The āJust Donāt Do It Songsā is comprised of 12 songs where the artists encourage others NOT to do something.
JUST DONāT DO IT! Ah, another playlist! The criteria for the Just Donāt Do It playlist is that the song title must have an action that the respective artist encourages others NOT to do.Ā An example of an action-donāt song would be the Michael Jackson classic āDonāt Stop āTil You Get Enoughā (Off the Wall, 1979) which isnāt included on this more contemporary-minded playlist. 12 songs deep, without further ado, here is the Just āDonātā Do It Songs.
1. X Ambassadors, āDonāt Stayā
āDonāt Stayā ā¢ Interscope ā¢ 2018
āDonāt Stayā is chocked-full of soul.Ā It starts with the production, particularly the groove led by the cymbal accent.Ā Even with a sense of energy from the get-go, the pacing of āDonāt Stayā is great.Ā Itās mysterious and somewhat restrained on the first verse, while gradually adding more instruments and sounds. Frontman Sam Harris is on autopilot early on, dropping electrifying vocals from start to finish.Ā The biggest selling point of his vocal performance is his masterful falsetto, specifically on the chorus.
The chorus, itās incredibly catchy ā the crowning achievement of the record.
āBut donāt stay for me Donāt stay for me If you got to leave Do what you need But donāt stay for me Donāt stay for me.ā
Continuing to sing the praises of Harris, the layering of his head voice (falsetto) and chest voice is brilliant. In essence, ole boy lets loose.Ā Also, worth mentioning is the theme of āDonāt Stayā ā love.Ā Harris takes the blame because of his deficiencies, urging his bae NOT to stay because of him.
2. Panic! At the Disco, āDonāt Threaten Me with a Good Timeā
Death of a Bachelor ā¢ Fueled by Ramen ā¢ 2015
āAlright, alright, itās a hell of a feeling though!ā Brendon Urie is turned-up to the nth degree on āDonāt Threaten Me with a Good Time,ā one of numerous highlights from the Grammy-nominated Death of a Bachelor album. Ā Urie exudes exuberant spirit on the infectious chorus, excerpted above. Lyrically, āDonāt Threaten Me with a Good Timeā is incredibly zany. āChampagne, cocaine, gasoline / And most things in between / I roam the city in a shopping cart / A pack of camels and a smoke alarm.ā Ā Furthermore, the narrative is wild.
3. N.E.R.D, āDonāt Donāt Do It!ā
Ft. Kendrick Lamar
No Ever Really Dies ā¢ Columbia ā¢ 2017
āThey tell you pull over, tell you get out the car / Donāt do it, donāt-donāt do it.ā āDonāt Donāt Do It!ā features a āleft of centerā sound, but more notable is its message of social justice.Ā āDonāt Donāt Do It!ā was inspired by the shooting of Keith Scott. Williams also cites other examples resulting in the death of black men: āWhoa Ferguson, oh Baltimore / Raleigh, North Carolina / But you know, youāre gonna do it anyway.ā Kendrick Lamar drops a thrilling guest verse.
4. Taylor Swift, āDonāt Blame Meā
Reputation ā¢Ā Big Machine ā¢ 2017
Itās easy to let the superb production work of āDonāt Blame MeāĀ steal the show.Ā Shellback and Max Martin always soundly stitch up a track.Ā Still, as great as the wobbling synths and robust sounds are, Taylor Swift exhibits some terrific vocal moments.Ā When discussing Swift, we rarely discuss her voice as much as her songwriting and ability to infuse personality into those songs. Here, she has some truly awesome, legit moments, which are aided by vocal production, but the vocal production doesnāt solely get the credit.Ā The ad-libs, particularly the āhigh Eā she hits are a selling point. The backgrounds donāt hurt either.
5. Shawn Mendes, āDonāt Be a Foolā
Illuminate ā¢ Island ā¢ 2016
Shawn Mendes showcases maturity beyond his 18-years of age on āDonāt Be a Foolā. Vocally, Mendes sounds fantastic, showcasing the sheer radiance of his instrument. He infuses every ounce of passion, which is shown through the rasp and earnestness of his voice. An old-school record chocked full of blues, Mendes makes it sound ripe and relevant.
6. Bleachers, āDonāt Take the Moneyā
Gone Now ā¢Ā RCA ā¢ 2017
āSomebody broke me once / Love was a currency / A shimmering balance act / I think that I laughed at that.ā Throughout highlight āDonāt Take the Moneyā, Bleachers (Jack Antonoff) depicts elements of his relationship.Ā Some parts of the relationships are good, while others arenāt. According to him, ādonāt take the moneyā is a phrase he says to himself regarding a gut feeling.Ā On the first verse, Antonoff takes issue with love. Similarly, on the second verse, Antonoff continues to describe the plight of love.
