The Jams You Need to Survive Your Long Commute

I sit in my car for two hours Monday through Friday getting to and from work. A lot of people would HATE this, but I see it as a blessing. Hear me out. Yea, it sucks to sit in traffic, but it’s the only time of day that I have all to myself. I do a lot of reflecting in the car. It’s a place where I can laugh, cry, scream, whatever… with no judgement. It’s really therapeutic. Some days I drive in silence and other days I’ll put on a podcast or jam out to music.

Since I spend so much time in my car, I was pretty picky when I signed a new lease in January. I returned my Honda CRV early and decided on a Jeep Cherokee. I ended up getting the Limited model, which has leather seats, keyless entry, heated seats and steering wheel, and a huge touchscreen control panel. It feels like a spaceship compared to my old CRV. 

One of my favorite features of my new lease is that I got a year subscription of Sirius radio. When the sales rep at Jeep told me about this perk, I initially thought, “Okay… cool?” Oh man. I had no idea how amazing Sirius would be. Now I know I’ll never be able to live without it. It’s crazy how they suck you into these things. 

Since I love sharing tips and tricks with you, and I know a lot of you also have long commutes… today, I’m giving you guys the low down on my favorite music presets, artists and songs!

Music, Music & More Music

I’ve got a very eclectic taste in music. I love everything from pop and R&B to classic rock and acoustic. Even a little bit of country. {a VERY little bit… only modern stuff} When I’m in the car, I like to have a lot of options. I have every one of my presets programmed, and I honestly listen to them all. Bryan hates when he’s in the car with me, because I switch between stations like every few minutes. But, what can I say? I get bored. If you like a bunch of different kinds of music, then I think you’ll find this post beneficial. 

My Sirius Presets:

• Hits 1: Channel 2 | Genre: current pop | You’ll hear: Adele, Taylor Swift, Katy Perry
• The Coffee House: Channel 14 | Genre: acoustic singer-songwriter | You’ll hear: Ed Sheeran, John Mayer, Tracy Chapman
• Pop 2K: Channel 10 | Genre: millenium pop | You’ll hear: Usher, Justin Timberlake, Eminem
• Alt Nation: Channel 36 | Genre: alternative rock | You’ll hear: Cage the Elephant, Foster the People, Vampire Weekend
• The Heat: Channel 46 | Genre: r&b and hiphop | You’ll hear: Beyonce, Chris Brown, Drake
• SXM FLY: Channel 47 | Genre: 90s and 00s r&B | You’ll hear: Missy Elliott, Lauryn Hill, Outkast
• 70s on 7: Channel 7 | Genre: rock | You’ll hear: Fleetwood Mac, The Eagles, Bee Gees
• The Pulse: Channel 15 | Genre: adult pop | You’ll hear: Fitz and the Tantrums, Coldplay, Kelly Clarkson
• 90s on 9: Channel 9 | Genre: 90s pop | You’ll hear: Ace of Base, Will Smith, TLC
• Classic Vinyl: Channel 26 | Genre: classic rock | You’ll hear: Eric Clapton, The Doors, The Rolling Stones
• Blend: Channel 16 | Genre: uplifting pop | You’ll hear: Colbie Caillat, Elton John, Billy Joel
• Venus: Channel 3 | Genre: rhythmic pop | You’ll hear: Black Eyed Peas, Britney Spears, P!nk

Favorite Artists:

I’m not sure if all Sirius customers can do this, but I’m able to save my favorite artists. When I mark an artist as a “favorite,” I get a little popup on my radio anytime that artist is on any station. It’s so handy. I love it. I generally don’t mark an artist as a “favorite” unless I know that I like the majority of their music. No one hit wonders here!

• Little Mix
• Wrabel
• Rascal Flatts
• Kelsea Ballerini
• The Script
• JoJo
• N Sync
• Fleetwood Mac
• Augustana

Favorite Songs:

As well as marking specific artists as “favorites” on my radio, I’m able to do the same thing with my favorite songs. This weekend, I went through all of my favorites and added them to a playlist on Spotify, so you can listen even in your car even if you don’t have Sirius. I’ll warn you ahead of time. The songs are RANDOM. We’ve got everything from The Weeknd to Beauty and the Beast. 

 // Happy Monday! We’re expecting to get a foot of snow tonight into tomorrow, but I’m hoping that the meteorologists are wrong. We had 60 degree weather last week, and I was really getting into the spring spirit – especially with Day Light Savings this past weekend. Ugh. Our weather is crazy. Hopefully, the temps where you live are a bit more spring-like. 

Talk to you all tomorrow.

xo, Nicole