- We Got It From Here… Thank You 4 Your Service- A Tribe Called Quest
This album sounds as if it could fit between The Low End Theory and Midnight Marauders. 18 years after their last release this album transcends time to make it the most relevant album of my generation. Generations of people are brought together by the message of hope through all Tribe albums. Their music is more than music- It’s a message to the world that the voiceless refuse not to be heard.
- Blonde- Frank Ocean
We had no idea when Blonde would drop. Over a year after it’s expected release date, Blonde became a unique voice of solace. From hushed, dreamlike inspirations from the Beach Boy’s Pet Sounds to rewriting The Beatles “Here There and Everywhere” and turning it into “White Ferrari” Blonde has become a new classic.
- Malibu- Anderson .Paak
Malibu started off 2016 and became the standard for all albums to follow. Anderson .Paak incorporates all kinds of music ranging from 50’s soul, doo-wop, hip-hop and dance music. The albums sounds as if it is just one bug jam session where .Paak never seems to miss a beat.
- A Seat At The Table- Solange
Solange provide a grim 2016 with a shining beacon of positivity. She creates a sense of intimacy by singing of her own struggles and her families struggles of finding peace within their community, but it offers up a sort of inclusion to anyone who feels the same struggle. This album is beautiful ode to blackness and the struggle to a find identity within yourself.
- The Sun’s Tirade- Isaiah Rashad
This is an album where you could listen all the way through and each song blends perfectly together, or you could listen to each individual song by itself and you would still feel the rawness of emotion Rashad displays throughout the entire album. Isaiah Rashad is one of the most underrated members of the TDE group.
- 99.9%- Kaytranada
The Canadian producer has become one of the top artists of 2016. No one can produce a track like him. His sound uniquely captures essences of dance, punk, rock and hip-hop music all in one without sounding disjointed. His album, 99.9%, has an impressive lineup of features and an even more impressive sound that hasn’t been tapped into until now.
- untitled unmastered- Kendrick Lamar.
Is it an album?? Who cares it’s one of the best pieces of music of 2016. The songs on the album are all songs that didn’t make the cut from 2015 best album of the year, To Pimp A Butterfly. If you do something well enough though it can transcend rules and expectations. That’s just what Kendrick Lamar does, so album or not it still beats out “official” albums.
- In My Mind- BJ The Chicago Kid
This is my personal favorite album of 2016. BJ The Chicago Kid is the 2016 Marvin Gaye. The album is intimate, sexual without being vulgar and brought back the ohra of Marvin Gaye’s soulful ballads.
- Lemonade-Beyonce
Tell him, boy, bye. Beyoncé inspire, stuns and elevates with her sound and attitude on Lemonade. This became one of the best surprises of 2016. Lemonade is a work of art. The visual album becomes poetry in motion and takes us through a representation of her struggle with her relationship, identity and place in the world.
- Telefone- Noname
This is the most poetic album of 2016. Noname puts the poetry back into songwriting by blending a poets grace and a rappers message through singing lullaby like and soft-spoken verses. It’s truly an album that tells a story, and a sotry that’s worth listening to.
- 4 Your Eyez Only- J. Cole
Once again Cole proves he is one of the best in the game right now. He shows his softer side on his new album. He really put himself and his range of emotions on his album and taking a risk by showing his vulnerability to love and his own emotions. The risk paid off. Born Sinner will always be my favorite J. Cole album, but this one takes a close second.
- The Colour in Anything- James Blake
Blake creates a haunting production of lost love and heartbreak. The album fits perfectly with Blake’s other previous releases with new variations of beats and sounds that establish him as a true innovator.
- Yes Lawd!- NxWorries
Anderson .Paak and Knxwledge team up to bring us an album we didn’t know we neded. It sounds almost unfinished with fuzz and retro sounding beats as if they were sampled off of your dad’s vinyl collection. It’s funky, sensual and current.
- Konnichiwa- Skepta
Skepta brings us a new kind of rap- blunt, in your face and icorporates techno beats with a mix a classic hip-hop beats. He brings grime music to mainstream hip-hop and shows what England has to offer when it comes to rap music.
- Coloring Book-Chance the Rapper
When it comes to music like this—personable, defying norms while respecting them, and forcing a genre to reflect on it’s past—it forces the drive for great music for the future. This is an ultralight beam; it’s a God dream.
- Bucket List Project- Saba
Bucket List Project brings the classic idea of a bucket list to life, showing the innovative and creative mind of Saba. The album gives a positive narrative of Saba and others that live in Chicago with a musicality that shows off jazzy undertones and classic R&B vibes incorporated with current hip-hop trends. Like Solange, Saba gives us a personal narrative that anyone can relate to. We will definitely hear more great things from Saba.
- Prima Donna- Vince Staples
In this album the sounds live up to the ideas Staples raps about. With guests such as Andre 3000, A$AP Rocky and James Blake, Staples creates a unique sound that no other rapper can replicate right now.
- Blank Face- Schoolboy Q
With each album Q releases his sound and direction become clearer to who he is as an artist. On Blank Face Q explores past memories of his hometown and friends and takes an ominous look at the future ahead of him. It’s classic gangbanging Q with a more sophisticated, clear sound.
- Stoney- Post Malone
Malone’s debut album proves he’s not just a rapper. he’s an artist who truly cares about all kinds of different sounds music has to offer. This album is so diverse in sound you can bump songs like “Money Made Me Do It” at your next party, or shed a few tears to “Feeling Whitney” which is one of the most beautiful songs of 2016.
- Northern Lights- Allen Kingdom
Kingdom brings a new voice to hip-hop by blending tribal, pop, jazz and hip-hop music. He is one of my favorite finds of 2016 and hopefully we’ll hear more from him.