This mix was made from the music that we played from March, 15 2020 through March 2021. It started out as a way to help a friend who had been through a lot and was isolated overseas, away from her family and friends. To help lift her spirits and let her know that we were thinking about her, we sent her a new song everyday.
Going into this we knew it would be a challenge to come up with a new song every single day. First of all the songs had to be good. To make it even more challenging we wanted to share songs that were created during the pandemic. We saw it as an act of art as well as an act of friendship. Plus, we knew that the rigor of doing it everyday would lead to something interesting.
Working through our various themes was a challenge. We wanted to have some sort of flow through the mix—not just chronology, although it does act as a timeline also. It was important for us to represent our people and what they were experiencing during this time—eg: Masks, Lysol, TP crisis; Black lives Matter; Tom, our head of IT, playing Todd’s Just One Victory every Sunday for strength; Grace Potter Concert @ Highway Drive-In (first pandemic concert in NY); The Election; Isolation, Escapism; Hope; and last but not least OTTO’s newest baby Reina’s birth.
In the end the Pandemic Mixes represent our collective voyage from the start of the pandemic to the release of the vaccines. With help from Lenny and the gang at WDST, we created a K-Tel style, Ear Candy feast that stands as a testament to our shared experience. When I listen to it now a flood of memories take me right back to that time. At first it seemed that we would never make it though but in the end we achieved a lot of great things. Enjoy : )
Following are links to the OTTO Heavy Rotation mixes. Enjoy!
