25. Westside Gunn - 10
Review
10 likely isn’t Westside Gunn’s best project, but it’s my favorite project of his! It’s so easy to listen to, even though there are 20 features on a dozen songs. The production is full of classic Griselda-type beats, and even the beats from people like Swizz Beatz still fit their sound well. Westside's rapping is slightly improved on here, but his curating ability is still easily the best thing he does. He can have underground rappers most people have never heard of be on a track with some of the most legendary rappers of all time and still have it work. 10 once again shows why Westside Gunn has the influence and name recognition that he has.
Favorite Moment: Rome Streetz’s verse on “BDP”
Selling Point: The Avengers movies, but for hip hop, and it’s actually great
24. Vince Staples - Ramona Park Broke My Heart
Review
Even after sitting with it for a while, Ramona Park Broke My Heart is far from my favorite Vince Staples album, but Vince’s catalog is so strong that even an average album for him is better than 90% of his peers. This album has bigger hits than most of his previous ones, as evident by the fact that I’ve seen his car commercial probably a hundred times at this point. The songwriting on here is more detailed than his self-titled album, even though that is sometimes a detriment. Even though this is his longest project in 7 years, it still never feels like a slog to get through. This project still has that melancholic west coast hip hop vibe that Vince has mastered at this point. I don’t think Vince will ever miss at this point.
Favorite Moment: The transition into Lil Baby’s verse on “East Point Prayer”
Selling Point: Melancholic, thoughtful, and necessary west coast hip hop
23. Denzel Curry - Melt My Eyez See Your Future
Review
Denzel’s introspective opus shows him taking a different energy level and even if it’s not necessarily the complete album of his that I would go to first, it’s probably his best work so far! The best songs on here are easily the best of his career, whether it’s the banger “Walkin” or the contemplative intro, “Melt Session #1”. He toys with everything from boom-bap to experimental hip hop on here, but everything is brought together by Denzel’s powerful voice and rhymes. Melt My Eyez See Your Future is Denzel going in the right direction once again!
Favorite Moment: The beat switch in the middle of “Walkin”
Selling Point: A space-jazz epic on what Denzel has been through
22. Nas - King’s Disease III
Review
Nas is on yet another legendary run of albums, and it could arguably be his greatest run yet! King’s Disease III gives Nas four quality albums released since 2020 with Hit-Boy that are all considered great. Heck, the worst album out of these four still won a Grammy for the best hip-hop album of the year. This project has Nas going without features for the first time in his career, but it still ends up working wonderfully. I’m not sure if they’ll continue to make music together, but this is easily one of the greatest rapper-producer duos we’ve seen in a long time. I'll be around if they end up making one more album together or a dozen more albums together.
Favorite Moment: The beat switch on “Michael & Quincy”
Selling Point: One of the greatest rappers of all-time aging gracefully
21. Mavi - Laughing So Hard It Hurts
Review
Laughing So Hard It Hurts has filled the spot that most of the Chicago artists have gone away from. This project is full of soulful hip hop that is simultaneously upbeat sounding, but is actually about a variety of depressing subject matters. It fits the same feeling that a classic Noname project would give off, but Mavi is still unique enough for it to work. A song like “My Good Ghosts” shows this perfectly. The production has an uplifting soul sample, and Mavi’s vocal tone indicates that it should be a positive tune, but instead he’s talking about people that have left him and how it causes him to drink and smoke the pain away, but it doesn’t leave. It sounds more depressing than it feels. This project really does feel like a healing experience, and it always feels rejuvenating when I listen to it.
Favorite Moment: The refrain of “My Good Ghosts”
Selling Point: Soulful, healing hip hop about the harder parts of life
20. FKA twigs - Caprisongs
Review
Caprisongs is still easily FKA twigs’s most accessible project to date, but it’s up there with her best. These songs burrow into your head with her impeccable vocal performances and hooks of all different types. There are club bangers like “Tears in the Club”, “Papi Bones” and “Jealousy” that could get anyone dancing, but the ballads of “Meta Angel”, “Lightbeamers”, and “Thank You Song” show that twigs is in her own lane when it comes to vocals in pop music. The interludes here really help add to the mixtape aesthetic she is going for on this project, but it may also take away from some people realizing that some of her best ever written songs are here. Even in mixtape form, FKA twigs remains as one of the best artists in pop music.
