler ’25
How do you listen to music?
Spotify.
When do you usually listen to music?
I listen to music the most around when I’m going to bed. Also when I’m doing any sort of chore or activity where I’m just like cleaning and I need something to listen to so I’m not alone with my thoughts.
What artists have you been getting into recently?
I’ve been listening to a bunch of different things. When I’m in my car then I’ll pull up some 2000s throwbacks. Also, I’ve been listening to stuff for my radio show: I have to figure out what to put on the big playlist I make at the start of every semester to have an idea of what songs I want to pick from that for every show. That’s been a big part of what I’ve been listening to. Also just revisiting artists when I’m sad… It’s just the classics, like Fiona Apple.
What is a song every Smith student should listen to right now?
“Cathedral Heat” by Kristin Hersch. I feel like nobody knows it, but it feels so New England to me.
What is your current hype-up song?
That one by Rihanna, “Who’s That Chick?” My friend and I like this video by RuPaul where he’s trying to sing it but he says it in a very weird way. It’s a good song to hype us up, because we’re laughing over RuPaul’s pronunciation.
What is your current song to unwind to?
Elliott Smith songs… Something sad.
What song describes how you have been feeling?
A lot of Fiona Apple’s old stuff because I feel like I’ve been forced to confront my previous obsession with those songs. But I think I’m moving out of it. I don’t know what I’m going to be transitioning to, but that’s exciting.
What is your current favorite genre?
Any sort of alternative music, especially stuff from the ’90s, that’s kind of always my go to. And, anything a woman writes.
How has your music taste changed since last semester?
I was listening to a lot of stuff that wasn’t on Spotify, like Joni Mitchell, all through iTunes. I’m not doing that right now.
How has your music taste changed since coming to Smith?
When I started at Smith, I was really into ’90s punk and especially female-centric punk and modern stuff. I still really like that stuff but it’s so intense, and I’m not always that high energy or angry or feeling intense in general. I need something a bit more calm or sad to balance it out.
Fiona Lamperti ’26
How do you listen to music?
Spotify.
When do you usually listen to music?
Generally whenever I’m going places there’s something playing. A lot of times I start right when I get up because I need to get out of bed so I will put in my earbuds and then can go brush my teeth.
What artist have you been getting into recently?
Indigo De Souza.
What is a song every Smith student should listen to right now?
“What Are We Gonna Do Now” by Indigo De Souza
What is your current hype-up song?
“Better Than Revenge” by Taylor Swift.
What is your current song to unwind to?
“I Wish I Was the Moon” by Neko Case.
What song describes how you have been feeling?
“Existential Crisis Hour” by Kilo Kish.
What is your current favorite genre?
Indie folk.
How has your music taste changed since coming to Smith last semester?
I feel like I’ve learned and grown. I wouldn’t say I had bad music taste before, but everybody here has better music taste. So I am learning about a bunch of new artists, which is exciting.
Minha Virk ’25, WOZQ Treasurer
How do you listen to music?
90% of the time I use Spotify, but then there’s a rare moment where I go on Youtube, or — extra rare — Bandcamp.
When do you usually listen to music?
Mostly when I get ready or if I’m walking somewhere. I live in a co-op and I have a lot of chores to do — a lot of mopping and dishwashing and stuff like that. Typically, I just sit and I listen to something as I do those things.
What artists have you been getting into recently?
I got really into this album over break, Yo La Tengo’s “Painful.” I’ve been listening to the new Caroline Rose song a lot — it’s called “Miami.” And then, I’ve been listening to the band Luna Luna, a Latin indie band from Dallas, which is where I am from.
What is a song every Smith student should listen to right now?
“Chosen to Deserve” by Wednesday. I think we need to enter the era of gross love songs. Not gross like gushy but gross like greasy and grimy. I feel pretty cleansed after listening to it.
What is your current hype-up song?
Honestly, it’s “Crush” by Daft Punk. It’s like a fast walking sort of hype-up song. There’s also the JPEG Mafia remix of Tkay Maidza’s song “High Beams.”
What is your current song to unwind to?
“Futile Devices” by Sufjan Stevens, but that’s only because I’m slightly in my morose girl era right now.
What song describes how you have been feeling?
Probably “Caught” by Florence + the Machine. I really feel the lyrics of that one.
What is your current favorite genre?
I think we are living in a horse music renaissance. Obviously, we have Horse Jumper of Love, we have feeble little horse, we have Horsegirl. We have some classics from the ’90s too, like Sparklehorse. For the country girls there’s Brandi Carlile. There’s also “High Horse” by Kacey Musgraves. And I think the reason I’ve been listening to Portishead so much is because they talk about horses in some of their songs…
How has your music taste changed since last semester?
