Hello FTT Family! Today we are here with a community favorite, which is our yearly music favorites for each dance genre! If you’re a music junkie like myself, then you spend the year keeping up with all of the latest tunes and what’s hot on the charts. This also results in awesome class playlists that are filled with new tunes to teach to, keeping things fresh and fun! Today, our first genre for music favorites that we will be jumping into is jazz! This is a dance genre that we love to pick out songs for that will be perfect for warm-ups, across the floor and class combos! So, without further ado, grab your jazz shoes and let’s go!
- “Cold Heart” by Elton John, Dua Lipa & PNAU
Across the floor routines never sounded so good, huh? First on this list is “Cold Heart” by Elton John with Dua Lipa & PNAU! A new take on Elton’s iconic “Rocket Man”, this song is the perfect mix of classic and new school over a cool pop beat. Low key in nature, this song pairs perfectly with kicks across the floor or pirouette practice. It also makes a great cool down song to close down a high impact class.
- “Woman” by Doja Cat
Did you know that this makes year number THREE of Doja Cat appearing on this list?! What can we say, the woman makes bangers! One of this year’s top Doja hits is the infamous, infectious and oh-so catchy “Woman”! Laced through an afro beat, this song is a great class starter and has all of the makings of a great class combo. It holds a mid tempo and has great musical pockets for a choreographer to sink their teeth into. Put this hit to a budding intermediate class or a jazz funk course and you’ve got a class made in dance Heaven!
- “Music For A Sushi Restaurant” by Harry Styles
Now you know we can’t have a jazz class without a little Harry Styles! “Music For A Sushi Restaurant” is one of our favorites, because, can you say leaps across the floor? This upbeat, feel good song with an energy that is larger than life will be the perfect canvas for split leaps, center leaps and calypsos in any and every jazz class. This is also a great warm-up song to place at the top of the hour as well!
- “Running Up That Hill” by Kate Bush
Surely everyone saw this one coming, right? This summer “Running Up That Hill” by Kate Bush took the world by storm, and we mean literally! The latest season of “Stranger Things” brought this song back with a bang and it was easily all you heard for 3 months, and for good reason! With its classic 80s synth sound, this song is a fantastic option for your next jazz class combo! It has the perfect mixture of tempo, drama and great musical pockets to choreograph in. The most ironic thing about this song being on this list is that it was probably used in jazz classes in 1986 in the same fashion that it is used today! You know what they say. There isn’t anything new under the studio lights, or something like that. 😉
- Sunroof by Nicky Youre, Dazy
A perfect beginner class option, “Sunroorf” by Nicky Youre and Dazy is that happy-go-lucky track that helps tie a class playlist together! This song has great energy and along with that energy includes a steady enough pace to introduce well rehearsed, as well as more difficult moves to those who may be newer to jazz. For that, we can’t get enough of this song and believe it will find the perfect place in your next course!
- “I Ain’t Worried” by OneRepublic
Top Gun fans, please stand up! OneRepublic easily made one of summer ‘22s best songs with “I Ain’t Worried”. An ode to letting go of whatever may be on your mind and living life to the fullest, this song has vibes for days! If you’re looking for a song to create a combo to, where you can showcase kicks, extensions and big leaps, then “I Ain’t Worried” has got you covered! This is also another amazing across the floor option as well that will get your students up and in the zone.
- “Shivers” by Ed Sheeran
And lastly, but certainly not least, we have one of our favorites; “Shivers” by Ed Sheeran! This song is so diverse and can be placed in so many areas of a jazz class. “Shivers” can be used as an across the floor song, warm-up and would make a FANTASTIC class combo. It has all the elements of what makes Ed Sheeran, Ed Sheeran: a thumping beat, catchy lyrics with an acoustic guitar at its core. Keep ‘em coming, Ed! We’ll always have a place for you in our class.
Well, that will do it for our first round of music favorites for the year! If you would like to check out any of the tunes mentioned above, as well as more awesome music to use in your next jazz class, check out our “All That Jazz” class playlist on Spotify via the link below!
As always, we wish you a wonderful holiday weekend, filled with love and light. Until our next blog post, remember…
Keep dancing!
Lexi
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