Three straight hours of music released in 2025—the best of the best. Lots of my picks and lots of yours! Thanks to everyone that left a message on the In The Groove hotline with your picks; they were absolutely lovely and mixed right in with the show!

Check the playlist below and listen to the episode for two weeks after it airs using the player above.

In The Groove with Ryan Patrick Hooper playlist for December 11, 2025

• “Save Me” – Emma-Jean Thackray

• “Si Chomphu” – Salin

• “SNC” – DARKSIDE

• “YUKON” – Justin Bieber

• “Found A Light (Beale Street)” – BADBADNOTGOOD & V.C.R

• “S.O.T.H.” – Sault

• “Be A Witness” – Lady Wray

• “Sad Makeup” – Yukimi

• “What It Gave Me” – Jordan Rakei & Jalen Ngonda

• “Constellation” – The Circling Sun

• “Puaj” – Salin

• “Alone (Four Tet Remix)” – The Cure

• “Angles Mortz” – Nightbus

• “Listen2me” – Foxwarren

• “The World’s Biggest Paving Slab (Daniel Avery Remix)” – English Teacher

• “Hit My Head All Day” – Dry Cleaning

• “Belong To You” – Cut Copy & Kate Bollinger

• “I’m Not Ready For The Change” – Nation of Language

• “Mercury” – Automatic

• “You got time and I got money” – Smerz

• “Lo Life” – Antibalas

• “Treat Yourself” – Franc Moody

• “Nobody New” – The Marias

• “Garden” – Maria Somerville

• “To Be A Rose” – Jenny Hval

• “Power of the Moon” – Ezra Furman

• “Sugar in the Tank” – Julien Baker & TORRES

• “Elderberry Wine” – Wednesday

• “..THUS IS WHY ( I DON’T SPRING 4 LOVE )” – SAYA GRAY

• “It’s A Mirror” – Perfume Genius

• “Elegantly Wasted (feat. Leon Bridges)” – Hermanos Gutiérrez

• “Waves” – ISTA

• “Lecker Song” – Yin Yin

• “Stone Shadow” – Glyders

• “Take My Hand” – El Michels Affair & Rahsaan Roland Kirk 

Friday, Dec. 12, 2025

We played three more hours of your top songs and mine on Friday to officially kick off the “Best Of” week of listening. 

Follow along with what our hosts are highlighting as the defining tunes of this year and listen to all of our picks in one place on the Best Of 2025: The WDET Playlist page. 

Check the playlist below and listen to the episode for two weeks after it airs using the player above.

In The Groove with Ryan Patrick Hooper playlist for December 12, 2025

• “GOOD LUCK” – KAYTRANADA

• “Another Baby!” – Dijon

• “Rush” – Gerald Clayton

• “Red Moon” – Tom Misch

• “Survivor” – Chronixx

• “Carry Me Away” – El Michels Affair & Norah Jones

• “Heaven” – Yeek

• “SPIDERS” – Lola Young

• “SOS” – Jadu Heart

• “Believer” – Annahstasia

• “Left For Tomorrow” – Perfume Genius

• “Better” – SPRINTS

• “Man Made Of Meat” – Viagra Boys

• “High Vibrations” – Theo Croker, Malaya & D’LEAU

• “Sad Piano House” – Daphni

• “Babystar” – Matthew Herbert & Momoko Gill

• “Eye To Eye (Live From The Royal Albert Hall)” – Jordan Rakei

• “The Seize” – Jordan Rakei

• “N8 Medley (Live at Audio Gold)” – Lawne

• “Nubian Lady” – Don Was

• “Dumb Feeling” – Mei Semones

• “Animaru” – Mei Semones

• “Need To Run” – Matthew Herbert & Momoko Gill

• “Invocation (feat. Onipa, Jupiter & Okwess, Otim Alpha, Damon Albarn & Joan as Police Woman)” – Africa Express

• “MISK” – Roundabout

• “DON’T LISTEN” – corto.alto

• “Coltrane (Crooked Man Remix)” – Cymande

• “Ibiza” – Butcher Brown

• “Road To Nowhere” – Roge

• “Boste” – Oreglo

• “Uno Punto Uno” – Women In Jazz & Rosa Brunello

• “SPOTTIEOTTIEDOPALISCIOUS” – Kassa Overall

• “2close2farr” – Momoko Gill

• “All That We Were” – Georgie Sweet

 

Listen to In the Groove with host Ryan Patrick Hooper weekdays from noon-3 p.m. ET on 101.9 WDET or stream on-demand at wdet.org.

Celebrating the birthday of Detroit jazz legend Dr. Donald Byrd, plus the 60th anniversary of “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” which gave us the greatest Christmas music of all time via Vince Guaraldi Trio (really loved this article giving background to how this special came together, thanks to Cola-Cola and sparse jazz). On top of all that, new music from Momoko Gill, Georgie Sweet, Gerald Clayton, Adrian Sherwood, SOYUZ and more.

Check the playlist below and listen to the episode for two weeks after it airs using the player above.

In The Groove with Ryan Patrick Hooper playlist for December 9, 2025

• “2close2farr” – Momoko Gill
• “All That We Were” – Georgie Sweet
• “Into Harmony (feat. Julia Biel)” – Hector Plimmer
• “Cast Your Fate to the Wind” – Vince Guaraldi Trio
• “Linus and Lucy” – Vince Guaraldi Trio
• “Cinnamon Sugar” – Gerald Clayton
• “Garden of Inspiration” – Adrian Sherwood, African Head Charge & Speakers Corner Quartet
• “Coltrane (Crooked Man Remix)” – Cymande
• “Not Dead Yet” – Lord Huron
• “I’d Have To Be Crazy” – Willie Nelson
• “A Bowl And A Pudding” – Wilco
• “Across The Universe” – Fiona Apple
• “Foolish Fool” – Dee Dee Warrick
• “Tomorrow (feat. Raheem DeVaughn)” – The Roots
• “17 Days (Piano & a Microphone 1983 Version)” – Prince
• “Alien (Hold On to Your Dreams)” – Gil Scott Heron
• “Billy Jack” – Curtis Mayfield
• “Someone I Know” – Margo Guryan
• “So Nice (Summer Samba) [Azari & III Remix]” – Astrud Gilberto & Walter Wanderley Trio
• “Roller Coaster” – Brijean
• “Closer” – Maria Chiara Argirò
• “Road To Self (KO)” – Kamasi Washington
• “Cristo Redentor” – Donald Byrd
• “Wind Parade” – Donald Byrd
• “Black Byrd” – Donald Byrd
• “P7 Blues” – SOYUZ
• “Plasty” – LL Burns
• “Canopy” – Resavoir & Matt Gold
• “I Couldn’t Love You More (Jam Master’s Deep Rework)” – Sade
• “Rush” – Gerald Clayton
• “Xoxoxo” – corto.alto
• “My Little Drum” – Vince Guaraldi Trio
• “Skating” – Vince Guaraldi Trio

Listen to In the Groove with host Ryan Patrick Hooper weekdays from noon-3 p.m. ET on 101.9 WDET or stream on-demand at wdet.org.