The Music That Kept Me Listening x 2016 Edition
When I've had the same song/album on repeat for 24 hours with no intention of moving on.
Top album of the year lists are great for a few reasons: you get to scroll through a comprehensive (somewhat) compilation of all the good shit that was released within a year’s time all at once, they often remind you of the music you’ve long forgotten but not necessarily gotten tired of, in today’s music cycle it’s hard to keep up! And you can often come up on at least one release that totally missed your radar discovering a new favorite. Some lists, however can be digested with a grain of salt. When “best” is analyzed by numbers and industry math that hardly speaks to the actual depth and content of the music I tend to skim those lists and move on.
That, my friends, is why I’m not claiming to bring you a list of the best of anything. Instead what’s to follow is a pile of my favorite releases from 2016. Music that withstands listen after listen continuing to provide enjoyment, depth and feeling each time is music that becomes legendary. Sharing that music helps solidify it’s place as a classic, so I’m sharing with you what I loved in 2016.
Anti x Rihanna
Rihanna’s 8th studio album was only going to go one of two ways: incredibly dope or a complete fail. My ears and my spirit are grateful that this project took the road of the former. Rihanna’s always given us bad girl vibes either her nonchalant attitude published on social media or by crooning scandalous lyrics on our favorite tracks. This time around the music felt raw, not quite as perfect as before and gave us a reflection of ourselves in almost any mood. With beautiful, witty and sometimes fantasy laden lyrics over bad ass production the album unfolds stories of love and rejection that feel, well, real.
Lemonade x Beyonce
Incase you were in a coma, Beyonce one upped herself this year and dropped another critically acclaimed work of audio and visual art. This time there were whisperings that it was coming and the "Formation" video was gently placed into our laps on one fateful Saturday evening. It was followed up by an incredible Superbowl performance, topped with a commercial announcing her Formation World Tour. We were all out of breath. And that was before the album was released. Lemonade caused the world to pause on it's axis yet again as we all watched the film unfold on HBO in April. There was so much content to digest that I did what any same person would - I listened and watched on repeat for about two weeks straight. I still can’t tell you if my favorite thing about Lemonade is the visual or the album. Or if I’m more struck by Beyonce screaming the lyrics “Who the fuck do you think I is? You ain’t married to no average bitch boy.” or by beautiful imagery in the “Love Drought” video. My year actually reached it’s climax as I watched Beyonce splash water during her performance of “Freedom” live in Queens, NY seeing her on a World Tour stage for the very first time back in June. I have a feeling Lemonade’s themes and motifs will continue to unveil themselves and serve importance for black women well beyond 2016.
99% x Kaytranada
Prior to the release of 99% Kaytranada seemed to be more of a mythical creature who existed in the Soundcloud stratosphere. His music would orbit in and out and around but never quite felt tangible or whole. And that all came to an end for me the first time I pressed play and heard Craig David luring me into a daydream on “Got It Good” - the first track of the album that features any vocals. Try as hard as you want but I’m not even going to attempt putting a finger on Kaytranada’s “sound”. He has no specific sound but if there’s one thing he does well it’s blend noises and melodies into beautiful tracks that ride smoothly, almost floating and hit hard in the right places. As a whole, 99% offers so many unique elements that sometimes you may beg the question “do these even belong on the same album”? But with those instrumentals woven between Kay manages to stitch it all together into a body of work that can do anything from getting you through your morning routine to setting the mood for wine night. Is there anything you can’t do Kay? Oh and the feature’s list here is perfection: AlunaGeorge, The Internet, Phonte, Little Dragon, Anderson.Paak…okay. You got it.
Pho x Ari Lennox
Seven songs, that’s all Ari Lennox gave us when she released Pho this fall. But I’d be hard pressed to find another project as tightly wound together as this one. The whole thing seduces us into Ari’s world where Yuengling and Skittles with Crown Royal play important roles in her love stories. The first lady of J. Cole’s Dreamville Records has the voice of a soul singing angel, one who’s halo is a little crooked from putting it back on after hanging it up for the evening to sneak out for a night of debauchery. Her rich tones melt over tracks that sound like sound like classic Caddillac Records vocalists could have once lent their voices to them. Her range escalates quickly. Her songs beg to be played time and time again.
