A Memorial Day 2024 Cookout Playlist Your Whole Black Family Will Love

It’s hard to say which one of Michael Jackson’s albums was his best, but Off the Wall is definitely up there. And “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough” is one of the funkiest tracks of all.

Zhané’s hit “Hey Mr. DJ” is song that will make everyone want to move.

If you’re looking for a song that will get Grandma out of her seat, Marvin Gaye’s “Got to Give it Up” is it. But be warned, if you put this song on, someone will start the electric slide.

At almost seven minutes long, Roy Ayers’ funky single “Running Away” is just the song you need to burn off those cookout calories.

Frankie Beverly and Maze’s 1981 hit “Before I Let Go” is the unofficial barbecue/family reunion anthem. So it has to have a place on your cookout playlist.

Even if you weren’t around in the summer of 1979 when Slave’s hit “Just a Touch of Love” came out, you’ll find it hard not to dance to the song’s insane baseline.

Ok, so Tina Marie wasn’t Black. But she definitely deserves an invitation to the cookout. Her hit “Square Biz” still goes hard over 40 years after its 1980 release. She even raps on the track!

Lucy Pearl was a supergroup made up of former EnVogue member Dawn Robinson, Toni! Tony! Toné! alum Raphael Saadiq and Ali Shaheed Muhammad of A Tribe Called Quest. Their 2000 single “Dance Tonight” from the Love and Basketball soundtrack was their biggest hit.

There’s a reason why The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is on most music lovers’ all-time favorite album lists. The album’s lead single, “Doo Wop (That Thing)“ is a big one.

Beyoncé’s “Get Me Bodied” is the perfect song to get you ready for all of your Memorial Day weekend parties.

Positive Force didn’t have a lot of hits, but they’ll always be remembered for their funk classic “We Got The Funk,” released on Sugarhill Records in 1979.

The sample of Chic’s 1978 classic “Chic Cheer” and Faith Evans’ vocals make her 1998 hit “Love Like This” one of the hottest R&B tracks of all time.

If your Memorial Day cookout is a family affair, you have to play Mary J. Blige’s hit for all of your aunties, cousins and play cousins.

You may remember him for “Caribbean Queen,” but “Nights (Feel Like Getting Down)“ is arguably one of Billy Ocean’s most danceable tracks.

Everybody knows that after the party it’s the after party. And there’s no better song to get you hyped for whatever is next than Koffee Brown’s 2001 hit.