15 Compelling Songs From the Heart | Playlist 🎧

1-2. Kendrick Lamar, “Purple Hearts” / “The Heart Pt 5”

💿 Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers • 🏷 Interscope • 📅 2022 

“Shut the fuck up when you hear love talkin’ / If God be the source, then I am the plug talkin’.” WOO! In 2022,  🏆 Grammy and Pulitzer Prize winner 🎙 Kendrick Lamar released his first album in five years with 💿 Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers. He concludes the first disc of the LP with 🎵 “Purple Hearts.” “I’m not in the music business, I been in the human business / Whole life been social distant, hoes like when you not trippin…” K-Dot is joined by the ever calm, cool, and collected 🎙 Summer Walker (“That’s why I’m anti-everyone before this mask”) and legendary rapper, 🎙 Ghostface Killah (“To the mind, it’s God cypher divine in a small portion”).  This is one of the most accessible records on Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers, even if it doesn’t garner the same attention as the best of the best. Still, Kendrick tackles meaningful issues, primarily love and faith.

“I come from a generation of pain, where murder is minor…” On the ambitious 🎵 “The Heart Part 5”, Kendrick Lamar gives us five and a half minutes of #WINNING. The opening portion of the record is spoken word.  Kendrick thanks his fans and listeners. He begins rapping about 40 seconds in, backed by strong production work by 🎛 Beach Noise. The backdrop is soulful and hella groovy, thanks to a sample of 🎵 “I Want You” by 🎙 Marvin Gaye. The chorus highlights the beloved classic.  The main attraction, however, is Lamar, who, as always, drops an electrifying flow.  I applaud the variations in the production when Lamar tells producers to “take the drums out” (nearing three-and-a-half minutes). Eventually, “The Heart Part 5” is rebuilt featuring rhythm guitars, lush strings, and of course, that signature Gaye groove.  “The Heart Part 5” earned Lamar two Grammys and ranks among the best of 2022.

Appears in 🔻: 

• Awesome Songs: May 2022
• 50 Best Songs of 2022

3. Elton John & Dua Lipa, “Cold Heart – PNAU Remix”

💿 The Lockdown Sessions • 🏷 Mercury • 🗓 2021

🎵 “Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)” kicks 💿 The Lockdown Sessions – the 32^nd studio album by iconic musician, 🎙 Elton John – off with a bang!  🎛 PNAU – Nicholas Littlemore, Sam Littlemore, and Peter Mayes – create a transformative remix, period. 🎙 Dua Lipa joins John on a delightful mashup sampling his classic, 🎵 “Sacrifice” and the interpolation of another, 🎵 “Rocket Man”. From the onset, “Cold Heart” grooves hard. The production is brilliant – colorful, picturesque, and incredibly slick. John is the first voice heard, adorning the warm, groovy backdrop with lyrics from “Sacrifice.”  Following verse and pre-chorus, a sublime sounding Lipa enters singing “Rocket Man” creating a super cool effect.  I like the way that Lipa’s vocals are layered as “Cold Heart” progresses.

Appears in 🔻:

• Awesome Songs: August 2021
• Best Songs of 2021: Top 20
• One Hella Cold List of Songs (2022)
• C Songs: No Rhyme or Reason, Vol. 2 (2022)

4. Whitney Houston, “Heartbreak Hotel” (Ft. Faith Evans & Kelly Price)

💿 My Love is Your Love • 🏷 Arista • 📅 1998

“This is the heartbreak hotel.” Word, 🎙 Whitney Houston! The late, great singer collaborates with fellow divas 🎙 Faith Evans and 🎙 Kelly Price on 🎵 “Heartbreak Hotel,” a gem from Houston’s 1998 studio album, 💿 My Love is Your Love. “Heartbreak Hotel” peaked at no. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in March of 1999, tallying 28 total weeks on the chart.  This marked one of the last top-5 hits of her career, making it incredibly special.

