AYESHA RASCOE, HOST:
Let's be real. Election day might have you feeling some anxiety, some stress.
(SOUNDBITE OF JUSTICE'S "STRESS")
RASCOE: But what if we switch up those vibes and play something soothing?
(SOUNDBITE OF MARCONI UNION'S "WEIGHTLESS, PT. 1")
RASCOE: I'm feeling calmer already. And that's why we've asked Mr. Zen himself, Stephen Thompson, to hang with us. The co-host of NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour has been working on a peaceful playlist. Hey, Stephen.
STEPHEN THOMPSON, BYLINE: Hello, Ayesha.
RASCOE: This song - it's "Weightless" by the band Marconi Union, and it's purported to be the No. 1 most relaxing song according to some British neuroscientists, and you always have to trust them.
THOMPSON: Especially when it comes to art.
RASCOE: Yeah, exactly.
THOMPSON: Yeah. This track, to me, has a lot of waiting room of the day spa, and I think there is a place for that. There are many people who find that deeply relaxing. But to me, the most relaxing music is giving my brain a little more to chew on than that. When my brain is racing, it wants to settle into patterns that can kind of reset it and calm it down. And to me, this track doesn't quite do that.
RASCOE: What songs did you pick for us? And tell us about your criteria for these songs.
THOMPSON: Well, I tried to pick a little bit of a mix 'cause there's no one way for a song to relax you. So I picked a couple songs with words and a couple songs without words. The first thing I did pick is an instrumental by a wonderful pianist by the name of Theo Alexander. This piece is called "re; Waiting."
(SOUNDBITE OF THEO ALEXANDER'S "RE; WAITING")
THOMPSON: This song basically takes a single note...
(SOUNDBITE OF THEO ALEXANDER'S "RE; WAITING")
THOMPSON: ...(Vocalizing) and then puts patterns around it. If my brain is racing, it can lock on that single note while then playing around in the patterns around it. And for me, that's very relaxing as somebody who deals with a fair bit of anxiety.
(SOUNDBITE OF THEO ALEXANDER'S "RE; WAITING")
RASCOE: It's relaxing, but it's not, like, sleep playlist, right?
THOMPSON: Exactly. And, man, if you want to have a sleep conversation...
(LAUGHTER)
THOMPSON: ...The Max Richter Orchestra has an eight-hour box set called "Sleep" that literally changed my life.
RASCOE: Oh, my goodness. So do you have something else for us?
THOMPSON: So my next pick has lyrics. It's by a wonderful singer-songwriter named Cassandra Jenkins. And this song came out in 2021. It is about these conversations that she has with friends, and it's largely spoken word. This song always makes me feel better. It's called "Hard Drive."
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "HARD DRIVE")
CASSANDRA JENKINS: I ran into Perry at Lowell's place. Her gemstone eyes caught my gaze. She said, oh, dear. I can see you've had a rough few months. But this year - it's gonna be a good one.
RASCOE: This is, like, a real tearjerker. Do you find crying relaxing?
THOMPSON: Ayesha, how long have we known each other?
(LAUGHTER)
THOMPSON: I do. But I find, if I do cry listening to this song, it's because I've got to work something out.
RASCOE: Yeah.
THOMPSON: You're trying to exhale tension. You're trying to get negative thoughts out of your mind. This song, to me, is resetting your brain and just reminding you of the comfort that you get when you talk to somebody who cares about you.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "HARD DRIVE")
JENKINS: Just breathe. One, two, three.
RASCOE: I think that, you know, having a song that really hits you in the feels, for me, is relaxing.
THOMPSON: It sounds to me like Ayesha Roscoe has a song that she wants to play for me to make me feel better.
RASCOE: I got the best one, and I am so glad that I get to share this with the world because I'm obsessed with this song for the past few weeks.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "HOME (LIVE FROM THE MERV GRIFFIN SHOW)")
WHITNEY HOUSTON: (Singing) When I think home, I think...
RASCOE: Whitney Houston's debut on "The Merv Griffin Show," and she sings "Home" from "The Wiz," her own version of it.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "HOME (LIVE FROM THE MERV GRIFFIN SHOW)")
HOUSTON: (Singing) I wish I was home. I wish I was back there with the things I been knowing. Wind...
RASCOE: It gives me chills, and it relaxes me because it's talking about something so deep - home, where there's love and affection. And don't we all want to go home?
THOMPSON: Exactly. Relaxing is getting yourself back to a baseline where you are who you are, you feel like yourself and you're thinking about the things in your life that do work, that do matter.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "HOME (LIVE FROM THE MERV GRIFFIN SHOW)")
HOUSTON: (Singing) Love and affection.
RASCOE: Yes, absolutely.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "HOME (LIVE FROM THE MERV GRIFFIN SHOW)")
HOUSTON: (Singing) Maybe I can convince time to slow up.
RASCOE: Now we've got the moment of truth. What is your absolute favorite chill, relax song?
THOMPSON: You know, every election season, everyone should listen to the song easy now by Joan Shelley.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "EASY NOW")
JOAN SHELLEY: (Singing) Easy now. It's almost over. The fever will run out. Now the nights are colder.
THOMPSON: It's all these evocations of the natural world, of friendships, of comfort and home. And this is a song to remind you that whatever you're fixated on, whatever is stressing you out, whatever is bothering you, time will move you through it.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "EASY NOW")
SHELLEY: (Singing) The rains came down, ran across the river.
RASCOE: NPR's Stephen Thompson, thank you so much. This has been really, I think, helpful and needed.
THOMPSON: My blood pressure is lower already. Thank you so much, Ayesha.
RASCOE: And to keep those chill vibes going, Stephen and the All Songs Considered crew just posted an episode devoted to peaceful songs. Listen at npr.org/allsongs.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "EASY NOW")
SHELLEY: (Singing) Easy now. It's almost over. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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