The Essential Holiday Gift Guide For The Pop Music Lover In Your Life

Official Stores Of Hayley Kiyoko, Harry Styles, And Kacey Musgraves

Pop music obsessives can be especially hard to shop for. What do you get the music lover who doesn’t care about building a vinyl collection, who has everything they need to enjoy music with a Spotify subscription and some comfortable going-out sneakers? What do you get the person who has everything — who dropped $135 on a fleece sweatshirt just because Harry Styles wore it, and who scored their Ariana tickets the second the first Sweetener World Tour presale opened up?

Pop music lovers come in all shapes and sizes. Some of us are dedicated stans who’d sleep for a week on the sidewalk to catch barricade at a 1975 concert, and some of us love a collectible as much as any rock music fan. Some of us live in merch, and some of us prefer to put our keepsakes on a shelf or light them on fire (more on that later).

This list should cover all the basics. From home goods to gift cards, from rainbow t-shirts to rainbow flags, hopefully, this gift guide sparks your inspiration and helps you find the perfect gift for the pop music enthusiast in your life. What do you get the pop music lover who loves everything? Look no further.

StubHub Gift Card

StubHub

Price point: $50-$1000

There is no more exhausting endeavor than getting tickets for a major pop concert. I just sat through half a dozen presales trying to get tickets to see Shawn Mendes in Toronto, and I still couldn’t come up with anything in the section I wanted. Ticket-buying for these big arena and stadium shows is a bloodbath, and unless you’re a trained ticket wizard yourself, I’d advise against buying them for someone else.

Avoid the hassle altogether and get your pop music lover a gift card to StubHub. If your music lover is looking to attend a major pop concert, chances are scalpers already snapped up the best tickets, anyway. StubHub gives them the flexibility of choosing what show they want to go to, the price point, and where to sit. StubHub’s customer service is great, so even if they’re unlucky and get some scammed tickets, they’ll be replaced with legit tickets. I hate getting most gift cards, but the flexibility of this one is actually a godsend. You can also do an eGift card to save a tree! Win for your pop lover, win for you, win for environmental conservation.

Ariana Grande ‘God Is A Woman’ Crewneck

Ariana Grande official store

Price point: $60

Sweetener is one of the best albums of the year, and Ariana Grande’s merch this year is just as great. Some merch is printed on cheap cotton, but I can attest that this stuff is really nice. (I’ve got the “No Tears Left To Cry” sweatshirt and I don’t think I’ve taken it off since it came in the mail.) Ariana’s “God Is A Woman” crewneck is hand-dyed, so each one is a little different, but the pink, purple, and blue colors are striking. The “No Tears Left To Cry” sweatshirt has already sold out, and this one probably will soon, too — so grab one while you can. As a bonus, this one will come with a copy of the album.

Kacey Musgraves Rainbow T-Shirt

Kacey Musgraves Official Store

Price point: $29.99

Kill two birds with one stone with this gift. Commemorate Kacey Musgraves’ brilliant album Golden Hour and one of its standout songs, “Rainbow,” with this vintage-inspired ringer tee. Again, the fabric on this one is super nice and soft, and the colors are gorgeous. Also, it doesn’t hurt that Harry Styles also owns this shirt. Legends support legends.

Some Nice Speakers

Amazon

Price point: $22-$550

Your pop-loving loved one is probably always playing you new music. If they don’t have a nice speaker, this could be a great investment, giving them the flexibility of playing either from a vinyl collection, downloaded music, or streaming. For some selections at every price point, check out our own Derrick Rossignol’s recommendations.

Dirty Computer Color Vinyl

Janelle Monáe Official Store

Price point: $29.99

If your pop music lover is a vinyl collector, the re-pressing of Janelle Monáe’s triumphant Dirty Computer is a must-have. Pressed on two sunny, stunning yellow discs, this limited edition record also features a lenticular cover that animates when you move it. Dirty Computer is an album every collector should have, and your pop-loving loved one will brag about having this pressing for decades to come.

