14 Songs For Introverts

There are so many songs about throwing your hands up in the air, taking shots and closing down the bar, but what about us introverts? Sure, Rose will stay out until last call every once in a while, but the real me gets overwhelmed when there are too many people at Trader Joe’s. Often times I’d rather be doing a puzzle in my living room feeding leftovers to Ziggy than schmoozing with strangers in a loud, crowded bar. A lot of musicians are the same, and living richly inside their heads is where they pull out some incredible lyrics. So here’s a playlist for the quiet, shy, sensitive, dark room dwellers who are depleted of energy the moment they step into da club. This one is for us, the introverts. Cheers!

1. “Here” – Alessia Cara
For all the times your friends dragged you to a party in a hot, crowded room that smelled like Natty Light and B.O., Alessia’s got you covered. From the dude puking in the corner to the one trying to make you dance, (“I don’t dance, don’t ask; I don’t need a boyfriend.” Preach it, girl.) this song’s got the whole uncomfortable situation covered, and quite melodiously too, I might add.

2.  “My House” – Flo Rida
Something tells me Flo Rida wouldn’t consider himself an introvert, but popping champagne in my own house without having to wear heels to a second location sounds like my kind of party. Also, I would just love to sing “WELCOME TO MY HOUSE” to everyone who walked in the door.

3. “House Party” – Sam Hunt
Along the same lines, Sam Hunt knows that his girl likes to kick it in her PJs, so he says, “If you’re gonna be a homebody, we’re gonna have a house party.” That’s right, we are and if bras aren’t invited, even better. Think Flo and Sam would be amigos?

4. “Creep” – Radiohead
Okay, so I’m not sure what this song is actually about, but I think most introverts can relate to the “What the hell am I doing here? I don’t belong here,” lyrics and overall otherworldly vibes the tune gives off. It’s just so good.

5. “All My Friends” – Snakehips
Then there are the times your friends manage to drag you all the way to the club. Chances are you’ll feel this song when it comes on. “All my friends are wasted, and I hate this club. Man, I drink too much. Another Friday wasted.”

6. “Dark Blue” – Jack’s Mannequin
How’s this for a throwback? You know your high school emo kid is psyched out her damn mind right now. “Have you ever been alone in a crowded room?” Why yes, yes I have good sir. And that’s right, he wrote it before Taylor did.

7. “Existentialism on Prom Night” – Straylight Run
I might’ve gone down a high school music rabbit hole after Jack’s Mannequin made the list (I’m totes dating myself, aren’t I?), but come one, even the title of this song screams, “I’ve been thinking myself in circles all night and I can’t face humans right now.” Vulnerable all knowing. Le sigh.

8. “I’m Shakin” – Rooney
This one’s just so damn catchy. The seemingly out of place, “Never Ending Story” reference just gets me every time.

9. “Middle of Nowhere” – Hot Hot Heat
“You didn’t have to do it, but you did it to say that you didn’t have to do it, but you would anyway.” That’s my kind of logic–so much analysis.

10. “Day ‘n Night (Nightmare)” – Kid Cudi
I’m a huge Kid Cudi fan. He’s my fave, especially because of this little collab with Haim, but he references his night terrors and antisocial behavior in plenty of his songs. Perhaps none as blatantly as  this one though. “The lonely stoner seems to free his mind at night.”

11. “Fool On The Hill” – The Beatles
You could find an incredible Beatles song for just about any occasion or emotion you could ever want to convey and I came close to using “Nowhere Man” instead, but I just love this one. “Well on the way, head in a cloud, The man of a thousand voices talking perfectly loud, But nobody ever hears him Or the sound he appears to make.”

12. “I Am A Rock” – Simon & Garfunkel
The next few might be a little more aggressive in a straight up antisocial/depressed kind of way, but they’re excellent nonetheless. If you’ve ever escaped into a book, you might relate to this lyric: “I have my books and my poetry to protect me, I am shielded in my armor, Hiding in my room, safe within my womb.”

13. “Day In Day Out” – Catch 22
Switchin’ it up with the ska now, y’all. “I don’t need anyone, I don’t need anyone, I don’t need anyone to tell me what to feel.” Yep, sounds about right.

14. “Solitude Is Bliss” – Tame Impala
This is the ultimate introvert’s theme song, just look at that title. “Space around me where my soul can breathe, I’ve got body that my mind can leave, Nothing else matters, I don’t care what I miss, Company’s okay, Solitude is bliss.”