During the winter season, people spend a lot of time inside. It’s cold, classes give too much homework and The Bachelor season is in full effect, so who has the time to go outside? Music has the ability to paint a picture and tell a story. If you haven’t been able to buy a strand of string lights or a tie-dye tapestry to decorate your dorm, here’s a playlist of songs to make those days spent inside a little more colorful.

“PUPPET” by Tyler, the Creator

With concepts that have always been layered and out-of-the-box, Tyler unpacks them song by song. On “IGOR,” his latest album, Tyler plays all the parts in this one-man show to bring his character to life. “PUPPET” tells the story of IGOR trying to find himself in others by being what they want to see, or their puppet. At the end of the story, listeners learn that IGOR realizes he doesn’t know who he truly is.

“imagine” by Ariana Grande

Imagine, if you will, a better place than where you are now. That’s exactly what Grande sings about in this song. Grande truly lets her voice be the focal point by letting it be the driver of this song. She tells the story of what she wants her life to be at the moment. Daydreaming and imagining things is something everyone has done their whole life. Why not make a song of what you see when you do just that?

“Party Tricks” by Ayanna

Ayanna sings a haunting call for answers in this R&B moment. When the party’s over, Ayanna wonders if there’s still a connection with the person she wants. Instead, all of the calls from this song go unanswered. The chilling harmonies that creep out of this song will bring Ayanna, and all of her frustrations, into the room with you.

“Crack Rock” by Frank Ocean

On those days spent looking at the same space over and over again, it’s good to have a distraction. Ocean has a way of telling a story by painting a picture through his lyrics. He tells a story of everyday tragedies that have become so normalized to where people no longer react to them. When one of these tragedies happens to you, Ocean simply says, “How’s the gutter doing?”

“Coachella – Woodstock in My Mind” by Lana Del Rey

This song takes the listener somewhere warmer, almost enough for a music festival, to set the scene for Del Rey’s storytelling. The smooth melody guides the listener through a fervent dream of heavy bass and airy vocals. At the end of the chorus, Del Rey adds in a flute melody to really give this song a hypnotic feel. Until festival season is actually here, sit back and fantasize like Del Rey.

“Paradise” by Khalid

Being stuck inside because of the cold is something to make anyone long for warmer weather. Khalid seamlessly blends R&B and soul into a song that almost begs to be played on summer nights. Much like the album cover, this song sets the scene of a sunset in an old, beat-up Volkswagen van, offering that little slice of paradise Khalid sings about.

Follow this link to listen to the playlist on Spotify.