Besides the commercial success, why is “Heartbreak Hotel” a big deal? It is incredibly relatable, particularly to women because it encompasses the plight of love, sigh.  Houston is agitated in the first verse (in the most classy way, vocally speaking) because this man is not the least bit thoughtful or courteous: “You said you’d be here by nine / Instead, you took your time / You didn’t think to call me, boy /… Why, you do this to me.”  Evans follows Houston in the pre-chorus, stating she’s going to write a letter to this lame dude.  The chorus reveals these heartbroken victims (Houston, Evans, and Price) confronting him (“What’d you do to me? Can’t take what you did to me”).  Houston serves up a second verse, angered by being made a fool of and being cheated on.  This time, Price encourages writing the letter, before they let the emotions loose in the chorus. Once more, the heartbreak hotel appears, in all its heartbroken ways, in the bridge.  While the way these women were treated was incredibly inconsiderate, their pain is our listening pleasure.  It is easy to hear why “Heartbreak Hotel” was such a hit back in the late 90s and remains a surefire bop to this day.

Appears in 🔻:

• 11 Hotel, Motel, or Inn Songs (2022)

5. The Weeknd, “Don’t Break My Heart”

💿 Dawn FM • 🏷 Republic • 📅 2022

In 2022, 🏆 Grammy-winning R&B standout 🎙 The Weeknd (Abel Tesfaye) returned with his fifth studio album, 💿 Dawn FM.  Although tough to follow up a masterpiece (the infamously snubbed 💿 After Hours), Dawn FM is a strong, somewhat underrated album itself.  It also happens to feature the DON’T song 🎵 “Don’t Break My Heart.” “You snatch my soul, I’m crucified / I feel paralyzed / I’m so mesmerized by you…” The beat is light but lit on “Don’t Break My Heart” (production by Tesfaye, 🎛 Oscar Holter, Matt Cohn, Max Martin, and Oneohtrix Point Never). In the context of Dawn FM, “Don’t Break My Heart” marks another synth-tastic, ear-catching moment.  Following those ‘terrifying angels’ of 🎵 “Every Angel is Terrifying”, the tables are totally turned.  The Weeknd was breaking hearts before but now, he fears the same from her.

“Just don’t break my heart (Don’t break my heart)

Don’t let me down, please

Don’t you break my heart (Don’t break my heart)

I don’t know if I can take it anymore.”

 Appears in 🔻:

• Don’t: 5ive Songs No. 28 (2022)
• 13 Don’t Songs You Do Wanna Listen To (2022)
• 13 Marvelous Break Songs (2022)

6. Miley Cyrus, “Plastic Hearts”

💿 Plastic Hearts • 🏷 RCA • 📅 2020

“I’ve been California dreamin’ / Plastic hearts are bleedin’ / Keep me up all night (Keep me up) / Keep me up all night (All night).” 🎙 Miley Cyrus rocks on 🎵 “Plastic Hearts,” NO CAP.  “Plastic Hearts” appears as the second track from her fine 2020 album, 💿 Plastic Hearts.  Post-BANGERZ (2013), Cyrus struggled to regain her footing a might.  Plastic Hearts finally finds her on the up-and-up again.  On “Plastic Hearts,” everything seems to be superficial – plastic – as opposed to real.  The pre-chorus and the chorus (aforementioned) highlight a temporary high, only to ultimately be disappointed.  Like so many other musicians, California gets a negative connotation for being a letdown despite having big dreams when going in.  Damn you, plasticity!

Appears in 🔻:

• Plastic: 5ive Songs No. 67 (2020)
• 13 Ear Catching Songs About Plastic (2021)

7. Myylo, “Pink Boy Heart”

💿 Ahh • 🏷 Myylo • 📅 2022

“Baby I wasn’t joking / I want to hold you tight / I feel my pink boy heart exploding / Whenever you stay the night.” Those lyrics could hail from nobody else but the handsome, talented, LGBTQ+ pop sensation – 🎙 Myylo! The entertaining musician comes through with another bop, 🎵 “Pink Boy Heart” (💿 Ahh, 2022) that keeps it G-A-Y but should be an enjoyable addition to any playlist.

