Winter. Finger-numbing temperatures and horrifically dirty slush after a snow day aside, it’s one of the most comforting and beautiful seasons. Long walks in the crisp air intensify the warmth of home, curled up with a mug of hot chocolate, steam still emanating from the top. As with all seasons, winter, too, needs a playlist of songs redolent of all its greatest joys. Although we’ve previously released a guide to winter albums, enjoy this winter song edition.

 

Back to December and Exile by Taylor Swift: What season playlist would be complete without a few Taylor Swift songs? Back to December is a classic, signaling that it’s time for seasonal beverages and velvet blankets. Exile gives more or less the same energy, but with more of the contemplation that quiet nights at home allow us to have.

 

The Wisp Sings by Winter Aid is arguably one of the most beautiful songs I’ve heard before. The soft piano and echoing vocals are tantamount to feeling the heat of a fireplace on your cheeks, your mind hazy but relaxed in a way that it hasn’t been in a while. It is the warm hug of a relative you haven’t reunited with for ages, the joys of being together with loved ones. 

 

ur so pretty by Wasia Project starts off with a playful quip from William Gao on the piano to his sister, Olivia Hardy, who responds to his gorgeous intro on the piano with her wispy, other-worldly vocals. The only qualm I have with this song is that it isn’t nearly long enough, lasting a mere two minutes and 12 seconds–a crime, really. Rather than the warmth that the previous song provides, this song instead conjures up the feeling of laying on a soft pile of snow, relishing in the lazy snowfall, eyelashes coated in individual snowflakes.

 

Misty by Laufey is indeed a jazz cover, but it might be one of my favorite renditions of this classic, in addition to Ella Fitzgerald’s. Yes, this song starts off with another piano intro (can you tell that I love winter songs with piano-playing?), but something about Laufey’s smooth, rich vocals make you feel instantly at home.

 

If you’re one for cozy songs, I would definitely recommend that you give these a listen, and maybe add some to your winter playlist!