I think last semester I listened to a lot of the acoustic guitar girl music, stuff in the boygenius realm. It’s not that I don’t like those things, but I think I mostly only listen to them when I’m feeling a little sad. And then I got happier, so I started diversifying my music taste.
How has your music taste changed since coming to Smith?
I feel like before I got to Smith, just because it was part of the music culture of who I was friends with and also my hometown in general, I listened to a lot more R&B. And then, I kind of stopped because it wasn’t as popular among the people I knew at Smith. I feel like I started listening to a lot more of the indie sad girl music, which has a very important place in my heart. But, I feel like it was something I turned to in a time of crisis, and then it slowly became more of a routine. I went home for winter break this year and I feel like it sort of brought me back to a lot of things I enjoyed.
Laila Smith ’25, WOZQ General Department Director
How do you listen to music?
Spotify. I like to put in my airpods and go for a little jaunt around campus.
When do you usually listen to music?
Always! I wake up and put on my playlist for the morning. I walk into class and I’m listening to music. In class, if the teachers aren’t talking, I’m listening. Walking places, everytime I’m on the move, I’m listening.
What artists have you been getting into recently?
I just entered a Fleetwood Mac era, which is really silly.
What is a song every Smith student should listen to right now?
It’s called “The Way We Move” by Langhorne Slim and The Law.
What is your current hype-up song?
“Little Lies” by Fleetwood Mac.
What is your current song to unwind to?
I really like “Phoenix” by Aoife O’Donovan. She’s the lead singer of Crooked Still. And “Loretta,” also by her, is really good.
What song describes how you have been feeling?
“Love Is Easy” by The Ballroom Thieves.
What is your current favorite genre?
Folk.
How has your music taste changed since last semester?
Last semester maybe I was feeling a little angst… Maybe, I was feeling a little silly, goofy… I’ve just calmed down a lot.
How has your music taste changed since coming to Smith?
That’s actually a funny story. So my radio show has a lot of bands that my parents like — my whole life, I’ve been listening to their music, which is jam bands. I liked it when I was little and then in middle and high school, I wanted to be different, so I listened to a lot of angsty, feminist, queer music. Not that I don’t still listen to that, but I’m not that angry now. So, I came to college and I started listening to a lot of those bands on my own. So, I’ve just been getting into a lot of stuff like that.
Also, I’m breaking my silence. Phish is good music.
Mia Steinberg ’26, Megan Wood ’26 and Fiona Park ’26
How do you listen to music?
FP: Spotify.
MW: Spotify.
MS: Spotify.
When do you usually listen to music?
MS: Anytime I’m not doing anything that needs intense focus.
MW: When I’m walking or when I’m at work.
FP: When I’m walking or when I’m doing homework.
What artists have you been getting into recently?
MS: Liz Phair, No Doubt, Garbage and Beck
MW: Connie Converse and Harry Nilsson.
FP: I don’t really focus on specific artists. I just do my “Discover Weekly.” But I’ve been listening to a lot more Alex G and Field Medic.
What is a song every Smith student should listen to right now?
MS: “Daddy’s Home” by St. Vincent, but that’s an album.
MW: “Hyperballad” by Bjork.
FP: I’ve been listening to Slowdive. So I’d say “Souvlaki Space Station”. Oh, and “Feel Yourself Disintigrate” by the Flaming Lips.
What is your current hype-up song?
MS: “In Bloom” by Nirvana.
MW: “In Ha Mood” by Ice Spice.
FP: I don’t really listen to music to hype me up. Maybe, “Judas” by Lady Gaga.
What is your current song to unwind to?
MS: “For Free” by Joni Mitchell.
MW: “Mother’s Last Word To Her Son” by Washington Phillips.
FP: I would say “Milk Dipped Cloud” by Elke.
What song describes how you have been feeling?
MS: “Cannonball” by The Breeders.
MW: “Champagne Coast” by Blood Orange.
FP: Either “I Am Coming to Paris (To Kill You)” by Timber Timbre or “Beach Baby” by Bon Iver.
What is your current favorite genre?
MS: Riot grrrl rock.
MW: Folk.
FP: Folk or indie.
How has your music taste changed since coming to Smith last semester?
MS: It hasn’t.
MW: I would say it’s roughly the same. But, I’ve been listening to even more old music than I was last semester.
FP: My taste changes with the season, but now I’m doing monthly playlists. Before I would do it by seasons.