Favorite Moment: The operatic bridge in “Jealousy”
Selling Point: One of pop music’s weirdest figures makes an accessible project that’s one of her best
19. Future - I Never Liked You
Review
Maybe it’s just because Future took a year off after dropping almost 50 songs over 2 projects in 2020, but I Never Liked You is Future’s best album in a long time! Or at least, this is the most I’ve enjoyed a Future project in a long time. All of Future’s albums have a similar sound, especially over the past few years, but ATL Jacob really put a lot of details into these beats that aren’t there in the other projects! Future’s flow sounds better than it has for a long time! It also helps that this project is only 48 minutes, which is significantly shorter than his previous few albums too. Future has been able to sustain a run in trap music that hasn’t been seen in a while, and I Never Liked You shows that he can still outrap his copycats.
Favorite Moment: The gospel choir that sings on “Holy Ghost”
Selling Point: One of trap music’s icons is back with his best project in more than half a decade
18. Metro Boomin - Heroes & Villains
Review
Metro Boomin always makes his albums feel larger than life. This particular album is the same; which starts out with John Legend over gospel keys, Morgan Freeman saying Metro’s slogan, and a monologue from hit TV show The Boys. Having this as an intro to your album immediately increases the hype for it, but Metro lived up to it. Most of these songs feel drugged out, nocturnal, and heavy. “Superhero” with Future brings him back to his classic period, while The Weeknd sounds gut-wrenching on the Mario Winans cover, “Creepin”. 21 Savage obviously sounds incredible on most of his features, while Travis and Metro bring Texas into the future with “Raindrops”. There are some tracks on here that are just ok, but the vast majority of these songs are amazing!
Favorite Moment: Young Thug’s flow on the second verse of “Metro Spider”
Selling Point: The most cinematic hip hop/trap album you’ll ever hear
17. quinn - quinn
Review
I still don’t know what to call quinn’s music. On one hand, it could be classified in the hyperpop category because her music used to exist there, but this exists in a genreless landscape. There is hip-hop, funk, lo-fi, indie, pop, R&B, and so much more packed into the 32-minute runtime. Sometimes, she rambles on about a fictional encounter with an army sergeant on base where she breaks into his house just to intimidate him, other times it’s a beautiful piano ballad, and other times it’s a soulful hip-hop sample flip that would even make Earl Sweatshirt proud. The fact that she can do all of this at 17-years old is crazy. Quinn still astonishes me with this project, even though I don’t think it will for most people.
Favorite Moment: The transition from “rare jawn” to “oh”
Selling Point: Music for teenagers who feel like they’re getting too mature for hyperpop, but really just want something that sounds different
16. 070 Shake - You Can’t Kill Me
Review
I have enjoyed quite a bit of 070 Shake’s music so far, but her projects were lacking overall until this album. She was finally able to create a body of work that is sonically cohesive and emotionally potent. You Can’t Kill Me makes it clear that Shake is a disciple of Cudi and Travis Scott, but her poppier songwriting helps it stand out from their music. Songs like “Medicine” and “Wine & Spirits” are some of the most emotional ballads I’ve heard all year, while “Cocoon” is a banger made for the clubs. There is still some room to improve, especially towards the back half of the album, but it is now hard to deny that 070 is a great artist!
Favorite Moment: The guitar melody on “Medicine”
Selling Point: Emotional electro-pop with a unique edge
15. Big Thief - Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You
Review
Just like I thought, this Big Thief album only grew on me with time! It just happened to drop in a month where many incredible albums came out that I was already anticipating, so I didn’t have much time for a 20-song, 80-minute long indie-folk album. They balance the minimalistic ballads of “Promise is a Pendulum” and “Dried Roses” with the hilariously entertaining tracks like “Spud Infinity” and “Red Moon”. Adrianne’s lyrics are really powerful and meaningful, especially when you start to dive deeper into the meanings. The opener “Change” is a perfect example of this. This album really is something that anyone who considers themselves an indie or folk fan should hear. It may have a couple skips, but there are also some of the best songs of that genre in a long time.
