Friday Five : ‘frī-(,)dā,-dē ‘fīv : On the sixth day of every week, I hit the shuffle button on my iTunes, then share the first five tracks and thought for each track. Sometimes there is a playlist involved, occasionally we’ll have a guest, but most of the time it’s just me. The rest is up to you, our friends and readers! Fire up your media player of choice and share the first five random track of your shuffle in the comments.

The Five:

“Push It” by Salt-N-Pepa (from The Hip Hop Box, 2004)

What ever happened to Hurby “Luv Bug” Azor?

“Seeing Things” by The Black Crowes (from Shake Your Money Maker, 1990)

Any group that can successfully cop the soul and emotion—not to mention the chord progression—of Otis’ “I’ve Got Dreams to Remember,” and manage to do it well? Well, shit … they can do no wrong in my book. I don’t recall hearing this on the radio, despite it being a single.

“Love Is” by Chrisette Michelle (from I Am, 2007)

A perfectly simple declaration of love. The mainstream is still sleeping on Chrisette Michelle, which boggles my mind. She’s got jazz chops for days with the ability to rock a mainstream R&B track with the rest of them.

“Through Glass” by Amy Petty (from House of Doors, 2010)

One of my favorite records of last year, this song still rocks me to my core.

“Beat It” by Michael Jackson (from Number Ones, 2003)

Tomorrow is the second anniversary of Michael’s passing. It’s strange to think that we live in a world without Michael Jackson. A figure that had been omnipresent—for better, or for worse—in all of our lives for the better part of the last 35 years, it is still odd to realize he’s gone. Tomorrow I’ll undoubtedly pull out the entire catalog and hit the shuffle button, letting fate lead me through his incredible discography.

What’s on your shuffle today?