Myylo links up with 🎼 ✍ Christian Fiore (songwriting), with positive results – an understatement! The theme isn’t far-fetched from past music, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.  I mean, wouldn’t there be something wrong if Myylo weren’t writing great songs about desiring boys (“Wrap me up in your arms / I want to be where you are”)? He does a nice job of balancing the tongue-in-cheek and legitimate desire/love goals here (“Just kiss my cheeks / With that sick technique / Then you’ll tuck me in /With my rug burn knees”). Instrumentally, there’s welcome contrast compared to previous singles, which is a win by all means.  The mark of a good musician is one who evolves, and I hear the evolution in “Pink Boy Heart.”  Also, can’t fail to mention that fun music video! Woo! All told, “Pink Boy Heart” is well-sung, well-written, well-produced, and entertaining, all in a tight, two-and-a-half-minute package.

Appears in 🔻:

• 13 Songs About All Things Pink (2022)
• Incredible LGBTQ Songs, Young & Old, Vol. 3 (2022)
• 15 Riveting Songs About Boys (2023)

8. The Stylistics, “Stop, Look, Listen (To Your Heart)”

💿 The Stylistics – The Original Debut Album • 🏷 Amherst • 🗓 1971

“Stop, look / Listen to your heart, hear what it’s saying / Stop, look / Listen to your heart, hear what it’s saying / Love, love, love.” Yes, 🎙 The Stylistics, YES! 🎵 “Stop, Look, Listen (To Your Heart)” marks a stellar joint by this stellar soul collective.  Like some of the big hits off 💿 The Stylistics (1971), “Stop, Look, Listen” was penned by 🎼✍ 🎛 Thom Bell and Linda Creed. Bell helps to craft that lush, signature Philly soul sound, one of the best things to come out of the 1970s. Ample credit also goes to lead singer 🎙 Russell Tompkins, Jr., who sounds amazing, wowing with a ripe falsetto.  The theme is matters of the heart, but have they ever sounded better than in the hands of this fivesome?  Tompkins and company encourage allowing yourself to L-O-V-E on this magnificent opener!

“Though you try, you can’t hide

All the things you really feel, this time decide

That you will open up, let it in

There’s no shame in sharing love you keep within.”

The Stylistics ‘put in work’ on this entire The Stylistics album beyond 🎵 “Stop, Look, Listen (To Your Heart)”.  Honestly, music just doesn’t sound like this anymore. “Stop, Look, Listen (To Your Heart)” is a surefire classic gem!

Appears in 🔻:

• The Stylistics, “Stop, Look, Listen (To Your Heart)”: Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶 35 (2022)
• Listen: 5ive Songs No. 24 (2022)
• 15 Must-Hear, Throwback Vibez, Vol. 2 (2022)

9. Adele, “Cry Your Heart Out”

💿 30 • 🏷 Melted Stone / Columbia • 📅 2021

Three tracks into, 💿 30, the fourth studio album by 🏆 Academy award/Grammy-winning musician 🎙 Adele, she does a nice job of distinguishing 30 from previous albums.  A prime example where she takes a bigger risk is 🎵 “Cry Your Heart Out” which dips its toes into reggae.  Reggae is never easy to pull off and honestly, not everyone can do so.  Adkins is paired up with producer 🎛 Greg Kurstin, surprising with this spirited, soulful joint.  Thematically, Adele is transparent regarding her feelings, ultimately suggesting taking your time and going “at your own pace” to figure things out.  To quote Alice, that’s 🎵 “Very Good Advice”.

