Songs That Remind You of Home

Every year about 19 million students leave the nest and go away to college. Leaving the feeling of comfort that home brings can be a challenging time for most. As a college student, 313 miles away from the place I call home, I am constantly searching for things around campus that remind me of it, usually resorting to things like food, hobbies, and music.

We are all aware that music for our generation has some type of healing power. In some cases, we make playlists on platforms such as Spotify and Apple Music for special occasions or to put us in a certain mood. But how about a playlist for when you’re missing home?

For some, music preferences are based on where you’re from, how the songs make you feel, and what type of person you are. We went around campus and asked people if they were to put a song on a “missing home” playlist what would it be, and this is the playlist that we put together:

Songs that Feel like Home Playlist

1. A Face to Call Home – John Mayer
   • “My best friends and I used to drive around town at night blasting this song and singing it. We would drive through every part of town and it just brings me back to the happy memories and happy times with the people I love,” said Hailey Abati ’23.
2. Somewhere We Only Know – Keane
   • “It talks about a special place shared between two friends, which reminds me of my home in the woods in South Carolina where my friends and I would climb trees together and hangout for hours,” said Julia Koerwer ’23.
3. Upside Down – Jack Johnson
   • “My mom always used to play this song to me and my sisters when we were younger. This song reminds me of my childhood and brings back so many happy memories I share with my family,” said Lauren Kupiec ’23.
4. Anything – The Beach Boys
   • “I grew up with them so this reminds me of home,” said Mike Anderson ’23.
5. Survivor – Destiny’s Child
   • “It was the first song I learned and I remember belting it out in my bedroom,” said Emmly Cherival ’21.
6. Silence – Khalid
   • “It reminds me of my grandmother ever since she died, because there has been silence for too long,” said Zavon Sample ’21.
7. Wagon Wheel – The Old Crow Medicine Show
   • “It is my dad’s favorite song,” said Abby Corbett ’20.
8. Africa – Toto
   • “It’s what always played when I was at my lifeguarding job over the summer which I like a lot,” said Nic Shoppe ’22.
9. Wonderwall – Oasis
   • “It was the song that everyone sang for my brother when he would run track in high school,” said Allison Kite ’22.
10. Sixteen – Thomas Rhett
    • “I grew up in West Virginia and that is what I always listened to in the car,” said Molly Duncan ’22.

Feel free to share with other St. Joe’s students your songs that remind you of home! You can do this by adding to the Apple Music or the Spotify Playlist above.