I have a very good memory and yet I couldn’t tell you when or how I decided to make a selection of questions to ask all of my guests at the end of their podcast interviews. Perhaps it’s simply because some of my favourite podcasters do this well on their own shows, and I enjoy the variety of answers from their guests.
In any case, the question ‘what song best represents you?’ was added a few episodes in – something you may have noticed if you have been listening to the show since its inception.
It’s a hard question if you’ve never pondered on this before. But what I love about it is that when we find the answer, it often reveals something not just about our musical taste, but about our character
I remember listening to Gayle King offer interview advice to Drew Barrymore, as the actress was working towards the first season of her talk show, and sharing that this was one of her go-to ‘hard’ questions. I latched onto it and immediately added it to my list.
Sneakily, I chose to do that simply because when I first heard the question, I felt smug. You see, a few years ago, I figured out what song best represents me! The track which I find identifies me the most is ‘Ain’t No Mountain High Enough’ by Marvin Gay and Tammy Terrell.
I didn’t arrive at this answer after asking myself that one question, though. I’d been attempting to create a top ten playlist of my favorite tunes for years, and that song was in there. Whenever I got back to the playlist, it always stood out, somehow. I even sang it at one of my best friend’s weddings (reminder for those who’ve forgotten – I used to be a singer, way back when). Later on I realised it was ‘my’ tune, not just because it’s one that never fails to lift me in whatever way I need, but also because I’ve been known on occasion to go above and beyond.
Back to the playlist: because the question is quite tricky, there aren’t as many tracks on the list as there have been interviews in the show. Some of my guests couldn’t answer, and that’s okay. I’ve added my song to kickstart it and I will be happy to add to the collection with each guest that offers me their answer.
I hope that you will enjoy this very eclectic musical selection – spanning from Italian disco to instrumental, house to bollywood tunes – from my wonderful podcast guests.
And with that, I wish you a happy summer, and happy listening!
Listen below or open on Spotify
Track 1: Ain’t No Mountain High Enough, by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terell – my top tune!
Track 2: Respect, by Aretha Franklin – Diana Rilov
Track 3: Incantevole, by Subsonica – Paolo Ferrarini
Track 4: Something Going On, by Todd Terry, Martha Walsh and Jocelyn Brown – Martin Popplewell
Track 5: Love Someone, by Lukas Graham – Hanna Fiedler
Track 6: Wonderwall, by Oasis – Sri Ganesh Santiram
Track 7: No Role Modelz, by J Cole – Chris Magee
Track 8: Dance Yrself Clean, by LCD Soundsystem – Keris Matthews
Track 9: Titanium, by David Guetta featuring Sia – Todd Lynn
Track 10: Why Should I Cry for You? by Sting – Dr Nadine Kelly
Track 11: Jamming, by Bob Marley and the Wailers – Andrew Barry
Track 12: Spiegel im Spiegel, by Arvo Pärt – Dr Tim Lomas
Track 13: Relativity Suite: Part 2, by Don Cherry – Yancey Strickler
Track 14: Wetsuit, by The Vaccines – Rebekah Brown
Track 15: Holocene, by Bon Iver – Paulette Perhach
Track 16: Keep the Faith, by Michael Jackson – Julie Granger
Track 17: Follow That Dream, by Elvis Presley – Julie Granger
Track 18: Ani Kuni, by Polo & Pan – Jenny Sauer-Klein
Track 19: Don’t Worry Be Happy, by Bobby McFerrin – Wesley Faulkner
Track 20: Bitch Better Have My Money, by Rihanna – Jennifer Fisher
Track 21: Ma Quale Idea, by Pino d’Angiò – Dr Jonathan Kaplan
Track 22: Optimistic, by Sounds of Blackness – Aicha McKenzie
Track 23: Rise Up, by Andra Day – Abigail James
Track 24: Pjanoo, by Eric Prydz – Salman Ansari
Track 25: Starboy, by the Weeknd and Daft Punk – Siddha Jain
Track 26: Talk Love, by Sonya Spence – Kim Walls
Track 27: Imagine, by John Lennon – Nada Ghazal