As I make yet another comeback to this blog, today's return comes with my annual list of the best albums to come out this year. In a year where I only churned out three album reviews, the content of the list is just a big mystery. Overall I thought this was a solid year, one that was not bad at all but not quite as strong as some of the past few years. Let's see which albums I thought shined brightest in 2016 on my Top Ten Rap Albums of the Year!
The Five Honorable Mentions
Chance the Rapper- Coloring Book
One of the most celebrated albums of the past year, I was pretty happy with the direction Chance went in with this breakout project. Coloring Book was full of positive vibes and catchy feel-good tracks. Chance has the charisma and fun loving attitude to stick around for a while as a popular, acclaimed rapper and this album shows for it. Pouring emotion onto every song, this was definitely a colorful highlight of 2016.
Favorite Songs: No Problem, Same Drugs
Injury Reserve- Floss
I only discovered this underground Arizona rap trio a few months ago, and I'm pretty glad it was this project that served as my introduction. This was a fantastic blend of many different rap styles, and these guys did a solid job from the relaxing tracks to lyrical ones that show off their storytelling skills. Where Injury Reserve shines the most, though, is with the bangers. High energy songs such as All This Money were some of my favorites of the year, and these guys know how to make a catchy song. For this reason, I was quite impressed by Floss in 2016.
Favorite Songs: All This Money, What's Goodie
Kodak Black- Lil Big Pac
Here we have one of my biggest shockers, a debut project from an artist who broke out this year for a mix of good and bad reasons: Lil Big Pac by Kodak Black. I was pretty surprised by the solid flow and ability that Kodak had to simply put together a collection of fun, well done tracks. With an artist as young as Kodak, its hard to say what direction his career will go in, but he's got his own sound and he did it well, evidenced by how much I kept putting this album on throughout the year.
Favorite Songs: Can I, Everything 1k
Domo Genesis- Genesis
An artist who has long been one of my favorite members of Odd Future, Domo Genesis' debut album had been anticipated for quite a while. Upon its release, I was happy to hear Domo spit his usual style of bars along with some chill, relaxing beats. Genesis is a chill, trippy ride that has a great vibe surrounding it. With Domo throwing in some fresh tracks such as Dapper on this project, I can definitely say he put out one of the better albums of this year.
Favorite Songs: Dapper, Coming Back
Gucci Mane- Woptober
After making his celebrated return earlier in the year with a glamorous studio album, Gucci Mane broke out that gritty, dark style that he is most known for on Woptober. Even if this project didn't have any truly incredible tracks on it, Gucci was very consistent on it in putting out catchy, fun, hard hitting bangers. I honestly can't ask for much more from Gucci, and Woptober is just beautifully reminicsent of classic Gucci Mane.
Favorite Songs: The Left, Right on Time
The Top Ten
10. Isaiah Rashad- The Sun's Tirade
TDE member and Tennessee rapper Isaiah Rashad followed up his incredible 2014 debut Cilvia Demo in pretty great fashion. This album had a different vibe to it, with Isaiah mixing in a lot of narratives, storylines, and two part tracks on this long, very lyrical project. It really is a lot to digest and this guy has always packed so much content and meaning into everything he says. I loved the themes on this album and among all the lyrical moments, The Sun's Tirade still has its banging Southern beats and catchy hooks. This guy simply deserves all the acclaim he has gotten lately.
Favorite Songs: Park, Free Lunch
9. Future- EVOL
It seems like a foregone conclusion that every year we will get at least one solid project from Atlanta MC Future. In the world of booming, Southern trap bangers this guy simply knows what he's doing. On EVOL, an album much shorter than his past work, he had excellent hooks and there wasn't really a bad song on it. Future worked with some beats that were more experimental than I'm used to from him, but he did his thing over this production and it felt comfortable. Future has been incredibly consistent these past few years and you can always count on him for great albums featuring his signature sound.
Favorite Songs: Lil Haiti Baby, Program
8. Lil Yachty- Lil Boat
The young Lil Yachty came into the spotlight this year, becoming a known figure in the world of rap for lots of different reasons. In terms of music, I felt he dropped a fantastic debut project with Lil Boat. Here he did an awesome job of bringing you into his world and presenting the entire identity of Lil Yachty. Working with the duality of two different characters, Yachty came with a set of relaxing tracks that had a very serene and calm vibe to them. A unique voice in the trap scene of Atlanta, Lil Yachty brought something fresh to the table with this project, and I am excited for the next step that his music will take in 2017.
Favorite Songs: Out Late, Minnesota
7. Kanye West- The Life of Pablo
In a roller coaster year for the legendary Kanye West, he at least made a return to form with his music on his seventh album, The Life of Pablo. I was a fan of this album because it once again showed the way Kanye continuously switches up his concepts with every album that he does and sounds amazing doing it. This one, much like the man's personal life, was a huge mixed bag of emotions and events, yet with every song Kanye spit some great verses, was very lyrical, and brought some nice hooks to the table. The album was messy in a way that only Kanye could pull off, and all the sounds on this album meshed together to make something very good.
