The story behind the playlist: Writing the Spring ‘24 issue felt unusually easy. Maybe it was the spring that always electrifies me or maybe I simply allowed myself to have more fun with this issue. Whatever the reason, rebirth and humor were the two central elements of this issue, and they heavily influenced the choice of music. The glitchy and catchy “Set the Roof (ft. Nikki Nair, Tayla Parx)” by Hudson Mohawke caught my attention on a sunny Friday morning in April, when I was listening to Shygirl’s mix for Fabric on my morning commute to work, and I immediately knew it had to be the opening track of this issue. Soulwax’s remix of “Work It” by Marie Davidson was the only contender for Vika Bani’s profile: a track from the Canadian electronic music scene, perfectly suited to celebrate Vika’s formidable work ethic, and infused with so much humor that it simply could never take itself seriously—just like Vika never does. For Victor Rodriguez’s profile, I wanted music that represented his adventurous personality, that felt vigorous, risky, bold, and fearless. Punk was the obvious choice and “Smoko” by The Chats was all of that in one song. I could not choose between Deena Abdelwahed’s “Tawa” and Mordisco’s “Sacromonte” for Mahsa Nami’s profile because they equally captured the essence of my time with Mahsa in Dubai: an introspective backdrop of a seven-year long friendship at the energizing precipice of major new life chapters. Disco Shrine’s profile obviously needed a song by Disco Shrine, which meant I had a meta decision to make. I needed to find a song by Disco Shrine that effectively captured my own perception of Disco Shrine. “Closer” was the champion: a sweet and thoughtful yet a cheeky and rebellious song; just like Disco herself. Big Boi’s track “Feel Me (Intro),” the song for Reza Mollaghaffari’s profile, is minimalist and short and uncomplicated, and yet comical and assured and intriguing, making you wonder what’s coming next and what else you might discover, which is what getting to know Reza has felt like. Choosing a song for Anisha Suterwala’s profile was one of those bizarre cosmic experiences. I was texting Anisha the day I went to see Erika de Casier perform at The Independent in San Francisco, and at the end of the show, when Erika performed “ooh,” it became obvious the song would be the song for Anisha’s profile. Y2K-esque, homey, and inclusive, it felt like hanging out with Anisha and it sounded exactly like the type of music played at Anisha and Brandan’s house parties.