Hayley Kiyoko #20GayTeen Flag

Hayley Kiyoko Official Store

Price point: $21.25

Don’t listen to Bobby Berk — pride flags are, in fact, decor. 2018 may be drawing to a close, but you can celebrate this monumental year for queer pop musicians with a #20GayTeen flag. It’s technically Hayley Kiyoko merch, but it also doubles as a keepsake for Troye Sivan, King Princess, Janelle Monáe, Harry Styles, and the dozens of other musicians who let their flags fly this year.

Tickets To Governor’s Ball And/Or Coachella

Governor

Price point: Variable depending what type of ticket/pass you purchase

I’m breaking my own “don’t buy concert tickets for other people” rule here, but these festivals are sure bets this year. The lineups for New York and California’s biggest festivals of the season haven’t been announced yet, but you can scroll through Reddit for some pretty solid predictions of what pop stars might grace the stages this year. And if their lack of New York and California dates is any indication, The 1975 might be playing some big festival stages this summer.

Florence And The Machine High As Hope Bespoke Box Set

Florence And The Machine Official Store

Price point: $80

This High As Hope box set is one of the pricier items on this list, but your witchy pop lover friend will surely love this collectible. The set comes with two beautiful floral printed picture discs, a set of Florence tarot cards, a 64-page picture book full of exclusive photos of Florence’s tour, and a cover featuring new art. This is a stunning collectible, and these colorful picture discs will look gorgeous spinning on your friend’s record player.

Doc Martens

Doc Martens

Price point: $140

Depending on how serious your pop-loving friend is about concert-going, your best bet might be to get them some practical gear. There are some massive tours coming up this year — Ariana Grande‘s dedicated stans will surely line up outside those venues for a week or more, and if any of the One Direction boys announce a new solo tour, it’s truly over for our wallets. A good, sturdy pair of shoes could be a great investment for your pop-obsessed loved one. I’ve got a pair of Doc Martens 1460s that have taken me everywhere from the pit at a Jeff Rosenstock show to a whole day in the 90-degree heat, standing in the mud waiting for a Shawn Mendes festival set. Even if your friend isn’t the kind of person who regularly camps out for shows, Docs are comfortable for dancing and standing for long periods of time, and they’re gender neutral, which is always a bonus.

Harry Styles Polaroid Mug

Harry Styles Official Store

Price point: $14.95

This is the most inexpensive item on the list, but that doesn’t mean it’s a throwaway. Harry Styles had some of my favorite merch this year — t-shirts with a massive close-up on his face, looking at the camera with such intense ecstasy that it feels inappropriate wearing the shirt in public, sweatshirts embroidered with iconic lines from his songs. The “Sign Of The Times” crewneck isn’t available online, but your pop-loving friend will surely love a mug featuring a photo of the One Direction heartthrob wearing a towel and tall socks. It’s a great gift whether or not your loved one likes Harry Styles’ music. I might get a set of them for my parents.

Post Malone X Crocs

Crocs

Price point: $59.99

After his first collection with Crocs sold out, Posty‘s second collaboration with Crocs dropped on Tuesday, and luckily, they sent me over a pair so I could try them for myself. The shoes, which retail for $60, feature a custom barbed wire design, and come with six custom Post Malone Jibbitz, in an eye-catching yellow color. If you weren’t lucky enough to grab a pair before they sold out (just ten minutes after the collaboration dropped), keep your eyes peeled on eBay for this edition.

Niall Horan Flicker Vanilla Scented Candle

Niall Horan Official Store

Price point: $30

With an album called Flicker, I’m surprised it took Niall Horan this long to add a candle to his merch store. Just in time for the holidays, the former One Direction singer is selling a vanilla scented candle. The glass is emblazoned with Horan’s ‘NH’ logo and some lyrics to his song “Flicker.” The candle, which was available for pre-order earlier this week, appears to be sold out for now, but you can sign up for an alert when it’s restocked. (Which seems likely, given how close we are to the holidays and how popular the item is.) Compared to some of the other items on this list, this one might not last as long as some of the other keepsakes. But, like the love Horan sings about on Flicker, it’s not any less valuable because it came to an end. “And I remember the magic electricity…”

As an Amazon Associate Uproxx may earn commission on qualifying purchases. Crocs supplied Uproxx with sample products for us to review.

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