In the context of the chorus, he embraces the push and pull of love.
āYou steal the air out of my lungs, you make me feel it I pray for everything we lost, buy back the secrets Your hand foreverās all I want Donāt take the money Donāt take the money.ā
On the bridge, he gives advice about facing similar situations and decisions regarding love.
7. Solange, āDonāt Touch My Hairā
A Seat at the Table ā¢ Columbia ā¢ 2016
āDonāt touch my hair / When itās the feelings I wear / Donāt touch my soul / When itās the rhythm I know.ā While āCranes in the Skyā deservingly earned Solange her first Grammy award, āDonāt Touch My Hairā is another of many highlights from her third studio album, A Seat at the Table. Ā Solange is assisted by British musician Sampha.Ā āDonāt Touch My Hairā plays on stereotypes and naivety. Even so, itās metaphorical as well, transcending any stereotypes. The jazzy neo-soul record tackles invasiveness, racial profiling, and pride.
āYou know this hair is my shit Rolled the rod, I gave it time But this here is mine.ā
8. Ty Dolla $ign, āDonāt Judge Meā
Ft. Swae Lee & Future
Beach House 3 ā¢Ā Atlantic ā¢Ā 2017
āDonāt Judge Meā has ample pros.Ā First of all, the production work is great.Ā Hard drums and lush, urban contemporary sounds make for superb palette of sounds.Ā Following the brief intro by the ubiquitous Swae Lee, Ty Dolla $ign properly kicks things off with the hook. He follows that up with a short verse, and the reiteration of the hook, before Future steps to the mic on the second verse.Ā Future quotes the hook, references a threesome as well as various drugs. The ever-distinct Swae Lee, like his colleagues, ācanāt be touched.ā Donāt judge them.
9. Russ, āDonāt Lieā
Thereās Really a Wolf ā¢ Columbia ā¢Ā 2017
āEverythinā you thought about the power that your pussy holds / āCause I got what they want, if I fuck you, your pussy’s gold / You’re used to these tier twos, I know what you got pierced too / I thought that shit was between you and me.ā Okay, Russ, okayā¦ The ādo-it-allā rapper-producer-mixer-mastering engineer takes an unapologetic shot on the second verse of āDonāt Lie.ā He shuts down a girl, who remains nameless. Ā Clearly, Thereās Really a Wolf, and heās not afraid to bite.
āBaby, donāt lie to me I donāt know why you need To just lie, lie, lie Tell me why, why, why Ooh yeah.ā
10. Bryson Tiller, āDonāt Get Too Highā
True to Self ā¢Ā RCA ā¢ 2017Ā
According to Bryson Tiller on āDonāt Get Too High,ā heās āā¦not trying to kill your vibe, kill your buzz.āĀ No, heās not trying to rehabilitate her, at least in the most literal sense. Rather, Tiller wants to be with her, and feels heās āthe only drugā she needs.Ā This is clichĆ© to an extent ā he just wants to hold her down. K.
11. The Chainsmokers, āDonāt Let Me Downā
Ft. Daya
Collage ā EP ā¢Ā Columbia ā¢Ā 2016
āCrashing, hit a wall / Right now I need a miracleā¦ / I can call your name but youāre not around / I say your name but youāre not around.ā āDonāt Let Me Downā is quite the decorated The Chainsmokers record. Assisted by teen-pop up-and-comer Daya, āDonāt Let Me Downā was a top-five Billboard Hot 100 hit.Ā Furthermore, the record won a Grammy at the 59th Annual Grammy Awards.Ā The music video alone has accumulated nearly one billion views. Thatās huge.Ā Safe to say, āDonāt Let Me Downā hasnāt let The Chainsmokers or Daya down in the least.Ā Ultimately, it concludes Collage (EP) delightfully.
āI need you, I need you, I need you right now Yeah, I need you right now So donāt let me, donāt let me, donāt let me down.ā
12. Sigrid, āDonāt Kill My Vibeā
Donāt Kill My Vibe ā EP ā¢Ā Island ā¢ 2017
āYou think you’re so important to me, don’t you? / But I wanted you to know that you don’t belong here / You think you’re so important to me, don’t you? / Don’t kill my vibe.ā 21-year old Norwegian pop artist Sigrid shines on soaring pop single āDonāt Kill My Vibe.ā āDonāt Kill My Vibeā latches from a first listen with its exuberant vocals and compelling production to match.Ā Who would dare kill this girlās vibe?
āI tried to play it nice but Oh-oh-oh, ooh, ooh Don't kill my vibe Oh-oh-oh, ooh, ooh Don't break my stride I tried to play it nice but.ā
Photo Credits: Atlantic,Ā Big Machine,Ā Columbia,Ā Def Jam,Ā Fueled by Ramen,Ā Interscope, Island, RCA
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