Spotify has curated playlists reflecting the local flavor of each stop on HuffPost’s “Listen to America” tour using location-based data to find out what people are really listening to in 20-plus cities. Check back for more from Sept. 12 through Oct. 30.
Alongside the Arkansas River, Little Rock stands around 100 miles south of the state’s self-declared “folk music capital of the world,” the tiny town of Mountain View. There, residents preserve the region’s long history of folk and bluegrass genres, hosting an annual music festival and encouraging kids to learn how to pluck quick notes on the fiddle, guitar, mandolin and other strings.
That tradition trickles down to Little Rock, where country music icons and Arkansas natives Johnny Cash and Glen Campbell (who died on Aug. 8) enjoy popularity alongside blues and soul artists, such as Al Green and Little Rock’s own Nicky Parrish. The city is also where the pioneering black conductor William Grant Still got his start and, a few genres removed, the band Evanescence.
Top 40 artists including Miley Cyrus, Zedd and Bruno Mars round out our list. Give it a listen below:
Spotify playlists for the “Listen to America” campaign were created by looking at each location’s most popular songs (streaming in the highest numbers at time of publication), distinctive songs (currently being streamed more in this city compared to all other cities in the world) and tracks from local artists. While many picks are data-driven, some songs are handpicked from data lists to assure the playlists reflect a variety of genres and decades, as well as a healthy gender balance.