From Davido to Bob Marley songs: Here is King Charles playlist

The playlist also highlights tracks from his many visits to Africa, featuring South African artist Miriam Makeba.

by SHARON MWENDE

Realtime11 March 2025 - 05:35

In Summary

King Charles does not discriminate on the basis of release dates.
He has been listening to reggae legend Bob Marley and, recently, Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter RAYE.

Has it ever crossed your mind the kind of tracks King Charles has been listening to as he goes about his royal duties?

A new Apple Music broadcast has shown the playlist the King has curated, painting him as a man of diverse musical taste.

From songs released years ago to recent ones, King Charles does not discriminate on the basis of release dates.

According to his playlist, King Charles has been listening to reggae legend Bob Marley and, recently, Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter RAYE.

From disco to reggae, listeners can tune in to the King’s playlist on Apple Music 1 throughout Monday and Tuesday to mark Commonwealth Day.

Speaking in the opening remarks of the pre-recorded broadcast at Buckingham Palace, King Charles said that throughout his life, music has meant a great deal to him.

“I know that is also the case for so many others. But perhaps, above all, it can lift our spirits to such a degree, and all the more so when it brings us together in celebration. In other words, it brings us joy,” he added.

King Charle’s Apple playlist also includes other familiar names such as Kylie Minogue, Grace Jones and Davido.

In the playlist, the King also shared “anecdotes about his encounters with some of the artists featured and reveals why the songs help form the soundtrack to his life,” according to the press release.

He recalled how Kylie Minogue went to St James’s Palace to perform in 2012 ahead of the Diamond Jubilee visit to Australia.

“The song is ‘The Loco-Motion’, and this is music for dancing. Again, it has that infectious energy which makes it, I find it incredibly hard to sit still,” he said.

In the list, there is The King’s Guard playing a rendition of “Could You Be Loved” by the late Bob Marley.

“I remember when he came to London to perform when I was much younger, and I met him at some event,” he said.

“That marvelous, infectious energy, of course, he had, but also his deep sincerity, and his profound concern for his community. I always recall his words: ‘The people have a voice inside them’.”

The King noted that Marley gave the world that voice in a way that no one who heard it could ever forget.

The playlist also highlights tracks from his many visits to Africa, featuring South African artist Miriam Makeba singing one of the most famous pieces in Xhosa.

The soundtrack to King Charles’s life wraps up with “Upside Down” by Diana Ross, which he describes as one of his “particular favorites.”

“When I was much younger, it was impossible not to get up and dance when it was played, and I wonder if I can still just manage it,” he added.

Here are the 17 songs chosen by the British monarch:

· Bob Marley & The Wailers — “Could You Be Loved”

· Millie Small — “My Boy Lollipop”

· Kylie Minogue — “The Loco-Motion”

· Al Bowlly — “The Very Thought of You”

· Grace Jones — “La Vie En Rose”

· RAYE — “Love Me Again”

· Daddy Lumba — “Mpempem Do Me”

· Davido — “KANTE” (feat. Fave)

· Miriam Makeba — “The Click Song”