Every month, I pick my favourite new songs (singles and non-singles) and make one of those old-fashioned CD mixes to jam to while driving downtown with my friends on the weekend.

Being a big fan of melodic and/or upbeat pop music, I usually include a few big Top 40 tunes, a lot of international and indie dance/pop tracks, and a few tracks released a month or even a year or two ago that I only discovered recently.

Here’s my mix for March ‘11. Additional tracks may be added later, since we’re just midway through the month:

“Till the World Ends” - Britney Spears

An obvious choice for a pop music lover. I also gush about the album here.

“Invading My Mind” - Jennifer Lopez

Just added this one! Parlaying the popularity won by her winsome persona from Idol into her pop music career, J.Lo fronts a bombastic club track immediately recognizable as a RedOne production.

“21st Century Girl” - Willow Smith

I don’t like it nearly as much as “Whip My Hair”, but I did find myself humming its chorus incessantly today.

“What a Feeling (Radio Edit)” - Alex Gaudino ft Kelly Rowland

Sounds like a winner. Looks like Kelly’s having better luck as a featured dance vocalist.

“Rolling in the Deep (DJ Johnny Lawson remix)” - Adele

Ballad-into-dance remixes are usually not my cup of tea (not that this song was originally a ballad), but this dance remix gets me booty-shaking and hollering.

“It’s Not Over” - Holy Ghost!

Listening to its parent album right after being accustomed to the hyper-processed Femme Fatale, it took me a few run-throughs to switch gears back to this set of less flashy, more old-school dance tunes. But now I do dig this track and most of the album.

“Youth Knows No Pain” - Lykke Li

I’ll gush about its parent album soon. This is a delightful, dark, boogie-woogie opener to Wounded Rhymes.

“Broken Record” - Katy B

Robyn made many of us dance and cry at the same time in 2010. Katy B does the same for me this year with this track. Can’t wait for the album!

“How to Make a Heart” - Bright Light Bright Light

This is just an all-out tearjerker (a tasteful one), and what a good cry it is. Lovely songwriting and production.

“Follow Me Home” - Killabite

The song: a bit cheesy, but way catchy and I love the beat. The video: a bit cheesy, but cute and queer-friendly.

“Stupid” - Databoy

Like its title indicates, the lyrics are pretty stupid, but the off-kilter hooks are cool, and I dig both the effects and the stuttering energy of the track.

“Unillusion” - Yelle

I’ll gush about this album soon too…I was not a Yelle fan the first time around, but man, I’m totally getting behind Safari Disco Club. What is with the ladies slapping that sophomore slump into lovely humps this year?

“Dream About Changing” - Sally Seltmann

This came out last year, but I just discovered it via iTunes recommendation. Great hooks, great vocals, and I totally love its girly, happy-go-lucky-ness.

“White Nights” - Oh Land

The track comes from an awesome EP and a subsequent album that is slightly less awesome, but still very enjoyable. I’m real glad Oh Land, who sounds like a poppier cross between Bjork and Fiona Apple,  is on the pop music scene.