One time, a guy told me his favorite song of all time is “Sussudio” by Phil Collins and it remains one of the most appalling things anyone has ever said to me.
Music is a really important part of my life and never more so than race day. So, for this week’s blog, I offer you a perfectly curated half-marathon playlist that should drag you across the finish line in just under 1 hour and 45 minutes. I’ll be listening to this next weekend when I #RunDallas in the BMW Half Marathon.
Mile Zero: Coral Composure
While you’re feeling anxious in the coral waiting for the national anthem to start, simultaneously calm yourself down and psyche yourself up with Nonstop by Drake. Make sure your GPS is ready and your race watch is set.
Mile One:
Lose Yourself, Eminen: The slow steady beat gets you across the start line without losing your mind or blowing a fuse. Feel the beat build as you settle into race pace; palms are sweaty, knees weak, arms are heavy
Whistle, Flo Rida: This light and happy (slightly naughty) tune is the perfect jam to put the pep in your step as you pull out of mile one. The spectator sidelines will still be pretty full and you’ll have just recovered from crying, which you do during the first mile of every race. There’s only one flow and only one rider.
Mile Two:
Setting the World on Fire, Kenny Chesney: Find your perfect cadence on the full round quarter note of this song. Stay out there and set the course on fire; we were screaming because all the streets were empty.
Won’t Let It Show, Mike Ryan: Your pace stays steady as a smile tugs at the corner of your lips and memories of the first time you heard this song seep into your pulse. You’re happy with burning flames of fire in your eyes.
Mile Three:
Houston, We Got a Problem, Luke Combs: One time you were so nervous you started crying in the back seat of an Uber while listening to this song. And that day turned out to be a pivot point in your life. Don’t hide from it, look up to the biggest sky you’ve ever seen.
Baby You Do, Larry Fleet: One year ago you were in a box seat at the National Finalist Rodeo surrounded by cowboys and Stetsons and square-toed boots and pearl-snap shirts and the truth is, you were home in the most unfamiliar place, without even trying.
Don’t Follow, Casper McWade: You just finished the three-mile warmup and it’s time to accelerate. Wait for the eighth note to come in at 2:20 with the harmonica and get it under your legs with a secret smile on your lips for the things I’ve done and where I’ve been.
Mile Four:
Neon Eyes, Morgan Wallen: This bright, light quarter note pops with a perfect two-stepping beat and you’ll be spinning around and around. If you’re lucky, he might even flip you. Once you love a cowboy, you’ll never be the same.
Story for Another Glass, Jason Aldean: It wouldn’t be a playlist without Jason and his appearance at mile four is perfectly placed, your feet and your heart will feel lighter under the catch of this new track from MACON. Don’t miss it, there’s a thousand roads that I can do down.
That’s How Ya Left Me, Riley Green: The trick to mile four is not getting carried away. There’s still a lot of race left to run, but you feel good and it’s a struggle to hold back. So dial in, put some pep in your step, and get steady. You’re at race pace here, and Riley’s gonna keep you right there, like you leave a warm drink, right around last call.
Pick Up, Dierks Bentley: This course is uphill for the first six miles and you’re starting to feel it. But, you just happen to love this song and its big round beat. So dig in and let it drag you up that hill. We can pick up right where we left off.
Mile Five:
Why Indiana, Parker McCollum: It’s the last of the love songs and broken hearts on this playlist, but they got you this far and it’s going to get you just a little further up this incline, where the world is beating back into my chest.
David, Cody Jinks: Big guitars, soft guitars, and loud guitars, I can’t get enough Cody Jinks and neither can you as you close out this stage of the course. Steady at race pace, still climbing, still happy, and still strong, she just about lost her mind.
Mile Six:
HATE YOUR HOMETOWN, HARDY: The vibe is shifting as the guitars get a little louder and the vibe gets a little more aggressive. You don’t have to be a Mississippi queen for HARDY to be all up in your headphones as you continue to climb past every brick and every acre.
Tell Me, Jake Owen: When you hear this song in a race you know one thing has happened; you’ve crossed the halfway point. So let Jake start you off nice and slow, catch your breath, then listen for the guitar and grab on, because it is time to turn those negative splits: just let go.
Mile Seven:
Style, Taylor Swift: Seemingly out of place on this playlist, Tay-tay pulls you over the one hour mark and stands alone as the only pop artist for 13.1 miles. But this infectious beat hits just right as you lean in and take the incline for the first time on this course. Let the sweat roll because you never go out of style.
We Trying to Stay Alive, Wyclef Jean and Refugee All Stars: Funky beats and fresh sounds. Tap into that scratch on the snare and let your heel strike lightly, hips loose, shoulders on the bounce. You’re here to run. But you can dance later; every step tango’d.
Mile Eight
Mo Money Mo Problems, Notorious B.I.G.: I’m coming up and so are you. Mile eight and you can’t be stopped. Especially at 2:08 when Biggie drops in with his lyrical dream. Same artist, different song, you’ll always be sicker than your average.
Ice Ice Baby, Vanilla Ice: Here’s the thing. This song might throw it back a little too far, but I guarantee your ability to recite every last lyric is going to distract you from the inevitable doubt that is sneaking in to the corner of your lungs whispering, “maybe not today”. Don’t listen. Just keep pursuing to the next stop.
Mile Nine
Bring Em Out, T.I.: A littler earlier in the playlist than normal but here to help you transition into sub-race pace as you close in on the final four miles. You’re thirsty, you’re hungry, and you’re hot. Because of course you are; all the hot girls yelling, bring ‘em out.
California Love, 2Pac: You had your east side, now here’s your west side. If ever you were going to quit, it sure as hell wouldn’t be to this song. Dig in, get dirty, and let that track hit your eardrum.
Mile Ten
Clear Eyes, Full Heart, Can’t Lose, T. Powell: It wouldn’t be a race in Texas if Friday Night Lights didn’t make an appearance. The 300 violin orchestra underneath this track is all you ever needed to dig a little deeper and channel your inner Coach Taylor. “Can you live in that moment, as best you can, with clear eyes and love in your heart? With joy in your heart? If you can do that, well, then you’re perfect.”
Roll With the Changes, REO Speedwagon: Try, just try, to listen to this song and not feel your best, your absolute best, as if anything is possible, as if that finish line is right there, right there in front of you. Your heart is going to explode when you hear this song and you will cry; not from pain but from joy. The sheer joy of being able to compete. Keep on rolling.
Mile Eleven
Machinehead, Bush: Mile eleven brings out the rapid mood swing. No more country pop, no more rap battles, and no more classic rock. It’s time to post some sub-race pace splits and it’s going to hurt. You can do it: breathe in, breathe out.
More Human Than Human, White Zombie: This is the hardest mile so get out of your legs, get out of our lungs, get out of your head, and meet Bambi in the King’s Harem mix of White Zombie’s cult classic. I ain’t done.
Mile Twelve
Killing in the Name Of, Rage Against the Machine: Now you’re pissed. This race still isn’t over. There is only one way to descend on the final stretch, so you turn it up a bit and forget about how sick you feel, and tell your legs, now you do what I told ya.
Mile Thirteen
Automatic, Mondo Cozmo: This song is like a hymn pouring out of the choir loft on a soul-searching Sunday morning. Thirteen miles of prayer and a tenth to go until you reach the altar. Rejoice, because the beat’s in your heart and the song’s in your eye. You’re automatic.
Thunderstruck, AC/DC: There is simply no other way to end a race. Let your stride open, your pace quicken, let the sweat pour, your breath gasp, and let your arms stretch high as you cross the finish, because we went to Texas, yeah Texas, and we had some fun.
Let’s go.