A Seat at the Table x Solange
The other night my roommate and I were in the living room, sipping tequila, when she randomly started to sing “Fall in your ways” and without direction I fell in with her finishing the line “so you can crumble”. As we continued singing I felt like crying. I needed that, those words. This is the opening line to Solange’s album from the song “Rise”. That moment brought to life what I’ve felt about this album for a while now - it’s timeless with messages that resonate so deeply and differently for everyone that we have no business even trying to decode them. Instead I’d just like to thank Solange for digging into her soul and writing the music we need to heal and being unapologetically black woman while doing it.
Malibu x Anderson.Paak
Malibu transcends any meaningless labels you can tack on to a creative work. It is soulful, it’s spiritual, it’s production feels timeless and classic and it’s two-step worthy. It’s all of these things, yes, but it’s so much more. The lyrics are blunt and truthful, artful without airy, useless metaphors. If you’re a lyrics person like myself you have had or are about to have a blast with this one. I felt a level of pride as if Anderson were a real cousin of mine when I realized that his leading single “Am I Wrong” had reached mainstream radio level. Insert crying emoji here. If you aren’t moved by any of the stories told on Malibu then I’d like to check your pulse.
Yes Lawd! x NxWorries
Every time I hear Anderson’s raspy tone holler “Yes Lawd!” my spirit tingles. If this album deserves an award for nothing else, it definitely deserves one for the amount of times the word bitch can be spewed in a way that feels like nothing but pure adoration. NxWorries is a collaboration group consisting of Anderson.Paak on vocals with production by Knowledge. The project end to end feels like smooth cognac, no ice. Pimp shit. Anderson lyrically unpacks relationships and stories of soul searching in a matter-of-fact tone that feels a lot like the gray realities most of us live within. Nothing’s perfect, but he’s trying and as hard as he may fight sometimes things just don’t go right. Yes Lawd! is the 2016 adaptation of the music your parents were knocking the night you were conceived. Promise that.
Twenty88 x Twenty88
Jhene Aiko and Big Sean, at the height of "are they a thing" whisperings, dropped a joint project under the moniker Twenty88. The eight track album musically illustrates a young couple's misadventures through rekindling an old flame, uncovering their dirt, admission of physical desire and concluding that no matter the circumstances they truly only want to be with each other. If nothing else, the album offers some epic sex playlist additions with "On The Way", "Push It" and "2 Minute Warning". Beyond that the dynamic of the guy and girl call and response type music is at it's peak here. Often we hear Sean tell a story one way and Jhene swoops in with her side leaving the listener torn as to whose team their on. Victory Lap: the two also created a 15 minute short film visually depicting the story of the characters on the album as a super-famous couple from the future with infidelity and jealously issues that transcend time and space.
Starboy X The Weeknd
Starboy is The Weeknd at the peak of pop perfection. For original Weeknd fans who relished in songs like "Thursday" this album is probably a little too sparkly. And for those who met The Weeknd as the guy who sings that 50 Shades of Gray song (Worth It), any track from the House Of Balloons era would likely creep them out. Starboy is filled with pop club party anthems like the title track and lead single as well as "False Alarm". Though he toys around with even brighter top lines than ever before you can trust in The Weeknd to bring you plenty of sex, coke lines and models who love both when it comes to the subject matter. A true gem of the project: when he revisit his MJ like notes and composition on "A Lonely Night".
Ology x Gallant
Not sure how I found this incredible body of work but after a few listens I'd tucked Gallant's first full length release away in my 2016 secret stash. His vocals initially had me thinking Maxwell had raised him. The lyrics grabbed me, tugged me, begged me to think a little more to unveil the messages and many layers of this album. My adoration for Gallant as an artist was solidified during his quick visit to the ESSENCE offices where I had the chance to chat with him, asked his favorite track on the album and he replied "Percogesic" which happens to be the one I play over and over again. On stage at Afro Punk he moved methodically through each track giving care to his notes and pulling the crowd in to his set. One question, Gallant, where have you been hiding?
“Awaken, My Love!” x Childish Gambino
Even as a Childish Gambino fan knowing that each of his albums has had a different sound I was not prepared for what he did with "Awaken, My Love!". I'm still taking it all in and analyzing the storylines. Much of the album's sound is borrowed from the likes of George Clinton and Parliment-Funkadelic, and even so it all sounds genuine and more like a nod to a classic era with a modern twist. "Redbone" is the song that did me in and should be slow-danced to at every house party from now until my generation gets to tell their kids about the night daddy and mama met.