10. GIVĒON, “Heartbreak Anniversary”

💿 When It’s All Said and Done… Take Time • 🏷 Epic / With Not So Fast LLC • 📅 2021

“Balloons are deflated / Guess they look lifeless like me / We miss you on your side of the bed…” #DEPRESSING! On 🎵 “Heartbreak Anniversary,” a highlight from 💿 When It’s All Said and Done… Take Time (2021), 🏆 Grammy-nominated R&B artist 🎙 GIVĒON (Giveon Evans) recalls an ended relationship. Beyond the first verse (excerpted above), he sings, “Just like the day that I met you, the day I thought forever / Said that you love me, but that’ll last for never.”  Yup, NEVER is the keyword because this relationship is #DONE! Evans does a fine job of showing all the emotions and aspects attached with love, or a lack thereof.  The chorus is the centerpiece, where Evans asserts, “I get like this every time / On these days that feel like you and me / Heartbreak anniversary.” GIVĒON penned “Heartbreak Anniversary” alongside 🎼 ✍ 🎛 Maneesh, Sevn Thomas – both producers, too – and 🎼 ✍ Varren Wade.  One of the best of When It’s All Said and Done…Take Time – PERIOD!

11. Dua Lipa, “Break My Heart”

💿 Future Nostalgia • 🏷 Warner • 📅 2020

“I wonder, when you go, if I stay on your mind / Two can play that game, but you win me every time.” 🎵 “Break My Heart” ranks among the best of the best gracing 💿 Future Nostalgia, the stellar,  🏆 Grammy-winning pop album by English pop star, 🎙 Dua Lipa. “Break My Heart” is fueled by an 🎙 INXS sample, 🎵 “Need You Tonight”.  Furthermore, Dua Lipa works with an elite production team (🎛 Watt and The Monsters and Strangerz) who helps her to #slay. How does she slay, you ask? With her attitude, feistiness, and sassiness – WOO! In the chorus, she asserts:

“I would’ve stayed at home

‘Cause I was doing better alone

But when you said, ‘Hello’

I knew that was the end of it all.”

Ultimately, she asks herself at the end of the chorus, “Am I feeling in love with the one that could break my heart?” Seems like that’s the case, Dua.  Regardless, she says herself, “Everyone before you was a waste of time / Yeah, you got me.” The infatuation is lit 🔥.

Appears in 🔻:

• Break: 5ive Songs No. 38 (2022)
• 13 Marvelous Break Songs (2022)

12. The Weeknd, “Heartless”

💿 After Hours • 🏷 Republic • 📅 2020

“I’ve been runnin’ through the pussy, need a dog pound / Hundred models getting’ faded in the compound.” 🎙 The Weeknd remains true to self on 🎵 “Heartless” – cold as ice!  On this 💿 After Hours standout, he sings about the fast life.  He kicks off the first verse singing, “Never need a bitch, I’m what a bitch need.” He doubles down on the second verse: “So much pussy, it be fallin’ out the pocket / Metro Boomin turn this ho into a mosh pit / Tesla pill got me flyin’ like a cockpit.” Besides those badass, cocky lyrics, The Weekend has an incredibly sleek backdrop to work with courtesy of 🎛 Metro Boomin and Illangelo.  The beat pummels while they synths are equally potent.  Combine that with confident, distinct, and unapologetic vocals from Tesfaye, and “Heartless” is nothing short of a surefire bop.

Appears in 🔻:

• 11 Awesome Songs: December 2019
• Heartless 🚫❤: 5ive Songs No. 5 (2021)
• 13 H Songs Selected with No Rhyme or Reason (2021)
• The Weeknd, After Hours: 4GEMZ 💎 4 (2021)

13. Ghost, “Darkness at the Heart of my Love”

💿 IMPERA • 🏷 Loma Vista • 📅 2022

“There’s a darkness at the heart of my love / That runs cold, runs deep.” Poetic, thought-provoking lyrics for sure! Darkness and love should be two starkly different things, right? Perhaps, but 🎙 Ghost makes them related on the marvelous 🤩 🎵 “Darkness at the Heart of my Love.” “Darkness at the Heart of my Love” has a strong argument for the crowning achievement of 💿 IMPERA, the fifth studio album by the 🏆 Grammy-winning Swedish metal band.  The lyrics are cynical and critical of those who say they’re filled with love (and God) yet are hypocritical to the n^th degree. Anti-Christian themes are commonplace in Ghost’s music.  Staunch believer or unapologetic atheist, there is something to be said about the points 🎙 Tobias Forge makes. There’s plenty to be said about the musicianship – the performance, the melody, the production. There’s something celestial about this hellish cut.