Favorite Moment: Adrianne randomly saying, “That’s my Grandma” on “Red Moon”
Selling Point: This is the album equivalent to taking a long walk in the woods on a fall afternoon
14. Flume - Palaces
Review
This project still isn’t anywhere near innovative, and it does have some songs on it that feel like duds, but there is still no one better at making engaging electronic songs that could both work on the radio and have crazy sound design. Songs like “Highest Building” and “I Can’t Tell” toe this line perfectly, while other songs like “Escape” and “Get U” are the weird electronic bangers I want the most from Flume. “Sirens” with Caroline Polachek and “Palaces” with Damon Albarn might be some of his most beautiful songs he’s ever made! Palaces doesn’t show Flume at the top of his game, but it shows that he is still ahead of most of his peers.
Favorite Moment: The sound design during the drop on “Escape”
Selling Point: Electronic bangers with killer pop hooks
13. DOMi & JD BECK - Not Tight
Review
These are the type of musicians to make you feel untalented. The two prodigies come together for an album that yes, has its flaws, but is more than made up for when it comes to their playing. It would be hard to argue that some of the best jazz-fusion playing is not on this album. JD’s drumming is so tight and in the pocket, while DOMi’s solos and melodies will leave the listener astounded. There are clearly a plethora of people that believe in them, including Anderson .Paak, Herbie Hancock, Thundercat, Mac Demarco, Snoop Dogg, Busta Rhymes, and more; all of which appear on this album. When you consider that they were 22 and 19-years old when the album came out, and when some of these songs are five years old, it puts into perspective how high their ceiling is. Watching their live show in Madison only confirmed this, these kids have an incredibly high ceiling.
Favorite Moment: DOMi and Thundercat soloing back and forth on the title track
Selling Point: Easy contenders for the future of jazz music, especially when it comes to jazz-fusion
12. Weyes Blood - And in the Darkness, Hearts Aglow
Review
This album only gets better with time! Sure, I know that the majority of people still prefer her 2019 opus Titanic Rising, but this project has stuck around with me significantly longer. Everything about the project is beautiful. The production is beautiful, the vocals are beautiful, and the cover is beautiful. “God Turn Me Into a Flower” is likely the most beautiful song I’ve heard this year, especially when it comes to the ambient outro. The first five songs on this album is probably the prettiest stretch of music I’ve heard in a long time. This is another chamber pop album of absolute beauty for fans to get lost in, and I’m very excited to see the tour in March!
Favorite Moment: Her vocals on the third verse of “God Turn Me Into a Flower”
Selling Point: Chamber-pop brilliance once again
11. SAULT - 11
Review
SAULT really knocked it out of the park with this release. Now that I’ve been able to sit with it a bit longer, I think this might be my favorite SAULT project! Everything about this project is so warm and lovely. All the different vocalists sound perfect over Inflo’s percussion and melodies. The skittering drums in “Fear No One” or Beatles-esque melodies that start off “Morning Sun” show that they pay attention to details. The ballads on here are just as beautiful, whether it’s the minimal guitar on “River” or the classic R&B feel that “Fight For Love” gives off. With another 3 projects on my list this year, Inflo is a certified genius in my book and is easily my favorite producer currently working!
Favorite Moment: Cleo Sol’s vocal performance on “Higher”
Selling Point: Timeless soul music that’ll make you feel better about life
10. Pusha T - It’s Almost Dry
Review
Pusha T never disappoints when it comes to music, and It’s Almost Dry is one of his best releases yet! Pharrell and Kanye’s production still stands as some of the best of the year, especially on songs like “Let The Smokers Shine The Coupes” and “Dreamin of the Past”. He even got Jay-Z out of his hiding place to drop maybe my favorite verse from him in 2022 on “Neck & Wrist”. The Clipse reunion on the final song is definitely one of the best and most emotional closers in hip hop this year. Pharrell’s push for Pusha T to work on his songwriting helped elevate this project above most of his previous work. The only thing we can hope for is that it won’t take him four more years to drop his next project.
