Lo-Fi Chill

In the late 1910s, the French composer Erik Satie came up with a concept he called “furniture music”—sounds designed more for passive listening than active engagement. It’s a useful idea in thinking about the history of ambient music in general, but it feels especially applicable to the wave of lo-fi/chill-hop that has washed over the digital world 100 years later: soundtracks for studying, reading, resting, cooking or whatever; more a sonic companion than a point of focus. With that, here’s a playlist of low-key, hip-hop-influenced beats to keep you company, whatever the errand—the furniture music for the 2020s. Our editors update picks here regularly, so if you hear something you like, add it to your library.