The Songs Pumping-Up Team USA at the Olympics and Paralympics

Typically, I'll listen to sad songs before games,

though, and also the songs that me and Maggie send

back and forth, like Bad Bunny, J Balvin,

anything that gets you dancing, but also crying.

[both laughing]

[smooth percussive music]

I like to listen to very loose songs.

I treat competition day as basically any other day,

so that includes some Taylor Swift, some Selena Gomez,

maybe there's a little bit of rap in there,

but I like songs that keep me loose,

get me bouncy, have me dancing.

That's how I like to listen to music before I compete.

My pump-up playlist is actually just an album,

and I listen to the Meek Mill Championships album,

and when I'm driving to the arena, I just play it

from start until whenever I get there,

which, I'm in New York, so it can be quick,

or it can be very long.

So my pump-up playlist is called LFG '24.

It's a mixture of a lot of music in there.

There's some rap. There's some country.

There's some slow music.

It's kind of all over the place, but usually songs

that I can get pretty hyped up to.

I definitely get pumped up to early 2000s.

When somebody plays a banger that you forgot about,

and you're like, Oh, yeah, that's great,

like old J. Lo or whatnot.

I also just love what everybody else is listening to.

Okay, so I'm a Gemini, so I am all

over my music playlist and pump-up songs,

and it can go from anything and everything,

especially because I'm a very lyrical person,

so I love lyrics and connect to that,

so sometimes my pump-up songs are more slower, too,

'cause it's more about the words,

and I don't know about Sia,

but she just knows how to hit those words

and speak and empower women, and from a female voice

or a powerful voice, but just empowers me,

and there's so many songs.

I'm obsessed with Halsey and Ava Max,

and I love alternative,

and I love Red Hot Chili Peppers, Willie Nelson.

I mean, I'm all over the place.

There's one that's Holy Walking.

I believe it's by Miles Minnick,

Bless Me by Maverick City and Kirk Franklin,

and Glory 2 Glory by KB.

Definitely a lot of just rap music, but I'll have

some funny ones thrown in there.

I love listening to...

Black and Yellow is a fun one

for me before I get ready to race,

but just like rap music.

I like things that are gonna make me feel aggressive.

A lot of Coldplay, a lot of Kygo, 80s, 90s,

Beatles, Elton John, Billy Joel, yeah, U2,

all that sorts of stuff.

I actually don't have a pump up playlist.

One of the things that I've learned about me is

that if my arousal level gets way too high

before the game, that does not bode well for performance.

So for me, I actually try to get away from the music

in the locker room before the game

and just kind of be present.

I go through my visualization exercises

and just stay as calm as humanly possible.

I do not have a pump up playlist, actually.

I like to just hear the sound of the meet.

Love music, but I'm the friend that love music

and actually never knows the names of any songs.

I only know a few words of the chorus,

therefore my playlist skills, very, very weak.

So I just surrender to the environment.

I listen to the pool. I listen to the chlorine.

I listen to the cheers and just really, really be present.

I've been listening to a lot of Disney lately.

Oh. [chuckling] I've been

in a big Disney phase.

Sometimes like 80s classic rock,

whatever my dad listens to, and then random country.

Yeah, I'm really basic.

I like Miley Cyrus, Taylor Swift, you know... [chuckling]

Classics.

No big surprises there. [both laughing]

'Cause I feel like all my playlists are pump up playlists.

The artists that consist on the pump up playlist are

like Playboi Carti and Ye and Metallica,

and it's all into like classical jazz music.

Sometimes it is like some hard 90s rap or new rap,

something like that, whatever's trending,

but sometimes it'll be some smooth stuff, some sizzle,

some Drake, some Phoebe Bridgers.

Phoebe Bridgers was actually my number one artist

in my Spotify Wrapped last year.

So apparently I was really in my feels a lot. [chuckling]

Various songs. I don't know the artist.

There is some Billie Eilish in there that...

I remember that.

But it's just music that's kind of like girl power vibes.

It kind of just pumps me up for a competition.

I don't necessarily get super pumped up for a match.

If I do listen to music before I go fight,

it's just like either Bachata music or Brazilian funk music,

anything that is specifically four by four beats.

It's because it's the way I fight.

When I'm fighting, I'm literally just dancing around.

I have a playlist I called Good Vibes, which I share

with Ashleigh, and we even on bus rides sometimes to games,

we'll airdrop songs to each other,

while we're going to a game.

Yeah. We'll be like,

Yeah, 'cause we like a similar kind of rhythmic type song.

Yeah, my playlist pre-game is my liked songs playlist,

which has everything I've ever liked in there.

Typically I'll listen to like sad songs before games though.

And also the songs that me and Maggie send back

and forth, like Bad Bunny, J Balvin,

anything that gets you dancing, but also crying.

[both laughing]

Pink and Macklemore are on my pump up playlist.

I love the both of them very much.

Chant from Macklemore is one of my favorite songs

and so as I Am Here from Pink,

Kelly Clarkson, a lot of old school rock music,

couple bands that are a little more dear

to my heart, like Bayside.

There's usually like a hip hop

or a high on tempo type of music,

anything Drake, anything J Cole, Kendrick Lamar.

Pump up music is gonna be

like animations music, sometimes randomly so.

I'm just turn on my Spotify and then like do it that.

My pump up playlist is the most random playlist,

but it's a variety of reggae, and I always say it wrong,

but Hozier and Sabrina Carpenter and Taylor Swift.

Those are...

It's a very long variety.

My pump up playlist is super different for weights,

Morning practice, afternoon practice, and a competition.

I have different ones for all of them, but for competitions,

my go-to songs are Never Be Like You by Flume

and Beautiful Pain by Eminem.

AC/DC, Five Finger Death Punch mixed with country.

I know that sounds weird.

It's a complete mix, but honestly one

of my all time favorites is Queen.

I don't know, like We are the Champion,

things that get you in the mindset

of winning and being the best, really.

[upbeat music]