Favorite Moment: The switch from the aggressive beat to a piano playing the same melody in “Let The Smokers Shine The Coupes”
Selling Point: A legendary rappers with legendary producers
9. Beach House - Once Twice Melody
Review
Beach House’s Once Twice Melody is the longest album I have on my list. It’s a double album that stretches nearly 90 minutes over almost 20 tracks, but every song is worth its placement on here. Some of their best songs are on here! “Superstar” is incredible and might be my favorite Beach House track in general, especially when it comes to creating a beautiful feeling. “New Romance” could be a dream pop hit, whereas the use of a vocoder on “Runaway” works perfectly. The extended outro of “Over and Over” closes out the first half of the album perfectly. Beach House is able to create a feeling that most people cannot, and Once Twice Melody is another amazing example of it.
Favorite Moment: The melody on the chorus of “New Romance”
Selling Point: Music to listen to while watching a sunset
8. Conway the Machine - God Don’t Make Mistakes
Review
God Don’t Make Mistakes is Conway’s most essential project so far. This project has everything that makes Conway special. The grimey hip-hop is there at the beginning of this album with tracks like “Piano Love” and “Drumwork”. His incredibly personal look into his past is here as well with songs like “Stressed” and “God Don’t Make Mistakes”. There are also slightly more accessible cuts on here that most people could enjoy, like “Tear Gas” with Rick Ross and Lil Wayne and “So Much More”. Conway the Machine is one of the best rappers currently, and even though this is the third straight year he’s had an album in my top 15 of the year, God Don’t Make Mistakes is the project I would recommend the most.
Favorite Moment: The second verse of “Stressed”
Selling Point: Arguably Conway’s greatest and most important project
7. Black Country, New Road - Ants From Up There
Review
Just like I said with Little Simz’s album last year, this is objectively the best album I’ve heard all year! It’s not number one because it’s not my personal favorite, but almost everything with this album is perfect! The instrumentals are so full of life and movement, no matter what the song is. Isaac’s voice is emotional and unique. His lyrics are both cryptic and devastating once you realize what he’s talking about. These songs take their time to evolve, and always evoke some sort of emotion. Nothing about this album is rushed, which is what makes it special. I may not listen to this project as often as most of the others in the top 10-15, but every listen leaves me astounded!
Selling Point: An instant indie-rock classic
6. Beyoncé - Renaissance
Review
Renaissance is the highest album of 2022 when it comes to music publications end of the year lists. While it’s clearly not number one on mine, it’s pretty close. The margin between these top few albums are very thin. But back to Beyoncé, this album is a force of nature. She made an album purely for the club. Instead of looking at dance music through what’s been popular the past few years, she made music to honor the originators of dance music. She brings together seemingly hundreds of producer and writer credits over these 16 songs, but they all come together perfectly! While I understand that some people are disappointed there isn’t a visual component to this album yet, I’m really glad she let this album exist without anything distracting from the music itself. All people have to focus on is the music, and that’s more than enough in this case.
Favorite Moment: The funk breakdown in “Pure/Honey”
Selling Point: An all-time pop icon released one of her best albums
5. Earthgang - Ghetto Gods
Review
I don’t care that most of Earthgang’s fanbase thinks this album is middling, or the fact that Earthgang themselves don’t seem to love this album, this is still my favorite Earthgang project! This album is their best all around showcase of both bangers and ballads. Songs like “Strong Friends” and “All Eyes On Me” are mental health-oriented ballads that are some of the best lyrical songs they’ve ever released, whereas the cinematic opening instrumental of “Ghetto Gods” helps bring the listener into the headspace for the rest of the album perfectly. The rollout for this project was anything but smooth, but hearing it live in Chicago a couple weeks before it came out definitely helped me enjoy this project more! I don’t know where Earthgang is going to go from here, but hopefully they can continue to make incredible music!