Favorite Songs: Ultralight Beam, Famous
6. Travi$ Scott- Birds in the Trap Sing McKnight
This project from Travi$ Scott didn't receieve quite the same amount of acclaim and hype as his last album Rodeo and I can't seem to understand why. This album, to me, was on par with Scott's best work and it really has some amazing moments. Travi$ Scott keeps building up his unqique sound with every new project and he sounded amazing on this one. His mix of singing along with dark auto tune affects and banging, progressive instrumentals just hooks you in, and this album was a listening experience that I won't forget. A fun ride with lots of infectious tracks, this is a strong recommendation from me.
Favorite Songs: Pick Up the Phone, Sweet Sweet
5. Kendrick Lamar- untitled, unmastered
Only someone with the artistry of Kendrick Lamar can make the bold decision to take a collection of throwaways from his recording sessions and make it into a cohesive, well flowing album. This mixed bag of tracks ends up sounding beautiful, and it makes you realize the insane talent that we're witnessing with this guy. All of these untitled tracks have great flows, concepts, hooks, and this whole thing is such an immersive and beautiful listen. A year after To Pimp A Butterfly, Kendrick amazes us once again, in a way that no one saw coming.
Favorite Songs: untitled 08, untitled 02
4. YG- Still Brazy
What a consistently great artist this guy is becoming. Breaking out from the depths of obscurity a few years ago with My Krazy Life, YG only improved on this new album, which was an awesome revitilazation of old-school West Coast sound. The beats on this were so reminiscent of acclaimed California hip hop, and YG sounded so comfortable spitting over them. Lyrically, YG went over so many big social issues and aggressively give out his take on so many controversial topics. This guy is bold, brash, and confident; he minces no words and it is a delight to hear him killing it.
Favorite Songs: Why You Always Hatin, I Got A Question
3. Run the Jewels- Run the Jewels 3
Rapidly becoming one of the best duos to do it in recent memory. Killer Mike and El-P snuck in the third Run the Jewels album right at the end of the year on Christmas Day. Everything that these two have done on record is pure genius, but this third album could honestly be their best yet. Out of everything they've done this one has resonated with me the most; its infectious sound sticking in my head and their lyrical concepts blowing my mind. Somehow El-P's beats on this album were also more colorful, dynamic, and explosive than what I've heard in the past. This album is just a high-energy piece of insanity that gets better each time I hear it. Pair that with the political, hard hitting lyricism that both of these MCs always bring and you've got one of the best albums of the year, easily.
Favorite Songs: Legend Has It, Hey Kids
2. Danny Brown- Atrocity Exhibition
Danny Brown came back in full force after nearly three years without any music to deliver one of the most twisted and mind bending rap albums I have ever heard. The veteran Detroit MC's ridiculous flexibility and creative mentality as an artist is shown off beautifully on Atrocity Exhibition as we hear him flowing over beats that no one could ever imagine even showing up on a hip hop album. Danny's talent is out of this world, as he is just flowing through these abstract instrumentals with nonstop aggression and amazing bars. Danny manages to tie together a narrative of his personal struggles and life in Detroit, and he does it in a way only he could pull off: with an sound as outrageous as he is. Atrocity Exhibtion is an insane trip but its so worth it. A truly dense album with loads of content and meaning behind everything that Danny Brown says and does, I'll be playing this one for a long time.
Favorite Songs: Really Doe, Lost
1. Schoolboy Q- Blank Face LP
Here we have what is, in my opinion, an album very well deserving of the number one spot: Blank Face LP by Schoolboy Q. I had liked this guy a lot with his past few albums, but I never thought there was any way he could create something this good. He blew me away from the first listen, and I've been bumping this album ever since. He had so many strokes of genius on this project, from his vivid storytelling to his absolutely awesome gritty street tracks. The rapping from Q sounds better than ever, with his raspy voice flowing well track after track as he paints pictures of the gangster way of life that he has been through and still experiences. Blank Face LP plays like a movie, with each song sounding so big and cinematic with layered, complex production setting the tone. I think the overall vibe this project gives off is my favorite thing about it; the content is just so ominous and menacing all the way through. You get the feeling that Q will never truly get away from this dangerous lifestyle. This thing sounds like the future of West Coast rap, with the artist pouring so much emotion into everything he does and lyrically creating visuals that stick in your head timelessly. Schoolboy Q hit one out of the park here, and I'll be happy if his next work is close to as good as this. What an album.
Favorite Songs: Groovy Tony/Eddie Kane, Dope Dealer
Coming Soon
Top 25 Hip Hop Songs of 2016
Top 10 Albums of 2015 (Year that I never made a list for!)
