My taste in music is rather eclectic. Sometimes I feel like I’m stuck in the 1980s—the decade I graduated high school and college, other times I listen to even older music, sometimes I get on a country fix, on occasion I even catch up to the decade we’re living in.

Apple Music, which I get free through my Verizon phone plan, this month put out a compilation of my 2024 highlights. I was a bit surprised.

Of the 204 artists I listened to, Taylor Swift came in at No. 1 with 215 minutes, then Tim McGraw 102 minutes, Miley Cyrus 95 minutes, Keith Urban 69 minutes, and Counting Crows 65 minutes.

Much of what I listen to is the playlist I’ve created called Driving—as in, I play it on road trips. I put it on shuffle, so I never know what will come next.

My top genres for the year were pop, country, contemporary country, pop rock, and rock. I would not have been able to tell you that. I just like what I like. I’m not sure I could even accurately categorize what I’m listening to.

Of the 343 songs I listened to, those that got the most plays were “I Hope You Dance” by Lee Ann Womack, “Don’t Stop Believin’” by Journey, “Sweet Caroline” by Neil Diamond, “All too Well” by Taylor Swift, and “Breathe” by Anna Nalick.

Rarely do I pick a particular artist to listen to. Sometimes I pick a genre or even playlists that Apple has. So, were these really the songs I wanted to listen or what Apple thought I wanted to hear?

The answer doesn’t matter. Play on ….