June Gloom has finally burnt off and the temperatures are starting to rise. Pool parties, fresh watermelon, sunsets at 8pm…summer has officially made her grand entrance!

Having grown up in Los Angeles, it should come as no big surprise that most of my fondest memories involved the sights, scents and sounds of summer. In my youth, I’d shell hunt with my mom, torment seagulls with my brother and cousins and time our trips to the beach based on Zeppelin songs (Malibu Canyon lasts the duration of Stairway to Heaven, for the record). As I grew older, there were chili cook-offs, aimless drives up the coast, long runs on the sand and concerts by the pier. Summer was my everything. Summer is my everything. And what is true love without a killer soundtrack?

Whether you live coastside or creekside, in Santa Monica or San Antonio, consider this playlist your greeting card from us here at The Chalkboard. Use it for a bike ride, a run or maybe just a road trip with the windows all the way down. And yes, Stairway To Heaven is included.

Sending you a little LA sunshine and your own personal piece of SoCal summer – no matter where you’re soaking up rays.

A SoCal Summer Playlist

Loud Pipes Ratatat
Sweeter  Gavin DeGraw
Control Benny Benassi
Feelin’ Myself  Nipsey Hussle feat. Lloyd
Sunshine Superman  Donovan
Who’s That Girl  Robyn
Weep Themselves To Sleep  Jack White
Forget  Lianne La Havas
Be By Myself  Asher Roth feat. Cee Lo Green
Asleep At The Wheel  Working For A Nuclear Free City
Summertime  Jesca Hoop
Stairway To Heaven  Led Zeppelin