Appears in 🔻: 

• Awesome Songs: March 2022 
• 13 D Songs: No Rhyme or Reason, Vol. 2 (2022)
• 50 Best Songs of 2022

14. Jimmy Ruffin, “What Becomes of the Brokenhearted”

💿 Sings Top Ten • 🏷 Motown • 🗓 1967

“As I walk this land of broken dreams / I have visions of many things,” 🎙 Jimmy Ruffin (1936 – 2014) sings in the first verse of the beloved soul gem, 🎵 “What Becomes of the Brokenhearted”. Ruffin continues singing, “But happiness is just an illusion / Filled with sadness and confusion.” This 1966, brokenhearted classic was his highest charting hit on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at no. 7 – surefire pop hit! The first verse is golden, as are the second, third, and fourth verses.  All three following verses speak to the plight of love.  For example, in the third, Ruffin asserts, “I walk in the shadows searching for light / Cold and alone no comfort in sight.” Hopeless! Similarly, in the fourth, he sings, “All is lost, there’s no place for beginning / All that’s left is an unhappy ending.” Woo! The centerpiece is none other than the chorus, which is incredibly tuneful and features a marvelous backdrop:

“What becomes of the brokenhearted

Who had love that’s now departed

I know I’ve got to find

Some kind of peace of mind

Help me.”

Beyond the chorus, there’s yet another awesome lyrical and musical moment – the outro. Ruffin states, “I’ll be searching everywhere / Just to find someone to care.” Even when love is unkind, we all still desire it so badly.  “What Becomes of the Brokenhearted” was penned by 🎼 ✍ James Dean, Paul Riser, and William Weatherspoon. Ruffin is responsible for one of the greatest soul songs of all time, which remains fresh and relevant.

Appears in 🔻:

• Jimmy Ruffin, “What Becomes of the Brokenhearted”: Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶 91 (2022)
• Sadness: 5ive Songs No. 61 (2022)
• 11 Songs Where The Boys Are Sad (2022)
• 15 Must-Hear, Throwback Vibez, Vol. 6 (2023)

15. Stevie Wonder, “From The Bottom of My Heart”

💿 A Time to Love • 🏷 Motown • 📅 2005 

“Me and my heart took a / Vow from the start and a / Vow to my heart I never break,” 🎙 Stevie Wonder sings passionately in the first verse of 🎵 “From the Bottom of My Heart”, a gem from his 2005 album, 💿 A Time to Love.  The iconic soul musician is all about positive vibes, something that continues without a hitch on “From the Bottom of My Heart.” He continues singing in the first verse,  “Seasons may come and the / Seasons may go but know / Though every time and space / My love will always stay forever and always.” Now those are the type of lyrics I can definitely endorse! Matching those lyrics are tuneful melodies, intriguing harmonies, and of course, those times, anointed pipes by Mr. Wonder.

Similarly, the second verse emphasizes the gloriousness of love – no heartbreak to be found here.  Wonder intents to “Keep this love burning endlessly,” WOO!  Of course, the centerpiece – the exemplification of these uplifting, positive, love driven vibes – is none other than the chorus, where Wonder sounds his most elite: “From the bottom of my heart, I love you / I can say these words to you, without delay / If you’re wondering just how long I’ll love you / Try forever that’s how long I’ll feel this way.” “From the Bottom of My Heart” is a brilliant contemporary Wonder gem. The 🏆 Academy and Grammy award winner wrote, produced, and played most of the instruments (keys and harmonica, notably) on this uplifting, heartfelt gem.

Appears in 🔻:

• Stevie Wonder, “From the Bottom of My Heart”: Music Lifts 🎶 🏋 43 (2022)