Somehow, 2023 is coming to an end, and you know what that means: it’s time for critics to start making their year-end lists. So, once again, Barack Obama is here to let the people know his favorite books, movies, and music of the year. Maybe that whole presidential gig was just him playing the long game to get to his true passion? First up are his favorite books, including Chip War, King: A Life, Some People Need Killing, and other titles. And he really read these, okay? At least, according to himself. In an interview with Hasan Minhaj earlier this year, Obama defended himself against the allegations that he doesn’t actually come up with his annual lists. Although he admitted to getting “suggestions,†he asserted that he really reads, watches, and listens to everything he recommends. “The fact that my lists are, you know, pretty incredible… people seem to think, well, he must’ve had some 20-year-old intern who was figuring out this latest cut,†he scoffed. “No, man. It’s on my iPad right now.†Hmm… drop your Spotify Wrapped Sound Town, Mr. President, and then we’ll talk.
When it comes to his favorite films of the year, the former president acknowledged some bias for three that were produced by his production company, Higher Ground: Rustin, Leave the World Behind, and American Symphony. As for movies without a conflict of interest, the titles that made the cut included The Holdovers, Oppenheimer, and Past Lives. He later updated his selections to include The Color Purple, which was released on Christmas Day. What better time than Santa season for Obama to be making a list, and checking it twice?
On December 29, Obama put out his 2023 Wrapped, sadly without his Sound Town. Unlike most of America, Taylor Swift wasn’t on it. Also unlike most of America, Rita Wilson was? Her collab with Keith Urban, “Crazy Love,†made Obama’s list. As did the “America Has a Problem†remix, the Mitski song that went viral on TikTok, and “Cobra†by Megan Thee Stallion. Nothing quite as unhinged as when he claimed to be an Ethel Cain girlie, but the worst people online are probably going to make a lot of hay with a former prez stanning a song named “America Has a Problem.â€
This story has been updated.