Favorite Moment: The psychedelic drums of “Amen”
Selling Point: Thoughtful, weird, psychedelic, but accessible hip hop with a message
4. Rosaliá - Motomami
Review
Rosalía really went all out for Motomami. There are more genres and subject matters here than I know what to do with. Some of these songs are about deeply personal moments with her family, and others are about sex and chicken teriyaki. The production varies just as much as the subject matter, with it ranging from more accessible reggaeton to electronic experimentation that would make Arca proud. Rosalía’s vocals are still second to none, especially when she opens up and belts out. Motomami has often been called the female Yeezus, which I can clearly see why. But, I would argue that Motomami is both better and more forward thinking than that album, and how it is already one of the most important albums of this decade. It doesn’t matter how long the next wait will be, I know Rosalía will always deliver something innovative with her releases.
Favorite Moment: The way she belts out the second chorus of “G3 N15”
Selling Point: One of the most unique and meticulous artists in the mainstream today
3. Kendrick Lamar - Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers
Review
I just want to say these top three albums are all extremely close to each other. I actually considered having a three-way tie for number one, but that’s no fun. So as of today, these are my rankings, but they could very well change in the future. Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers has some of the absolute best and most emotional songs I’ve heard in a long time. “Father Time” with Sampha, “Crown”, and “Count Me Out” are some of the most heart-aching songs I’ve heard this year. The back-half of this album is absolutely incredible, especially with cuts like “Savior” and “Mother I Sober”. There were just too many moments where I sonically was unable to connect with as effectively as others. For example, even though I like “Rich Spirit” a lot, especially the meaning behind the track, it still sonically feels like something Vince Staples could flow over better than Kendrick. The two following songs of “We Cry Together” and “Purple Hearts” are both entertaining the first couple of listens, but listening to these songs can sometimes feel like a chore. So for that reason, I couldn’t put Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers at my top spot. But, this is still another incredible album from one of hip hop’s all-time greats!
Favorite Moment: The first verse of “Count Me Out”
Selling Point: A deep look into the personal life of one of music’s greatest artists
2. JID - The Forever Story
Review
This album is still damn near flawless in my opinion. JID’s flows on here are absolutely incredible! The subject matters he tackles over this project are important in both a current and historical context. He brings on some of the biggest names in hip hop currently onto this album, such as Lil Durk and 21 Savage, but he also has legends on here like Yasiin Bey and Lil Wayne. He not only just had them on here, but he was able to get the absolute best out of all of these people! JID even put in work to improve his singing ability for this album. It makes songs like “Kody Blu 31” and “Bruddanem” work way better than they would have just a few years ago. Even though JID was always a decent vocalist, the training he put in made him a legitimately good vocalist. Months after this album came out, he was even able to add the original closing track to the album, “2007”, which closes the album out even more perfectly than it already did. The only problem I can even find in this album is that the second half is fairly slow compared to the first, which means you have to be in a certain mood to make it through the entire album. But for what it’s worth, JID finally created the album that I knew he had in him, and hopefully he can continue to operate at this level for years to come.
Favorite Moment: The breakneck pace of the drums on “Can’t Punk Me”
Selling Point: An incredible hip hop album
1. The Weeknd - Dawn FM
Review
Well, I guess here we are. I wasn’t sure if Dawn FM was going to last the entire year at the top of my list, but even listening to it in these past couple weeks, it still sounds so fresh. Originally, this album felt way too top heavy, and it still is a bit. The first 20 minutes of this album is dance-pop perfection, and if it stayed at that level, I think he could have had the best pop album in at least a decade on his hands. But even though the tempo drops off a cliff in the middle of the album, there are still plenty of bops for the listener to vibe with. The transition between “Best Friends” and “Is There Someone Else?” is incredible, while the latter of these tracks seamlessly goes into the gorgeous ballad, “Starry Eyes”. “Less Than Zero” also ends the album on a perfect pop anthem that will have everyone singing along to his pain over these glittering synthesizers. I also need to go back and address the first 20 minutes, because it really is incredible! That stretch of songs, from “Gasoline” to “Out of Time,” is the most easily repeatable set of tracks I have heard in a very long time, maybe ever. They are energetic, catchy, transition into each other beautifully, and are still unique enough to differentiate the songs from each other. There’s also a loose concept behind the album being a radio station in purgatory, but I think the details behind why will become clearer when the final album in the trilogy gets released. Dawn FM is the album I’ve been waiting for from The Weeknd.
Selling Point: A classic electro-pop body of work from one of the newer pop greats
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