I’ve found one of the best concentration tools for me is music. Instrumental music, specifically. But even that opens the door to a wide range of music—from Yo-Yo Ma to my favorite movie and television scores. (Mozart in the Jungle and Little Women (2019) are always on rotation.) And I know I’m not remotely alone in using music to help me focus. Over the last several years, Lo-Fi hip hop playlists have become a massive trend as music to study to. Disney recently joined in on the study music action with a playlist that, quite frankly, has me hooked.
Walt Disney Records recently launched a digital album full of Lo-Fi goodness. The chilled out album is called Lofi Minnie: Focus and features 10 Disney tracks from all over the company’s musical catalog. To pull off the album, Disney recruited notable artists in the Lo-Fi space to reimagine classic Disney songs. It is so fun to hear how each of the 10 artists performs their song with twist, bringing new life to songs we all know and love.
- “Hakuna Matata” from The Lion King, performed by Purrple Cat
- “How Far I’ll Go” from Moana, performed by Philanthrope
- “Go the Distance” from Hercules, performed by mommy
- “Into the Unknown” from Frozen II, performed by Hippo Dreams
- “A Whole New World” from Aladdin, performed by eevee
- “Un Poco Loco” from Coco, performed by Krynoze
- “Almost There” from The Princess and the Frog, performed by Otesla
- “I Just Can’t Wait to be King” from The Lion King, performed by Epona
- “You’ve Got a Friend in Me” from Toy Story, performed by Jazzinuf
- “Under the Sea” from The Little Mermaid, performed by Kupla
My favorites are “I Just Can’t Wait to be King” and “How Far I’ll Go.” But there’s not a single skippable track on the album.
Considering they’re instrumental versions of songs with lyrics most of us have memorized, I was certainly skeptical as to whether I’d actually concentrate. Or if I’d just start humming along. But I was surprised at how focused the playlist kept me—even if I did sing along every now and then. The Lo-Fi remixes just really work!
The Lofi Minnie: Focus album is available on all platforms. If you stream the playlist on YouTube, a looped video of Minnie Mouse focusing on her work plays with the song. And it’s full of fun Disney Easter eggs, like the Powerline poster from A Goofy Movie and the Enchanted Mirror from Beauty and the Beast.
I haven’t stopped listening to this album since discovering it. Here’s hoping this is just the first of many Lo-Fi Disney albums. They certainly have a deep enough catalog.