King Charles III, a classical music fan who has studied the cello, piano and trumpet, released an eclectic playlist on Monday featuring 17 artists, including Beyoncé, Bob Marley and Grace Jones.
Music “has that remarkable ability to bring happy memories flooding back from the deepest recesses of our memory, to comfort us in times of sadness, and to take us to distant places,” Charles said in a podcast on Apple Music, “The King’s Music Room,” released in conjunction with the playlist.
Charles, who as the British monarch is head of the Commonwealth, a club of 56 nations that were mostly part of the British Empire, put out the playlist to mark Commonwealth Day, celebrated on the second Monday in March with events across member countries.
The king, 76, may have had some help in choosing the songs from Errollyn Wallen, a Belize-born artist who was last year appointed Master of the King’s Music. The honorary role was created during the reign of King Charles I in the 17th century.
Here are some of the king’s song choices.
Beyoncé, “Crazy in Love”
While the playlist primarily featured artists from the Commonwealth, he included a few from outside the group, citing a personal connection to their music. Beyoncé made the cut.
Daddy Lumba, “Mpempem Do Me”
In the podcast, recorded at Buckingham Palace, the king recalled a 2018 visit to Ghana, a Commonwealth nation, where he danced to the music of Ghanaian singer Daddy Lumba.
Miriam Makeba, “The Click Song”
The South African singer Miriam Makeba, widely known as “Mama Africa,” was a prominent opponent of apartheid. “I shan’t try too much to pronounce the title, as it requires a great deal of practice,” Charles said of her 1960s hit “Qongqothwane,” known in English as “The Click Song.”
Diana Ross, “Upside Down”
“When I was much younger, it was absolutely impossible not to get up and dance when it was played,” King Charles said of Ms. Ross’s 1980 song. “So, I wonder if I can still just manage it?”
Kylie Minogue, “The Loco-Motion”
Ms. Minogue came to St. James’s Palace to perform this song in 2012. “This is music for dancing,” Charles said of the Australian singer’s rendition of the song, written by Carole King and Gerry Goffin. “It has that infectious energy which makes it, I find, incredibly hard to sit still.”
