What is former President Barack Obama listening to this summer?
On Saturday, in what has become somewhat of an annual tradition, Barack Obama took to social media to share his summer playlist. These playlists have gone viral in the past and they often get the meme treatment; This year is no exception.
When Obama said there was "a whole lot in between", he wasn't kidding. But nothing could've prepared us for the variety of songs that are featured here. For example, many people were caught off guard by the inclusion of Masked Wolf's 'Astronaut in the Ocean'. The former president may or may not have been aware of the notorious nature of the song. Most of the top comments refer to this song in particular, with the top comment reading "what you know about rolling down in the deep, mr president?" which quotes the song's meme-worthy chorus.
Masked Wolf and a few other musicians reached out to Obama to thank him for featuring them:
Masked Wolf
The knows!! Thank you legend https://twitter.com/barackobama/status/1413848757083545601\u00a0\u2026— Masked Wolf (@Masked Wolf) 1625924198
Rapper Masked Wolf thanked the former president, referring to him as a legend and the goat in the process.
Cardi B
I can really imagine Barack taking important calls like \u201c ain\u2019t nothin but alil bit of straightenin\u201d Congrsts boys @Migoshttps://twitter.com/barackobama/status/1413848757083545601\u00a0\u2026— iamcardib (@iamcardib) 1625929994
Rapper Cardi B passed along Obama's shoutout via Twitter to her husband Quavo and the Migos.
H.E.R.
Wow! Thank you @BarackObama! \nhttps://youtu.be/5Tk-yOhcVi4\u00a0pic.twitter.com/BcQcHjhOIt— H.E.R. (@H.E.R.) 1625932546
The freshly crowned 2021 BET Awards' 'Best Female R&B artist', H.E.R. thanked Obama for the inclusion of her new single with Lil Baby, Find A Way.
Brandi Carlile
Honored to be included in @BarackObama\u2019s Summer Playlist with these incredible artists. \n\n#WeThePeopleNetflixpic.twitter.com/5C78j97HNB— Brandi Carlile (@Brandi Carlile) 1625946184
Singer-songwriter Brandi Carlile told Obama via Twitter that she was it was an honor to be included. She also pointed out that she was in good company, citing the others featured as incredible artists.
Jazmine Sullivan
Y\u2019all . Thank you @BarackObama pic.twitter.com/e1LDLVBILW— Jazmine Sullivan (@Jazmine Sullivan) 1625928140
Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Jazmine Sullivan thanked the former president for the first spot on the playlist with 'Pick Up Your Feelings'. The song was the lead single of her new album Heaux Tales which was awarded Album of The Year at the 2021 BET Awards.
Nicki Nicole
Thank you so much @BarackObama https://twitter.com/barackobama/status/1413848757083545601\u00a0\u2026— Naiki (@Naiki) 1625935597
20-year-old Argentinian singer Nicki Nicole thanked Obama for his inclusion of the song 'Ella No Es Tuya (Remix)' which she has a feature on.
Protoje
Thanks for featuring 'Switch it Up' ft. @originalkoffee on the @BarackObama summer playlisthttps://twitter.com/BarackObama/status/1413848757083545601\u00a0\u2026— Self Defense (@Self Defense) 1625930730
Reggae singer Protoje's, Switch It Up earned a spot on Obama's playlist as well. He reached out Saturday morning to say thanks.
Wye Oak
I mean. What is there to say other than \u201cThanks, Obama.\u201dhttps://twitter.com/barackobama/status/1413848757083545601\u00a0\u2026— Wye Oak (@Wye Oak) 1625924321
Wye Oak is an indie rock duo whose brand new single 'Its Way With Me' was included on the former president's playlist. They joked that they were at a loss for words by their inclusion.
Louis Armstrong
An honor to be represented on @BarackObama \u2018s Summer Playlist with \u201cA Kiss to Build a Dream On\u201d!https://twitter.com/barackobama/status/1413848757083545601\u00a0\u2026— Louis Armstrong (@Louis Armstrong) 1626046538
The estate of Louis Armstrong expressed their gratitude to Obama for his inclusion of 'A Kiss to Build a Dream On'.
George Harrison
My Sweet Lord https://spoti.fi/3yQSNHA\u00a0 https://twitter.com/barackobama/status/1413848757083545601\u00a0\u2026— George Harrison (@George Harrison) 1626101865
The estate of legendary artist George Harrison simply retweeted Obama's playlist with a Spotify link to 'My Sweet Lord'
Smokey Robinson
Hope you\u2019re listening to President Obama\u2019s official summer playlist! You might hear a familiar tune if you do Thank you, @BarackObama! #Summer2021pic.twitter.com/JPKHyNsMUq— Smokey Robinson (@Smokey Robinson) 1625924910
Another classic artist, Smokey Robinson, shared a tongue in cheek reply, teasing that the playlist features "a familiar tune" which refers to his song 'The Tears of a Clown'.
We look forward to listening to this playlist all summer and can't wait to see what next summer's playlist has to offer.
You can listen to Barack Obama's 2021 Summer Playlist here.
