Over the weekend, Hillary Clinton teased her first Roosevelt Island rally by dropping the hottest mixtape of 2015: her official campaign playlist, fam. Teaming up with Spotify, Clinton selected 14 tracks that range from John Legend’s Wake Up Everybody to Ariana Grande’s Break Free (tbh that’s my vote all sewn up.) A move that’s already been analyzed as a way to energize younger voters, none of Clinton’s picks predate Y2K — perhaps a tip she picked up after Mitt Romney was shat on for his old people music and egregious use of Kid Rock. Although Clinton’s Spotify playlist has some potential, the former Secretary of State has yet to pick her official theme song. So we’ve rounded up five girl power anthems for Ms Rodham’s (if you’re nasty) consideration:
Aaliyah “Try Again”: Having been an Arkansas Attorney General, Senator, First Lady, and Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton is objectively one of the most qualified Presidential candidates in United States history — she’s been through it, yall. Although this formidable resume didn’t amount to a win back in 08, it’s like Aaliyah and Timbaland sing: “If at first you don’t succeed/ dust yourself off and try again.”
The Lox Ft. Lil Kim & DMX “Money, Power, Respect”: At her Roosevelt Island rally, Clinton pledged to close the disparate income gap perpetuated by “the top-down economic policies that failed us before.” As Clinton promised to make gender a more central component of her campaign strategy this go around, we’re gonna let the Notorious K.I.M. speak about our feelings on gender inequality: “First you get the money/ Then you get the muthafuckin power/ After you get the fuckin’ power muthafuckas will respect you.” If Clinton can start by ensuring men and women are paid the same wage for the same work (women are still earning 78 cents to every man’s dollar), we can push towards greater mothafuckin respect.
Britney Spears, “Email My Heart”: Too soon? JK, Hill.
The Spice Girls, “Leader of the Gang”: This Spice World scene is exactly how we’re picturing the Democratic National Convention if Hillary could just commit to spicing up her life. She’d be joined on stage by a fistpumping Congressional squad of Barbara Boxer, Elizabeth Warren, Maxine Waters, and Janet Yellin chanting “I’m the leader of the gang, I am” while flanked by first term male senators filibustering a move assless, purple unitards. It’s the American dream.
Bikini Kill, “Rebel Girl”: For my birthday last year, I attended a live taping of Maury and discovered the host of the televised paternity test selected none other than Lil’ John’s opus Turn Down for What as his walkout song. The crowd went fucking crazy. So why, WHY, has Hillary yet to make an entrance to Kathleen Hanna’s militant riot grrrl shrieks and pounding drumlines? “When she talks, I hear the revolution…Where she walks the revolution’s coming,” harkens back to her transformation from moderate Republican to loud and proud Democrat during her Wellesley college days back in the 60s. And the line “I wanna try on your clothes oh” could easily refer to her ma-jor undergraduate pant moment or the rainbow of separates she rocks today.
Beyonce, “***Flawless”: Relaaaax, you didn’t think we were going to leave out the hip hop rappin’ Girl’s Time, did you? It was a tough call, but Flawless is our Queen Bey pick over the obvious Girls and Destiny’s Child deep cut Survivor (sorry again, Michelle.) The Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie TED talk sample is an obvious reason, but then there’s also this meme. And we know Bey’d be down with a Clinton co-sign seeing as she’s already pledged her support to team Hill.
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Text Emily Manning
Image via Penn State on Flickr