Top music picks

Eyes shut, attempted steady breathing and music on full blast. Before the PSAT, which took place on April 13 in the high school gym, sophomore Tori Shepherd listens to Demi Lovato’s passionate ballad, “Stone Cold” in an attempt to calm down.

Shepherd believes that listening to different types of music at different moments can put her in certain types of moods.

“I listen to rap when I’m feeling angry, and I listen to country when I am out camping,” Shepherd said. “I like to listen to rap when I’m mad because the brash tone kind of matches my mood, and I like to listen to country because I camp with my horses, so it kind of correlates.”

Shepherd thinks that there is a perfect playlist for every mood she is in. During school, her favorite few songs to listen to are “7 Years” by Lukas Graham, “Lost Boy” by Ruth B, “Stone Cold” by Demi Lovato, “Take Me To Church” by Hozier, and “Stressed Out” by Twenty One Pilots.

However, not everyone has the same music taste. That is why there are different music genres for different types of people.

“Billboard Magazine,” which reports on the latest news, issues and trends across all genres of music, lists the top songs for each music genre per week on their website. Billboard is associated with Nielsen Music, a company who studies consumers in more than 100 countries to give the most complete view of trends worldwide, and ranked the songs by genre by airplay detections.

For the week of April 30, 2016, the top three songs for pop music ranking from most popular to third most popular were “Me Myself & I” by G-Eazy x Bebe Rexha, “Cake By The Ocean” by DNCE and “Pillowtalk” by Zayn.

“I love pop music because it is upbeat and sometimes funny to listen to,” Shepherd said. “I listen to it on a daily basis.”

For country, the top three were “Somewhere On A Beach” by Dierks Bentley, “Humble And Kind” by Tim McGraw and “You Should Be Here” by Cole Swindell.

Sophomore Jenna Casey has grown up listening to country music. “It’s fun to listen to,” Casey said.

Alternative music’s top five songs were Ride by Twenty One Pilots, Spirits by the Strumbellas, Walking On A Dream by Empire Of the Sun, Ophelia by The Lumineers, and First by Cold War Kids.

“My favorite band is Twenty One Pilots, and I can relate to a lot of their songs,” said freshman Isabella Trevisan. “Alternative music in general is very relatable for anyone who struggles with anything from depression to anxiety.”

In the rap genre, the top three most popular songs were “Panda” by Desiigner, “Me Myself & I” by G-Eazy x Bebe Rexha and “2 Phones” by Kevin Gates.

Sophomore Morgan sipes likes to listen to rap music on the bus ride to track meets. “It gets me really pumped up,” Sipes said. “It gets me in the zone before my races so, when that gun goes off, I can go out and kill it.”