It’s been a tough year for musicians and DJs, as the pandemic continues to make traditional revenue streams for performing artists all but obsolete. For Caius Pawson, the founder of the 15-year-old London record label Young Turks (which counts FKA twigs, Sampha, and The xx among the musicians on its roster), the absence of in-person performances is affecting creativity, too: “Live music is obviously a huge part of the industry, but it’s also its soul,” he says. “It’s where performers and the audience can best express themselves, and it’s where we come together.”

However, like many of us, Pawson has found that music’s power to transport and transform is immune to the virus. He compiled a playlist of uplifting songs for us that have “amplified the best parts of my year,” he says, “and distracted me from some of the worst.” There’s solace to be found in this soundtrack, he notes, for both listeners and himself. “People turn to music to find meaning and to enrich their lives. Some things never change.”

“Aure,” Maryam Olomi
“It’s So Different Here,” Rachel Sweet
“Challhuaschallay,” Conjunto Condemayta de Acomayo
“Stay So,” Busy Signal
“Solteiro,” DJ Lycox
“Spinning Away,” Brian Eno, John Cale
“Panagia Mou,” Mariza Koh
“Thiely,” Étoile De Dakar, Youssou N’Dour
“Mala Sombra,” Carmencita Lara
“Arman Doley,” Mamman Sani
“Likambo ya ngana,” Franco, TPOK Jazz, Youlou, Boyibanda, Bitshou
“City,” Alkaline
“Armée Guinéenne,” Bembeya Jazz National
“Obianuju,” Duncan Mighty
“Ramo de Rosas,” Los Pakines
“Pitié,” Tabu Ley Rochereau
“Torpedo,” Skillibeng
“Trouble Man,” Marvin Gaye
“Werente Serigne,” Orchestra Baobab
“Wildflowers” (2015 Remaster), Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt, Emmylou Harris
“Elsa,” Los Destellos, Enrique Delgado
“Shippūden,” Blanco
“Periódico De Ayer,” Héctor Lavoe
“Kunta Kinte Dub,” The Revolutionaries
“All That I Could,” DJ Q
“Love Is a Hurtin’ Thing” (12” Version), Gloria Ann Taylor