Barack Obama Pays Tribute to Glen Hansard with 2026 Summer Playlist

Barack Obama has unveiled his annual summer playlist, opening this year’s selections with a tribute to the late Glen Hansard . The former president kicked off the list with Hansard’s “Song of Good Hope,” writing, “It starts with a song Michelle and I love by Glen Hansard, a great musician who passed tragically this week. Our hearts go out to his family.”

Elsewhere, Obama’s characteristically wide-ranging picks include contemporary tracks from The Strokes, Doechii and SZA, Noah Kahan, Vince Staples, Tyla and Zara Larsson, and Mumford & Sons and Hozier, alongside classics from David Bowie, The Beatles, Neil Young, Nina Simone, Johnny Cash, Marvin Gaye, A Tribe Called Quest, and Earth, Wind & Fire. He also apparently has Drake, Future, and Molly Santana’s “Ran to Atlanta” in rotation.

The playlist arrives shortly after Obama shared his 2026 summer reading list , continuing his beloved and longstanding tradition of recommending books and music to the public.

Here are some of the songs I've been listening to this summer. It starts with a song Michelle and I love by Glen Hansard, a great musician who passed tragically this week. Our hearts go out to his family. pic.twitter.com/3A1trYfXfx