Boston’s king of music is here to help you curate the best playlist selection yet.
Mario Papathanasiou
When asked about his favorite type of music, Every Second Counts (escaudio.com) owner Mario Papathanasiou claims that there isn’t one type of music that attracts him most, but rather the feelings that are evoked from each song. “It’s really hard for me to answer that because I have so many different feelings attached to so many different types of music,” the Boston native says. For the past 12 years, Papathanasiou has been curating playlists for some of the city’s elite parties and companies, including Four Seasons, BVLGARI, New Balance and more. “Like a good storyteller, you want to have a beginning, a middle and an ending, and I don’t think that’s any different from creating a playlist,” he explains. “I think you should start off slow. You should ease your way into something and infuse it with exciting moments, thoughtful moments. If you know your audience, what would they react to and remember?” Here, we’ve chatted with the DJ on all things music—just in time for your holiday playlist.
PAPATHANASIOU’S TIPS FOR CURATING THE BEST HOLIDAY PLAYLIST
1.Know your audience.
“If your audience likes a certain style of music, include that. Are they familiar with Latin music? Do you want to put some current pop hits in there? Are they fans of dance music? So, include those selections in the middle portion and extended periods where you want people to mingle so that can be their background.”
2.Think about your timeframe.
“Look at your timeframe and how long you’re going to have your guests over. And then, start with the beginning, middle and ending.”
3.Start midtempo, but ramp it up at the end.
“I like to ramp things up right before the ending to give it a good high energy. … There’s so much great dance music right now. Looking at what Beyoncé has done in her album—she’s incorporating a lot of dance music themes that we’ve been seeing as DJs on the dance floor for the last couple years.”
ARTISTS HE’S LOVING NOW
1.Jungle
2.Leisure
3.Sault
4.Fred Again
5.Harry Styles
6.Beyoncé
Photography by: ERIC LEVIN; Adrian Korte/Unsplash
