My company does a boatload of senior related productions each year, from graduations, proms and parties, to Grad Night, homecoming and more. The vast majority of our music list can be found on a remarkable series called “Now That’s What I Call Music” and features 20 current “chart topping”hits on each CD. We use those lists to compile our own.
The other thing is we have access to many young people from all walks of life whom we contact and ask what the latest in RAP, Rock, Techno, Trance, HipHop and other stuff is. Remarkably, they also love such things as FreezeFrame, and VitaminC’s “Graduation”, as well as the perennial favorite by Green Day “Good Riddance. Time of Your Life”. There’s also one that goes “I’ve had the time of my life, never felt this way before,” and that always seems to fit somewhere. There’s Crow’s “All I Want to Do is Have Some Fun” and BoyztoMen with “Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday. “Let’s Get it Started,” is a great party song for seniors. “One Shining Moment” and “Please Remember” come to mind.
Some of these might be considered musical cliches by a few, but the seniors always seem to like them. Also, remixes of many of the ballroom dance favorites – Sinatra, etc., and classics by Seager, Presley, Cocker, Adams, White, Van Morrison, and Rod Stewart.
Your very best bet is to get a general idea of what’s hot from kids in the 16-18 age bracket and come up with a mix. It will certainly be an ecletic one I bet.
.
