Barack Obama announced his annual list of favorite music, alongside his favorite movies and books of 2024, on his social media accounts last Friday (December 20). Expectedly the former president's favorite song included some record-breaking songs and a few lesser-known ideas across different American music genres, highlighting his musical leanings' breadth.
“I always look forward to sharing my annual list of favorite books, movies, and music,” posted Barack Obama via his official Instagram handle. “Today I’ll start by sharing some of the books that have stuck with me long after I finished reading them,” before adding “Check them out this holiday season, preferably at an independent bookstore or library.”
Top Songs in Barack Obama’s Favorite Music 2024
Kendrick Lamar’s “Squabble Up” earned the first spot in Obama’s list of favorite songs in 2024. Other selections included Billie Eilish’s “Lunch,” Asake & Travis Scott’s “Active,” HOzier’s “Too Sweet,” Leon Bridges’ “Peaceful Place,” “Jack White’s “That’s How I’m Feeling” and Karol G’s “Si Antes Te Hubiera Conocido,” alongside several others.
Additionally, Yayo’s “Rema,” Tyla, Gunna & Skillibeng’s “Jump” and Shaboozey’s “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” also made the famous selection alongside Bonny Light Horseman’s “Old Dutch,” Beyonce’s trio of “Texas Hold ‘Em,” “Artemas,” and “I Like the Way You Kiss Me.” Tommy Richman’s “Million Dollar Baby,” and Myles Smith’s “Stargazing” also made Obama’s summer list and year-end selection.
Unsurprisingly, some of Obama's favorite songs of 2024 ranked in the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 year-end chart: Shaboozey's "A Bar Song (Tipsy)" "No. 2 on the Hot 100", eight-positioned Richman's "Million Dollar Baby" and No. 10 "Too Sweet" by Hozier. During his announcement, Obama went on to seek further recommendations from his audience on music or artists he could consider afterward in a post that drew hundreds of thousands of engagements within 24 hours.
“Here are my favorite songs from this year! Check them out if you’re looking to shake up your playlist – and let me know if there’s a song or artist I should make sure to listen to.”
With more up his sleeves for his social media followers, we also saw a list of Obama's favorite movies in 2024. The list of ten movies includes "All we Imagine as Light," "Conclave," "The Piano Lesson," "The Promised Land," "The Seed of the Sacred Fig" "Dune: Part Two," "Anora," "Didi," "Sugarcane," and "A Complete Unknown."
Similarly, his book list included 10 picks (plus a reminder to support independent bookshops or libraries). They included Jonathan Haidt "The Anxious Generation," Arlie Russell Hochschild's "Stolen Pride," Sally Rooney "Intermezzo," Martin Macinnes' "In Ascension," Alexei Navainy's "Patriot," Daniel Susskind's "Growth," Samantha Harvey's "Orbital," Dinaw Mengestu's "Someone Like Us," Aysegul Savas' "Anthropologists," and Adam Moss' "The Work of Art."
Final Remarks
We can be sure that Obama personally listens to these songs, reads these books, and watches these movies. Well, the former president wants us to believe he watches the same rom-coms as many of us globally.
Weeks after releasing his 2024 selection of summer songs, the former president had to defend his choices, as many argued that a third party selects the tracks on his annual list. "People sometimes question whether I'm actually listening to all this music. As I've testified before. I am."