Top folk tunes and playlists on Spotify

Lost in the Woods

This playlist describes itself as ‘Indie folk songs to help your worries get lost in the woods’. If you’re feeling stressed out and you’re looking for something you can slap on in the background without worrying about skipping through a million songs until you find the right one, this playlist might be the one for you.

It's packed full of gentle guitar chords and sweet vocalists, racking up a total of 70 lovely songs. With artists such as Charlie Cunningham and Mighty Oaks gracing the list, you’re guaranteed to feel immediately chilled out.

Fresh Folk

Celebrating the indie folk, roots and singer-songwriter scene, this playlist refreshes every seven days, ensuring that there’s always something new for you to treat your ears to.

Spotify playlists are a great way to introduce yourself to new artists, both popular and unknown, and this playlist is no exception. This week’s mix contains popular artists such as First Aid Kit and Iron & Wine, as well as a handful of singers you’re less likely to hear on mainstream radio, like Waxahatchee, Fenne Lily, and The Tallest Man on Earth.

Southern Gothic

Spotify classes this playlist as ‘Deep, dark and dramatic. Roots rock, folk and Americana – with a gothic soul’.

Southern Gothic, sometimes known as Gothic Americana or Dark Country, is a specific genre of music characterised by a fusion of alternative rock and classic country and folk. The genre shares thematic connections with the Southern Gothic genre of literature.

Songs often examine themes of poverty, criminal behaviour, religious imagery, death, ghosts, family, lost love, alcohol, murder, the devil and betrayal. Some of the artists featured on this playlist include The Handsome Family, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Hozier and Delta Rae, who are all brilliant artists with a certain unsettling folk tone to their music.

If you’re a fan of the eerie American Deep South aesthetic, it’s a perfect playlist to have in your arsenal.

Essential Folk

When it comes to folk music, you can never go wrong with the classics. This playlist is a collection of iconic and unforgettable tracks from the height of the folk revival to the rise of the folk-rock era, encompassing a wide range of artists from the last few decades.

Strong female vocalists like Dolly Parton and Joni Mitchell are mixed in with male folk heroes such as Bob Dylan and Van Morrison in this 94-track playlist, keeping you stocked up on music for at least a day or two.