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Barack Obama Shares His Favorite Songs of 2023

"Let me know if there are any artists or songs I should check out," the former POTUS wrote.

Barack Obama

Barack Obama

Nathan Congleton/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images

Barack Obama is taking the aux. With just three days left of 2023, the former president of the United States revealed which tunes he was grooving to the most over the past year, featuring pop music, country, R&B and more.

The annual list comes on the heels of Obama’s yearly book and movie favorites, which the ex-POTUS shared earlier this week. In 2023, he had exactly 28 tracks on repeat, with highlights including “TQG” by Karol G and Shakira, “I Remember Everything” by Zach Bryan feat. Kacey Musgraves, “Sprinter” by Dave and Central Cee and “America Has a Problem” by Beyoncé feat. Kendrick Lamar.


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The A Promised Land author also included Megan Thee Stallion’s “Cobra,” Tyla’s “Water,” Mitski’s “My Love Mine All Mine” and Victoria Monét’s “On My Mama.” “Here are some of my favorite songs from this year,” he wrote on Instagram Friday (Dec. 29). “Let me know if there are any artists or songs I should check out.”

Mr. Obama’s music taste has long been known to be diverse, as documented by his song lists over the past few years. In 2022, he shouted out music from artists such as Lizzo, Rosalía, Ari Lennox, Ethel Cain, Steve Lacy and Omar Apollo. A few — Beyoncé, Kendrick Lamar, Zach Bryan — were featured on both his 2022 and 2023 playlists.

The 44th prez also typically shares his favorite songs of the summer every year, with his seasonal jams of 2023 including Boygenius, Ice Spice, Luke Bryan, Nicki Minaj and Leonard Cohen.

See Obama’s full 2023 favorite songs list below:

This article was first published by Billboard U.S.

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Olivia Rodrigo
Courtesy Photo

Olivia Rodrigo

Music News

Olivia Rodrigo Explains Why Jealousy Is Such a Frequent Topic in Her Songs: ‘Weird Programming in My Brain’

"It's something I have felt intensely since I was young," the pop star said.

From “Jealousy, Jealousy” on Sour, “Lacy” on Guts and “My Way” on You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love, the topic of jealousy as shown up in Olivia Rodrigo‘s songs across all three of her albums.

In a cover story interview with Pitchfork published Monday (June 22), the pop star explained why she thinks envy — specifically in regard to other women — has been such a dominant emotion in her life and music. “It’s something I have felt intensely since I was young,” she began, tracing it back to when she got her start as a child actress and found fame on Disney’s Bizaardvark and High School Musical: The Musical: The Series.

This article was first published by Billboard U.S.

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