Gauntlet Mixtape Vol. 10: Welcome to the family
By Valery Perez, Roog Kubur, Samantha Amundarain, Julieanne Acosta, Ramiro Bustamante Torres, Ava Zardynezhad, Sophia Lopez and Namratha Badawadagi, May 30 2022—
Welcome to the 2022/2033 term! The Gauntlet has welcomed some new faces onto our team, both staff and volunteers alike, and its time for some much needed introductions. Come and get to know our team by listening to the Gauntlet’s May Playlist — Welcome to the family.
VALERY’S PICKS: VISUALS EDITOR
“Amarillo” by J Balvin:
This song is representative of the hyper, super-excited, extroverted side of me. The side that loves meeting new people, joking around loudly with old and new friends alike, and is just overall always down to have a good rowdy time with the homies. Also I’m hispanic and love a good party bop so…
“She Dances” by Billie Marten:
This is the sad girls vibes I enjoy when I am feeling very sad girl. For someone who is very extroverted and hyper, I also enjoy and need a lot of sad girl down time. Billie’s entire discography is on permanent rotation on my Spotify. She just gets it, you know?
“DOWN” by BAYNK:
This song is the one I blast on long late night decompression car rides — one of my favourite pastimes.
“L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N” by Noah and the Whale:
I’m an ecology student at the university and, as such, I am required to have a granola playlist for adventurous hiking and road trip times. This is one of the many bangers on said playlist. This song came into my life in grade eight, after one of my favourite teachers let us take a nap in class because we were all tired after recess. He was a cool guy with great taste in music. “
ROOG’S PICKS: ARTS & SCIENCE EDITOR
“C’est La Vie” by Weathers:
Imagine this: You’re walking down a street, the scent of fresh rain is still lingering in the air and the pavement is reflecting back a skewed image of the lights surrounding you. The city is alive but you’re not focused on the faces around you. This song is that scene personified. The muffled, distorted synths on this song and the hopeless lyricism over melancholic guitars is the number one way to feel like you’ll keep walking, making your way through these crowded streets.
“More” by K/DA:
This song is modern feminism. You mean you tell me you hear the opening line “Akali that girl, kali go brr” and not feel enough raw energy to girlboss your way to the sun?
“Dahlia” by CHANMINA:
Chanmina is the coolest and her energy radiates through this song. It has a gentle jazz melody in the background, but her raspy vocals and aggressive rap verses give the energy of someone who has given up on trying to appease anyone but themselves. The lyrics tell a tragic story and you feel like the young Dahlia in question. It’s a rollercoaster, and definitely perfect for feeling like the main character you are.
“Bang Bang Bang Bang” by Sohodolls:
Ultimate track for putting on Party City wigs with your friends and making a DIY music video in a parking lot somewhere.
SAMANTHA’S PICKS: VOLUNTEER
“Every Summertime” by Niki:
It makes me feel like the main character in an early 2000’s rom com. I feel feminine and happy with myself.
“Brooklyn Baby” by Lana del Rey:
It feels like a sunny day, and the line “my boyfriends is pretty cool/but he’s not as cool as me” makes me laugh.
“Witches” by Alice Phoebe Lou:
I recently got a lot more into tarot readings for fun and my mom named me after Samantha from bewitched, and it makes me feel mysterious and cool.
JULIEANNE’S PICKS: NEWS EDITOR
“motive” by Ariana Grande & Doja Cat:
Ariana and Doja Cat?I don’t gotta explain
“Slide” by H.E.R. & YG:
I don’t know what it is about this song but it makes me feel something again.
“Natalie” by Bruno Mars:
Sometimes I feel like Bruno Mars and sometimes I feel like Natalie and there’s nothing wrong with that.
RAMIRO’S PICKS: LAYOUT EDITOR
“Paprika” by Japanese Breakfast:
This song has many different instruments brough together to make a really wonderful, joyous tune. I feel like I relate in a sense, the way I try and dabble in whatever I can, however similar or different they are from each other which end up making me.
AVA’S PICKS: OPINIONS & HUMOUR EDITOR
“Dancing Queen” by ABBA:
So, some of you might already know that I was raised on ABBA. This song in particular, however, is the song I listen to no matter what mood I’m in — I’ve danced, cried, and angry screamed to this song. It’s only appropriate that my personal soundtrack starts with this song.
“Jackie and Wilson” by Hozier:
One thing you need to know about me is that I basically worship Hozier. I specifically picked this song because, who am I kidding, I’m well into my mid-youth crisis era. Also, because in some sad way, very much like this version of Hozier, I, too, am a hopeless romantic.
“Sound and Vision” by David Bowie:
David Bowie shaped my identity very early on, so you already know he was going to make it onto this list. Sound and Vision is the song that gets me through, the one that keeps playing through the credits, the one that’s blasting during the unattractive moments, the one that inspires me when I’m blocked and keeps me walking when I’m down.
SOPHIA’S PICKS: EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
“Electric Feel” by MGMT:
I had this song on repeat during a period of time where I was going through a lot of change, so this song brings back some really good but also really challenging memories. So even though the reasoning is kinda cringe, I think it’s essential to add it to my personal soundtrack. Next time I’ll think of something funnier I swear.
NAMRATHA’S PICKS: VOLUNTEER COORDINATOR
“Munni Badnaam” by Mamta Sharma, Aishwarya:
When this song comes on, you can guarantee I’m out bussing it down on the dancefloor, aunties be damned.
“Honey” by Raveena:
This song makes me feel so warm and happy, and I think everyone deserves moments like those.
“N Side” by Steve Lacy:
I feel like the coolest kid on the block whenever I have this on full blast.