The Playlist: Cerentha Harris of Lifework

I truly think you don’t get to know somebody until you get to peek at the music they listen to on a regular basis. That’s why I was more than excited that Lifework editor (and Australian native) Cerentha Harris agreed to do this week’s Playlist. I am really digging her list (and NOT just because she’s my boss) (honest!)—especially because it’s introduced me to some goodness from Down Under like Missy Higgins, You Am I and Tex Perkins. Take a listen (and thanks, Cerentha!).

What do you listen to while you work? Music carries me through the mornings. All my blog writing and editing happens between 9am and 2pm. There’s a lot to pack in so I have to be careful with my time. I’ve found I work better when there’s music playing. If I’m trying to write I need something that’s not too distracting. If I’m researching, I’m happy to listen to something loud and crazy. Anything to keep me engaged and stop me from wandering. There is definitely a tendency when working at home to wander. The view from my office is distracting, I’ve tried working outside but it’s just too bright.

How do you listen? I am a serious Mac fan. I edit this blog using a 13-inch MacBook Pro, but when I’m at my desk I plug the laptop into a big screen. I love having two screens going at once. I keep my email open on one and then blog on the other screen. The Apple monitor was too pricey so I went with a 24-inch Dell with an attached speaker—nothing high-tech, really, but the music sounds just fine to me. We’ve got a Bose Lifestyle home theatre system, which stores all our CDs and plays the radio and is wired to play all over the house. I listen to that sometimes too.

Do you have any favorite music websites/providers? Pandora. Either that or I listen to music that I’ve got stored on iTunes. Most of that is stuff my husband has bought on Amazon. He is the music person in the family and I get the majority of my new music from him.

Does music influence your work? It definitely influences my mood. I enjoy the time at my desk more when there’s a good song playing.

If your work was a song or a musician, what or who would it be? I’d love to say something clever and smart—some jazz icon that will deeply impress everyone, but that’s just not true. I think instead it’s a Ben Lee song, or maybe Missy Higgins. An Australian, with some soul, talented, perhaps a little earnest at times, edging towards something interesting and laced with a good dose of irony!

CERENTHA’S PLAYLIST

Blue, Lucinda Williams

For Today I Am a Boy, Antony and the Johnsons

Wish You Well, Bernard Fanning

Heart Skipped a Beat, The xx

Concerning the UFO Sighting Near Highland, Illinois, Sufjan Stevens (the entire Illinoise is incredible)

Kiss Me on the Bus, The Replacements

The Sound of White, Missy Higgins (my daughter’s favourite song)

Rise Up, Ben Lee

Christobel, Joan As Police Woman

You Can’t Hold the Hand of a Rock and Roll Man, Okkervil River

Ahead of the Curve, Monsters of Folk

Heavy Heart, You Am I

100 Days, 100 Nights, Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings

Sex, The Necks

Miss You Love, Silverchair

Oh My God, Whatever, Etc., Ryan Adams

Empire State of Mind, Jay-Z and Alicia Keys

Shape Shifter, Local Natives

Horchata, Vampire Weekend

She’s a Friend of Mine, Tex Perkins (and also You’re Too Beautiful)

Straight to Hell, Lily Allen

Deathly, Aimee Mann

Me and You, She and Him

Black Sand (Album Version), Jenny Lewis

California Stars, Billy Bragg and Wilco

Throw Your Arms Around Me, Hunters & Collectors

Images: Cerentha Harris

Submit a Comment

We welcome your comments on this moderated blog. We invite you to participate respectfully in the conversation that interests you—on topics from design to our products to what makes the world a better place for all of us.