25 songs i can’t live without: 112 ft. The Notorious BIG & Mase - Only You (Bad Boy Remix)

i had a really hard time picking just one 112 song to go on this list. their early catalogue was an essential part of the soundtrack to all things love and romance in my high school and college days. while they went the way of all other male r&b groups of that era, fortunately, classics like this will live on. “Cupid” would have been my other pick, but this song put them on the map and immediately became an anthem. to this day you can drop it, watch everyone move and hear the guys in the place rap and sing along. and yes, each and every one of them is singing to someone, whether she’s there or not.

25 songs i can’t live without: PM Dawn - “Set Adrift On Memory Bliss”

this is one of those songs from my childhood that will never fail to make me feel good. whenever it comes on i immediately think to myself “why have i not been listening to this song on repeat all week??” smooth, perfectly bittersweet and just the right amount of hip-hop and r&b — if you put the right group of people together in a club and play this record, the cumulative feeling of nostalgia would probably be enough to power the building.

fun fact: in 1991, this was the very first song to go #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart after the introduction of SoundScan…

and props to Spandau Ballet for the sample…

25 songs i can’t live without: Amel Larrieux - “Make Me Whole”

a perfect poem, delivered angelically. this is what enlightenment sounds like on wax.

25 songs i can’t live without: Black Star - “Brown Skin Lady”

“let’s see, you fruitful, beautiful, smart, lovable, huggable, doable like art, suitable to be part of my life”…might be one of the greatest “how do i love thee, let me count the ways” lines in all of hip-hop. this album changed my life, this song is one of my favorites off it (if picking one is even possible) and as far as odes to our better halves go, it doesn’t get much better than this.

25 songs i can’t live without: Anouar Brahem - “C’est Ailleurs”

whenever i need peace (or an escape), wherever i am, whatever time of day it is, no matter what’s happening — all i need is this song. it’s like my own personal restart button.

25 songs i can’t live without: Cheb Mami ft. Zaho - “Halili”

i remember hearing this song for the first time and immediately thinking to myself ‘who is that amazing female voice??’ i was already a Cheb Mami fan, but had no idea who Zaho was. from the first guitar strum the song is sweet, and Cheb Mami’s voice is smooth as usual, but Zaho really takes it to another level, particularly when she comes in in the second verse — it’s angelic.

combined with all the other elements, that gives this song a feeling that i’ve watched take over people who don’t even understand a single word of it. the music is flawlessly warm, Cheb Mami and Zaho sound awesome together, and there’s some subtly brilliant vocal production that makes the song so subconsciously fulfilling you can listen to it over and over again.

25 songs i can’t live without: Common - “The Light”

this song is like a manual (for love and hip-hop). dope sample, smooth track, and what knowledge does Common not drop so perfectly about love and relationships? i’d pick a quote, but then i’d just be pasting the lyrics of the entire song. this one is timeless and goes hard everywhere from the crib to the car to the club. big up Common, big up J. Dilla, big up Bobby Caldwell (sang the original) and big up Erykah Badu if she really did inspire it. magical.

25 songs i can’t live without: Miss Meghna ft. Gagou - “Let’s Escape”

of all the songs i’ve worked on over the past 12 or 13 years, this is one of my favorites. i can honestly say that when i wrote the music, i had no idea it would turn into what it did. from the first writing session with Meghna in columbus to recording with my cousin Gagou in cairo to the long mixing sessions with Meghna and Gomar back in columbus, it was fun, challenging and just as adventurous as the song itself. musically, lyrically, geographically and personally, this is truly international. all bias aside, i think we managed to create a unique sound with this track, which is exactly why we started Music Without Borders and exactly why we’ll keep making music until we no longer can.

25 songs i can’t live without: Fadel Shaker - “Lahzet Loqa”

while it isn’t one of the most powerful or versatile, Fadel Shaker’s voice is just nice to listen to. it’s smooth, light and easy. and while this song is basically the exact same song every other modern arabic pop artist sings, to me the sum of its parts is special. Fadel performed it well, captured that feeling of bliss when you’re with that special someone, and the song delivers every time. it’s actually almost impossible for me to listen without restarting it at least once after the drop (right around :40). there’s something perfect about it, kind of like that feeling of bliss when you’re with that special someone.

25 songs i can’t live without: Aaliyah - “One In A Million”

Aaliyah is an angel. she is one of the sweetest sopranos music has ever had the privilege of hearing. nine years ago today she left us too soon, but she blessed us with some beautiful music while she was here, and this is one of my favorites. as her voice and style matured, her sweetness remained unchanged — God only knows how amazing the work she’d be releasing now would have been. the other angels must be listening to some beautiful music.

25 songs i can’t live without: Bill Withers/Club Nouveau “Lean On Me”

when i was 7 years old, the Club Nouveau version of this became the first favorite song i remember having. it’s the first song i ever taped off the radio, and to this day, every time i hear it i remember the excitement i used to feel whenever it came on. soon after hearing that version i got to know the original — we should all thank Bill Withers for such an amazing and timeless song. besides my health, what i value most in life is the people i’ve been blessed to have around me for the past 30 years. we are all rocks for each other, and this song is a celebration of that.

25 songs i can’t live without: Beres Hammond - “Rock Away”

to me, this song represents infinite musical warmth. add to the fact that reggae is impossibly warm by nature, Beres Hammond is one of the most soulful voices music has ever heard — and it’s about taking music back to its roots and dancing all night. best of all, i’m blessed to have the never-regular-enough fortune of finding myself dancing to this song in the late night hours with some of the best friends in the world, all for the love of music. Beres would have it no other way.

25 songs i can’t live without: Jah Cure - “Longing For”

this song is enlightenment. like whoever Jah Cure wrote and sang it about, it has its own, elevated place.

25 songs i can’t live without: JoSH - “Teri Masti”

when i met Rup and Q (JoSH), one of the first things i said to them was “you could shoot me in the foot, then play “Teri Masti” and i’d be happy.” i’ve been pulled over for speeding twice while listening to it (1 ticket, 1 warning) and both times i could have cared less. the track is high-energy (and wonderfully fused) and JoSH graces it with their signature sweet harmonies, catchy writing and dope vocal production. whatever the reason, there is a direct correlation between this song being on and life being awesome. 

25 songs i can’t live without: “Maxwell - This Woman’s Work”

this f-in song.

and not that it’s better (or anywhere close to Maxwell’s) but peep the original for context.