The Killers, Nicki Minaj, Taylor Swift and 'Cotton Eye Joe': How music inspires FSU's Emma Clothier

Walking to class playlist. Homework playlist. Pre-match hype playlist.

You name it, Emma Clothier probably has a Spotify playlist for the activity.

For Clothier, music is a huge part of her day-to-day routine and it spills into her Florida State volleyball career.

Clothier played in her 100th career match at Boston College on Oct. 29. On Friday, she will be honored for senior night ahead of a match against Clemson at 8 p.m. at Tully Gym.

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"It's crazy to think that I got to triple-digits (in career matches)," Clothier told the Democrat. "I think my coach mentioned it to me on the sideline right before we were doing announcements for Boston College, 'Hey, congrats on the 100,' and I was like, 'Oh my gosh, thank you.' That kind of flew by. It's crazy to think that."

Clothier, along with Lauryn Burrows, Melanie Cuervo, Andjelija Draskovic, Alejandra Perez and Emily Ryan, will be honored on senior night. Burrows, Clothier and Draskovic will still have one year of eligibility remaining due to a COVID season.

Clothier has played in every match for the Seminoles since she arrived on campus, missing only four sets. She currently is 12th all-time in Florida State history in starts made in a career with 98.

"Emma, she's been great for four years,” FSU head coach Chris Poole told the Democrat. “She is very mature on and off the court. She was a player that played at a very high level in high school and Club program in Texas. She won a national championship (in club) and won a state championship (in high school)."

"We were just really fortunate to get her. She's a great role model. Great student. Great person, on and off the court. And then she wants to win. She's a fighter when she plays and has given us everything she can to be successful.”

Clothier spoke to the Democrat on how music has shaped her life, including her volleyball career.

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The Killers concert

Clothier's love for music began before her first concert. But her love of music, especially the American rock band The Killers, was amplified by attending her first concert with her sister.

"For my 16th or 17th birthday, my sister took me to my first concert ever," Clothier said. "It was The Killers concert. She had always liked them and I like them too, but I just didn't really get into them. And I went to that concert. It was amazing. So then I just started listening to The Killers religiously, just like every day, like looking for new songs and stuff."

"It was crazy. We were in the pit and it was there. It was the 'Wonderful Wonderful World Tour.' (They played) the good songs, like 'Mr. Brightside' and 'When You Were Young.' All those songs came on, and it was just like, wow, this is an incredible experience.

"Brandon Flowers, who is the lead singer, he's an amazing performer. So, that was really awesome to see."

Her favorite song from The Killers: "Run for Cover" from the Wonderful Wonderful album.

Not only did the concert build her love for music, but it also created a bond with her sister.

"My sister is a really, really fun person to go to concerts with," Clothier said.

Listening to The Killers opened the door for Clothier to listen to more rock music.

"While I was looking at The Killers, I got into The 1975 and Arctic Monkeys," she said. "So, it kind of just stemmed from my favorite band ever."

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Playlists for everything

No matter what Clothier is doing, especially since she arrived at FSU, she has music on in the background, usually to set the mood.

Whether that's relaxing music to soothe her while she does homework or its loud, rap music to get her pumped for a volleyball match.

"I'm a creature of habit," Clothier said. "So, I do listen to kind of the same artists, but I always have music on whether I'm doing homework in my room or walking to class. It's on at all times."

The "chiller" playlist, usually listened to while doing homework, includes artists and bands like Young the Giant, Lord Huron, Leon Bridges and Harry Styles.

Kings of Leon, Arctic Monkeys and Coldplay are included in her "walk to class" playlist.

"I have one huge bonus, one for my Alternative Rock Hall of Fame," she said. "That's like The Killers, Foster the People, The Red Hot Chili Peppers. I actually have a playlist dedicated to Bad Bunny."

The pregame music stems away from her love of rock music, to another genre: rap.

The playlist for pregame includes artists like Kendrick Lamar, Kanye West and Nicki Minaj.

About an hour before practice, West's "Monster" is her go-to hype song. Then there are five songs she queues up, listening to in order for 30 minutes before a match.

"So the first one 'I'm not Goin''' with Gucci Mane and Kevin Gates; "E-ER" by DJ Scheme, Ski Mask and Lil Yachty; "TOES" by DaBaby and Lil Baby; "DNI" by Kendrick Lamar and then "Did It on’em'" by Nicki Minaj.

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Cotton Eye Joe tradition and other pregame routines

As someone who ix a creature of habit, Clothier does have some pregame superstitions she follows beyond her musical playlists.

One of them involves the entire team.

"Between the second and the third sets we dance to 'Cotton Eye Joe,'" Clothier said. "That is now our pregame superstition, to do 'Cotton Eye Joe' in the locker room. That's something very specifically that we do."

Poole said his team is one of the more energetic teams he's coached and likes to have fun.

"They love that they love dancing together," Poole said. "It's a group that is really, really close off the court. They are all good friends. They get along really well together. They trust each other. And I think that as we get that same chemistry built on the court with our play, I think it's a team that could be really good and dangerous."

For Clothier, the pregame rituals don't end with the team or the earlier music.

"I always chew gum in warm ups. It has to be spearmint," she said. "Right shoe goes on first. That's another one of those weird superstitions.

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Midnights Mayhem with Taylor Swift

While the majority of the playlists go from classic to modern rock and involve different rap when it comes to pregame, Clothier does have a soft spot for another popular artist.

"This is kind of a 180 but I really like Taylor Swift," Clothier said. "She just came out with a new album."

Her favorite song from Swift's "Midnights" album is "Lavender Haze." But her favorite song from her collection remains, "All Too Well (10-minute version) (Taylor's Version)."

Outside of her music, there's another reason Clothier admires Swift.

"I just think that she's always trying to put out good energy into the world," Clothie said. "I think that she's a very powerful strong woman, which I think is really good for girls of any age to see. She's a trailblazer in her industry. So I like her a lot."

Reach Ehsan Kassim at ekassim@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter at @Ehsan_Kassim. You can also follow our coverage on Facebook (NoleSports) and Instagram (tlhnolesports).

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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Seminole volleyball: Emma Clothier has musical playlists for everything