Wake Up Right With The Ultimate Morning Playlist
Is there anything more alarming than – excuse the pun - the ring, ring, ring of your morning alarm?! Jerking out of dreamland, landing groggily and squint-eyed right into the bright morning sun… It’s a harsh wake-up call - believe us, we know.
But it doesn’t need to be! Implementing an enjoyable wake-up routine can not only make the morning feel a bit less daunting, it can also help you stay energised and motivated all day long.
In fact, Brits everywhere are craving a bit of morning motivation. Searches for ‘why am I always tired, even though I get enough sleep’ are up 450% from this time last year, while ‘5am morning routine’ is up 80% for the same period.
So, to help you wake up on the right foot, we looked into how you can use music and a well-structured routine to kickstart your day.
Curating the perfect morning playlist
Our end goal was to help you get out of bed feeling energised, and to keep that energy going for the rest of the morning. And what better way to start your day than with the perfect song?
To find the perfect morning playlist, we didn’t slap a bunch of upbeat songs together and call it a day - oh no. We got all scientific about it. We searched the never ending music database of Spotify for playlists with ‘wake up,’ ‘rise & shine’, and ‘morning’ in the title. Then, to make sure these playlists were actually enjoyed by real people, we only looked at those with at least 5,000 followers.
With this methodology in place, we settled on a short – or not so short – list of 118 playlists. We noted down the songs used, and tallied up how often each appeared across all playlists. Hours (and hours) of listening later, we had our data. And now, we can reveal the songs that get everyone tapping their feet on the morning commute…
What do Harry Styles, The Beatles, and Otis Redding have in common?
There is one pop star who gets us all moving and grooving in the morning. Need a clue? He’s a former teen boyband sensation, now known for his eclectic wardrobe and solo bouncy beats. The pop star in question? None other than heartthrob, Harry Styles. Three of his mega-hits appeared across these playlists – the Grammy-winning Watermelon Sugar, breakout sensation As It Was, and the synth-tastic Late Night Talking.
Harry Styles might be top of the pops when it comes to number of overall appearances, but there was one song that stood above the rest. Corrine Bailey Raes’ 2006 hit Put Your Records On appeared a whopping 30 times across the morning playlists, cementing itself as the ultimate wake-up song. But these two artists weren’t the only ones that help Brits start their day in the right way.
The Beatles got us anticipating the morning sun with their remastered classic, Here Comes The Sun, appearing 25 times, while Ottis Redding’s (Sittin’ On) the Dock of the Bay had us sittin’ in the mornin’ sun 16 times. To get you grooving all the way from the bedroom to your coffee in the dining room - and finally out that door - check out our Ultimate Wake-Up playlist in full. And don’t forget to save it to your Spotify library!
But what makes Harry Styles so great to wake up to?
There is no denying the musical prowess and motivational impact of Harry Styles, but why exactly is his music a perfect go-to to bring the positive morning vibes?
We put this question to Executive Lifestyle Coach Dr Rakish Rana and here’s what he had to say:
“The music of Harry Styles, in particular, is a great example of the energising attributes that are important to wake-up music. His compositions frequently have a combination of catchy melodies, rhythmic variety, and tone brightness, all of which can work as auditory caffeine. Styles’ pop-rock combination, with its energetic tempo and appealing melodies, stimulates the mind and body, making it an excellent contender for a morning energy boost.”
However, if you’re not a fan of Mr Styles, Dr Rakish also emphasised that music in general can help form part of an energising morning routine:
“Music has a tremendous effect on the human brain, stimulating parts of the brain involved in attention, memory, emotion, and physical movement. Morning music can energise and improve your mood by triggering the release of dopamine - the ‘feel-good’ neurotransmitter. Upbeat tempos and energising rhythms, such as those included on the DFS ultimate wake-up Spotify playlist, stimulate the brain’s arousal response, giving you a natural boost to energy levels and even helping to enhance alertness and motivation.”
Create a routine to wake up right
Music isn’t the only way you can energise your morning. In fact, establishing a regular routine can have just as positive an impact as jamming out to our playlist.
Social media is abuzz with different morning routine tips - drinking lemon water, avoiding that tempting snooze button, or going for a jog – but how do we know which will work for us?
Well, we asked leadership and life coach, and best-selling author, Becky Hall for some guidance:
“In today’s busy world the idea of finding a few extra hours in the day is like finding the holy grail. No wonder TikTok is buzzing with people sharing their stories of this new gift of extra time.”
“Social media is great for connecting people, but it has a shadow side where we end up feeling isolated or comparing ourselves negatively to people we don’t even know and feeling inadequate as a result.”
“The key is to really tune into what works for you and get clear about what you need to live the life you want to.”
To help you get started, Becky shared her top three tips for building a sustainable morning routine:
Research into habits tells us that repetition is the cement that binds an idea or routine. So, whatever it is you choose to build into your routine, make it possible for you to do every single day. For example, if you want to start to do press-ups – start with just one or two. Once you have established the habit, you can increase the reps.
If you want to go running or to the gym, put your kit out ready for yourself. If journaling is your thing, put it by the kettle. Having made the effort to rise early, you want to make it as easy as possible for you to use the time in the way you intended.
Research tells us that we’re more likely to stick to things if we link it to who we are. We move from saying ‘I went for a run today’ to saying, ‘I’m a runner.’ It shifts how we feel about the practices we’re creating for ourselves.
Looking for more brilliant morning playlists to start your day? From the get up and goers and the easy going early birds, all the way to the reluctant risers - tailor your morning to you with our persona playlists.
