Timeless Sounds of Summer
The summer season is not only marked by higher temps, but also with hot summer tracks. For over 60 years, record labels have released significant albums and singles that help create what has been known as The Sounds of Summer.
As summer fun hits our stadiums in a couple of months, it’s worth looking back to some of these timeless tracks to see if there is a place for them in today’s stadium playlist.
Let’s look back to the origins with The Beach Boys. No summer playlist is complete without tracks like “I Get Around”, “California Girls”, and “Surfin’ USA”; but do they still belong on stadium playlists? We spoke to several prominent sports DJs to ask their opinion, and the overwhelming reply is YES.
The top reasons for incorporating some Beach Boys and other older summer tracks into the sounds of your stadium include:
- Most music is geared toward a younger audience. Playing some music for an older audience is inclusive. They get overlooked with most stadium DJ tracks.
- What’s old is new again. Many songs see a resurgence through socials making them relevant again. Fleetwood Mac had a #1 hit with “Dreams” decades after its release, after that cranberry swigging, skateboard chilling dude launched his video that went viral in 2020.
- Location matters when curating playlists. Teams in coastal cities like LA and San Diego naturally gravitate toward more surf rock than those in Denver (although they play more John Denver).
- A change of pace is nice. Many stadium playlists are dominated by EDM and current pop tracks. Infusing some timeless classics can be the change of pace and provide breathing room all playlists need.
- Theme Nights have different music needs. Many teams incorporate “Beach Nights” or “Surf Nights” into their theme games. Those games need a playlist focused on classic tracks from the Beach Boys, Jan & Dean and the Ventures.
“I feel it's important to sprinkle in a wide variety of genres in our sports events.” Adds Erik Jorgensen, DJ for several teams including the San Diego Padres. “If you consider the fans who spend their hard-earned money at sports events, we as soundtrack curators have to program a game to appeal to fans from 5 to 95 across a myriad of demographics. So I'm all for adding genres like surf rock, motown, soul, r&b, country, etc. in at games. That said, it's important to know what plays well and when - there are nuances to these philosophies. (For example, I would only play Beach Boys during day games, beach theme nights, etc)”
The tracks that will define the sounds of summer 2024 will be released in the next few months. You will have an incredible opportunity to shape that sound for your fans, and The Score will be here to assist. We will be working with many top artists and labels to provide you with music options to infuse summer heat into your stadium setting. However, there is no need to wait on some timeless summer tracks. Start to incorporate them into your stadium profile now and bring the summer nostalgia to your fans.