Hello Monday! Thankfully Monday means music! For this new year, the 4M crew is operating a bit differently. If you have a theme idea, submit your request by email. Each person’s suggestion(s) will be credited accordingly – unless someone wants to volunteer for the monthly co-host spot, then we won’t be looking for anyone to fill it in 2023. It’s tough to commit for 4-weeks. The object is to keep things fun!

For this week, our theme was chosen by our very own Cathy of Curious as a CAThy – she chose “Use a band or artist to spell your full name, either real or blog.” Let’s get this name party started! I’m just going to use my first name, since first and last will be too much. 😉

Representing “S”, let’s start with these two artists who teamed up to sing about two people falling in love. They compared the burgeoning romance to snow on the beach: a dreamlike and beautiful pairing. One of the artists said:

“‘[This song]’ is about falling in love with someone at the same time as they’re falling in love with you. Sort of in this cataclysmic, fated moment where you realize someone feels exactly the same way that you feel at the same moment.

And you’re kind of looking around going, ‘Wait, is this real? Is this a dream? Is this really happening?’ Kind of like it would be if you were to see snow falling on a beach.”

Get ready for goosebumps, here’s Taylor Swift featuring Lana Del Rey with “Snow On The Beach”:

Next up, representing “T”, this artist sings about having big dreams of being a star on stage as a kid. He recalls being laughed at by his classmates for such ambitions, but in the second verse, the frontman flips the script on those who mocked him.

Now I’m smiling from the stage / While you were clapping in the  bleeds

The artist was quoted as saying:

“[This song] is: ‘I’m so happy for a really (crappy) middle school and high school existence and getting kicked out of college. It’s reflecting on all those things and saying, ‘Good, I’m happy for all that because that brought me to this place of being. It created angst inside of me that bred .’”

Get ready to dance, here’s Imagine Dragons with “Thunder”:

Next up is, representing “A”, is a song this artist gave his fans an early Christmas present back in December 2020. He wrote the song in 2019 – it finds him crooning about his love for his wife, whom he married in January of that year.

Stop the clocks, it’s amazing / You should see the way the light dances off your hair / A million colors of hazel, golden, and red

He wants those special intimate moments with her to last forever.

Oh, I won’t be silent and I won’t let go / I will hold on tighter ’til the afterglow / And we’ll burn so bright ’til the darkness softly clears

The artist and his wife both attended Thomas Mills High School in Framlington, Suffolk. They stayed in touch after the artist moved to London in 2008 and started dating in 2015. She has been the muse for several of the artist’s songs.

Filmed in one continuous shot, the performance video finds the artist playing the song on acoustic guitar in the middle of an expansive twilight scene.

Give a listen to Ed Sheeran with “Afterglow”:

Next up, representing “C”, is an American  that formed in 2015. You’ll recognize one of the members from his previous success with his brothers. The idea for this band was the brainchild of the lead singer and the drummer from his previous band, who now plays drums with this new band. The lead explained the story behind the song:

“We were working with some producers from Sweden and they kept telling us this story about having cake by the ocean. I was like, ‘Are you guys talking about sex on the beach?’ They were like, ‘Well, yeah.’ After having writers’ block in the studio all week, we wrote this song in like ten minutes flat with Justin Tranter.”

The group stands out with a quirky look and lyrics that are even quirkier, thanks in large part to their international team that didn’t all grow up speaking English. It was their freewheeling songwriting style that resulted in this particular track, as explained by the lead:

“We were just creating stuff to create. ‘[This song]’ could be free and wild, and we didn’t stress too much about having it follow the rules of songwriting.”

DNCE

Without further ado, here’s DNCE with “Cake By The Ocean”:

Last, but certainly not least, representing “Y”, is this artist, who didn’t initially plan to include a collaboration on the album, but the song creatively demanded it. She said:

“I was kind of dead set on not collaborating on this album, just because I feel like I’ve done a lot of collaborating recently. I love collaborations, but I just wanted to make sure that I could stand on my own two feet.”

But after writing the song with Shane McAnally and Julian Bunetta, the  couldn’t shake the idea of an all-female trio singing the track. The song is filled with pointed lines such as “the way you’re slurring and the way you stumble / Ain’t no way you’re gonna get my number.” She said:

“I felt that there’s some sass and comedy to this song. So I thought, ‘Who are the women in my life that are artists that have both of those things?’ Carly and I have been friends for, like, 10 years, before either of us had anything going on and we’ve just seen each other personally and professionally through so many seasons of life. We’ve always wanted to do a song together and this made sense.”

Once the  had Carly Pearce on board for the collaboration, she began thinking of who the right third vocalist would be, or as she described, “someone who can add a different texture, vocally.”

“I thought the biggest ask I could make is Kelly Clarkson, and I texted her that morning. She did her vocals that night.”

The  was in the studio when Carly laid down her harmony and melody vocals, and they turned the recording session into a girls’ night. At the end of that session, they added a little something extra.

“After she did her lead parts, we did like a … we called it s–t-talk track. Julian hit record and for literally three and a half minutes, through the whole song, we just talked s–t and the whole track’s in there, it’s just really pushed down [in the mix]. There’s some chatter moments you hear at the end and he put some of them a bit hotter in the track, because Kelly also sent in some funny stuff, like the part of the song where she goes, ‘Um, Byeee!’ We just wanted to match that energy, because we had Kelly’s track already and wanted to match that energy and personality. Carly and I are such good friends that it was funny to just be like, ‘All right, let’s go off.’”

Get ready to dance, here’s Kelsea Ballerini featuring Kelly Clarkson and Carly Pearce with “You’re Drunk, Go Home”:

That’s a wrap for this week – see you on the dance floor!

Now on to the particulars of Monday’s Music Move’s Me:   Photobucket

I have the supreme honor and privilege of being a co-host with the inimitable Xmas Dolly and our musical cohort, the awesome Cathy from Curious as a CAThy, and Alana of Ramblin’ with AM!

Want to join in the fun? It’s easy – just find a tune that rocks your boat, post it and link up – don’t forget to grab Xmas Dolly…er, um, I mean her button…over at her place here. Check out Xmas Dolly’s sidebar for the random themes we sport each week – and you can always ask for a specific theme of music you like, too. Check out the other music lovahs and let’s jam!

INTRODUCING OUR “SPOTLIGHT DANCER”:

Cathy from Curious as a CAThy

6 Comments

  1. Very nice playlist, from Taylor Swift (song new to me) to Imagine Dragons (Thunder has a way of growing on you) to the beats of Go Home, You’re Drunk and Cake by the Ocean. Enjoyed the dance on a dreary, snowy day.

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