Fall Music Vibes: Albums That Capture the Season

The minute fall starts creeping in, my music taste changes.

Suddenly, I need music that is soulful, sensual, nostalgic, moody, a little dark, and occasionally weird. I want music for early sunsets, rainy afternoons, late night drives, cooler air, and those random moments when you stare out the window like you’re in a music video even though you’re literally just waiting for your DoorDash.

None of these albums are technically “fall albums.” There are no requirements here. Nobody has to sing about leaves changing colors or pumpkin spice for me to decide something sounds like fall.

It’s a feeling.

And these albums give me that feeling every single time.

Janet Jackson — The Velvet Rope

Janet Jackson is one of my favorite artists of all time, so naturally she had to be here.

The Velvet Rope is sensual, dark, liberating, vulnerable, and extremely expressive. Janet gets into personal issues, sexuality, loneliness, relationships, self worth, and just hard shit in general.

That’s probably why I’ve always connected with it.

There are albums you listen to because they’re good, and then there are albums that somehow make you feel understood. The Velvet Rope does both for me. It makes me feel heard, sexy, emotional, and liberated all at the same time.

And the darker production? Pure fall after dark.

My favorites: “Velvet Rope,” “You,” “Empty,” “My Need,” and “Got ’til It’s Gone.”

Shakira — She Wolf

Now this is where my fall gets a little feral.

Shakira has always been another artist who brings out my sensual side, but She Wolf adds this wild, strange energy that I absolutely love.

It’s sexy. It’s playful. It’s weird.

And I mean weird as a compliment.

There’s also something about the sound of this album that gives me Halloween without actually being Halloween music. It’s like putting on something fabulous at night and suddenly deciding you need to dramatically walk around your house like you’re transforming into some mysterious creature.

You know. Normal fall behavior.

My favorites: “She Wolf,” “Why Wait,” and “Give It Up to Me.”

Mariah Carey — Butterfly

Butterfly is warm fall.

This album makes me feel nostalgic, whimsical, romantic, and empowered. It’s chill without putting me to sleep and romantic without making me feel like I’m drowning in somebody else’s relationship.

There’s just something about this era of Mariah that feels warm.

I can imagine playing this while the sun is going down earlier, the weather is cooling off, and everything outside has that golden fall glow.

It’s giving romance, but make it grown.

My favorites: “The Roof,” “Butterfly,” and “Honey.”

Craig David — Born to Do It

Craig David deserves more appreciation and I will stand on that.

Born to Do It gives me such a specific kind of nostalgia. It has that smooth Y2K sound that instantly transports me somewhere else, and it’s perfect for a chill fall night.

This isn’t dramatic fall.

This is driving around after dark when the weather is finally cool enough to crack the windows. Maybe you’re going somewhere. Maybe you’re just avoiding going home for another twenty minutes because the music is good.

Either way, Craig David is playing.

My favorites: “7 Days,” “Last Night,” and “Rendezvous.”

Q — Soul,PRESENT

I love this album. Like, actually love it.

There’s something nostalgic about Q’s sound that reminds me of the soulful funkiness I love from artists like Prince and Sananda Maitreya. It gives me that older sound without feeling like someone is desperately trying to recreate another decade.

But what really gets me is the substance.

His lyrics actually have something to say. There are themes around identity, love, self reflection, and learning to love yourself, which makes the music feel even more personal.

I don’t have favorite songs.

I love all of them.

This is one of those albums where I press play and let the man finish his business.

V — Layover

You cannot convince me that Layover wasn’t created specifically for rainy fall weather.

I know it wasn’t.

I don’t care.

The entire album feels like sitting near a window while it’s raining outside, wrapped in a warm blanket with hot cocoa while V’s baritone voice is basically acting as central heating.

It’s soft, jazzy, moody, and ridiculously cozy.

There are albums that have individual songs I love, and then there are albums where the entire atmosphere is the point. Layover is definitely the latter.

My favorites: “Rainy Days,” “Love Me Again,” and “Slow Dancing.”

NAO — For All We Know

This album feeds my soul and my moodiness at the same time, which is apparently something I require from music.

NAO’s voice alone creates an atmosphere. There’s something soulful and slightly bittersweet about this album, but it still makes me feel good.

That’s basically the emotional sweet spot I want during fall.

I don’t necessarily want to be sad.

I just want to stare out the window and think about my life for a minute.

There is a difference.

Sananda Maitreya — Introducing the Hardline According to Terence Trent D’Arby

Speaking of artists who deserve more appreciation.

This album was released in the ‘80s, but it doesn’t sound like something that needs to stay there.

It’s timeless.

Sananda Maitreya has one of those voices that immediately grabs your attention, and the combination of soul, funk, rock, and pop makes the entire album feel alive.

There’s also a warmth to older music that I naturally gravitate toward when fall comes around. Maybe it’s nostalgia. Maybe modern music has conditioned me to miss instruments. That’s another conversation.

And once again, I’m not choosing favorites.

I love the whole album.

Childish Gambino — “Awaken, My Love!”

Now we need some funk.

“Awaken, My Love!” sounds like somebody took old school funk and soul, got a little weird with it, threw it into a time machine, and sent it back to us.

It’s nostalgic without sounding dated and experimental without sounding like somebody was just pressing random buttons in the studio.

This is darker fall energy.

I don’t picture coffee shops and cute sweaters when I hear this album. I picture nighttime. A bonfire. Smoke in the air. Something slightly chaotic happening somewhere in the background.

Basically, fall after 10 PM.

My favorites: “Me and Your Mama” and “Redbone.”

Apparently, This Is What Fall Sounds Like in My Head

Looking at this entire list together has made me realize that my version of fall isn’t particularly wholesome.

Where are the acoustic guitars? The soft little songs about leaves?

Apparently, I don’t want them.

My fall soundtrack needs soul. It needs funk. It needs sensuality. It needs nostalgia. It needs a little darkness. And most importantly, it needs to make me feel something.

That’s the fun thing about seasonal music anyway. An album doesn’t need to mention fall for you to associate it with the season.

Sometimes it’s the production.

Sometimes it’s a memory.

Sometimes it’s literally just because you listened to it once when it was 62 degrees outside and your brain said, “Yep. This belongs to October now.”

That’s enough for me.

If you want to give these albums a listen, I’ve put them together in my fall album playlist.

[Listen to my fall album playlist here.]

Now I’m curious: What album sounds like fall to you? Not an official fall album. I mean that one album that hits completely different the second the temperature drops.