Our beloved Marvel fan Jack Weynand promised that this time, his iEdit would have a consistent theme. And he did keep his promise. Although I must admit, the result was more haunting—like the title of the first track suggests—than pleasant.
This isn’t me judging your music taste, Jack, it’s just me wishing you would’ve warned me before I started playing your playlist as I was getting ready to go out.
“Be nice,” his text following a link to the playlist read.
His first impression of me might not have been the nicest. Jack and I started off as enemies, despite what he might tell you. In a single semester, He had written the same amount of articles I had written during my year with The Heights. He also never missed a deadline, was naturally charming, and was running for the same Heights position as I back in 2022.
Since then, Jack and I have survived our abrupt transitions into The Heights together—his from newsletter editor to assistant arts editor, and mine from assistant arts editor to associate arts editor.
During this time, Jack has made long productions bearable, coming up with icebreakers I couldn’t have come up with, listening to my repetitive life stories, providing advice, and bringing a warm attitude and sense of humor to all of our meetings with our writers.
In this playlist, Jack reveals his vulnerable side, adding on to the multi-layered person that he is.
Taylor Swift’s “Haunted (Taylor’s Version)” sets the mood for his reminiscent and deeply emotional playlist.
What follows is “Movies” by one of Jack’s favorite artists, Conan Gray (check out his upcoming review of Gray’s latest album). As always, Gray captures the big expectations and disappointments of young people through his lyrics.
“I want a love like the movies,” Gray sings.
I am certain that Jack will get his love like the movies sooner or later.
“Lie to Me” by 5 Seconds of Summer and “Too Sad To Dance” by Jung Kook may have a slighter upbeat melody, but don’t let that fool you. Both songs talk about the lies and distractions we use to briefly forget the things we miss or yearn for.
In a more folksy feeling, Jack introduces Noah Kahan’s “Stick Season.”
I must confess: Despite Kahan’s overwhelming recent success, I’ve never listened to a single one of his songs. Reminiscent of indie-folk king Elliott Smith, Kahan’s vocals against a gentle guitar highlight his undeniable introspective and personal lyrics.
“And I’ll dream each night of some version of you / That I might not have, but I did not lose,” Kahan sings in a painfully honest line.
Switching genres but not themes, Jack transitions into pop hits by more of his favorites: The Weeknd and Olivia Rodrigo.
The Weeknd asks the question, “Is There Someone Else?” while Rodrigo wishes her ex-lover happiness with another lover (but not too much) in her viral hit “happier.”
Jack has created a deeply honest arrangement of tracks that depict heartbreak and the difficulty of moving on. This is the type of playlist you’d want to listen to as you stare through the window of your apartment, or as you go on a Res walk to ponder on your latest choices.
As I was coming to the end of the playlist, growing increasingly concerned about the usually upbeat associate arts editor, Agnetha Fältskog’s classic vocals and a playful piano melody started playing.
On top of accusing me of being a liar during The Heights’ 2022 elections (I might have told him my speech didn’t have any jokes) and being a Taylor Swift hater (despite the fact that he’s heard me sing along to “You Belong With Me” during production), Jack has also accused me of being a fake arts editor because I refuse to watch Mamma Mia!
After listening for the first time to “Thank You for the Music,” however, I believe Jack was right to judge me. I couldn’t help but find comfort in ABBA’s lyrics and do a little dance as I was walking down Commonwealth Ave.
“If I tell a joke, you’ve probably heard it before / But I have a talent, a wonderful thing / ’Cause everyone listens when I start to sing,” Fältskog sings proudly.
I hope that Jack shares this sentiment, as he should be proud that only he can cheer up Assistant Arts Editor Leah Stitzel and myself during our long Sunday mornings and evenings.
Jack boldly—and I say boldly because I know he thinks I’m criticizing him for this—closes his playlist with Swift, giving a circling-back effect to the whole playlist.
Reflecting on Swift’s confusion in “This Love (Taylor’s Version),” I can’t tell if Jack is “good” or “bad,” but I’m sure that he will be better. Our first interaction may have been of a competitive nature, but I hope Jack knows, quoting “Thank You for the Music” again, that I truly am “grateful for the joy” he brings to production.
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