Top 20 albums of The Year
20. The Weekend, After Hours
The Weekend's album was everywhere this year. The production alone was an immersive experience, but the Weekend's falsetto vocals carry this album to a peak that only he was capable of delivering. Highlights: Blinding Lights Alone Again
19. Meg Thee Stallion, Good News
Meg has the best production of her career, and she delivers her best rapping yet. This album makes me really excited to see what she will do next as she is clearly getting better every time out. Highlights: Shots fired, Savage Remix
18. Young M.A Red flu
Listening to the album, it feels like Young M.A had fun making this record. She picks some interesting pockets in her rhymes, and the whole album is just a vibe. Exactly what we needed in 2020. Highlights: Bad bitch Anthem, Trap or Cap
17. Juice World ,Legends Never Die
Legends Never Die is a beautifully sad album. The music is incredible and will be played for years to come, but the content was sad to hear, knowing how it all ended. Legends Never Die was not only one of the best albums of 2020 but also one of the better posthumous releases you will ever hear. Highlights: Wishing Well, Titanic
16. Nas, King's Disease
Nas returns to deliver the lyricism we love him for over the best production he has had since God's Son. It sounds like Nas is in a good place. Kings Disease is a very relaxing cool, calm, and collected album. Highlights: Car 85, King's Disease
15. Conway The Machine, No One Mourns The Wicked
Vintage Conway this album is Conway blacking out over hard beats. What more do you want? Highlights: Sicarios, S.D.LN
14. Flo Milli, Ho, Why Is You Here?
Flo Milli shows off her unflinching confidence and creative vocal stylings. Flo Milli's most impressive asset is her punchlines, which will have you rewinding and laughing your ass off. Highlights; Beef Flomix, May I
13.Kesha, High Road
Kesha's High Road feels like a natural progression from Rainbow. The album shows even more maturity and impressive songwriting without surrendering the fun we fell in love with. Highlights; Father Daughter Dance, Cowboy Blues
12. Russ,Shake The Snow Globe
If you were not already on the Russ train, 2020 was the time to jump on. This album has bop after bop that you will want to play a million times. Highlights: Nighttime Interlude, Best on Earth
11.Lil Wayne, Funeral
Lil Wayne Shows that he is still one of the best on the mic. Funeral is all about lyrical ability, and Wayne demonstrates that he can still go bar for bar with the best of them. Highlights Mahogany, Mama Mia
10.Drake, Dark Lane Demo Tapes
This album is supposed to be just side b sides, but a lot of these really go. This is a gem of an album that I find myself coming back to often. I wish some of the songs from this album were pushed more. Highlights: Desires Time flies
9. Conway The Machine, Lulu
Conway and Alchemist are a cheat code. They are too good together. Alchemist is the gasoline, and Conway is the match. The result is a musical explosion that anyone should be able to enjoy. The production provides the perfect backdrop to showcase Conway's world-class lyricism. Highlights: 14 Ki's, Shoot Sideways
8.Conway The Machine, From king to a God
This is Conway's most polished album conceptually. He is taking another step with his artistry and songwriting here, and it feels like the sky is the limit for him. If he continues progressing at this pace, he is heading for the goat conversation. Highlights Front lines, From king
7. Big Sean,Detroit 2
Big Sean delivers such a good album. He sounds dialed in. Detroit 2 is probably my favorite Big Sean album to date. Highlights: Friday night Cypher, Lucky me
6. Joyner Lucas ,ADHD
This album flew under the radar because of its unorthodox release schedule, but it has many gems on it. More melodic than we have come to expect from Joyner, but it also has A LOT of replay value. Highlights I lied, Will
5. Logic, No Pressure
Logic's retirement delivered because it did not sound like he was trying to be anyone else or appeal to anybody. He wore his influences on his sleeve, got more introspective, and sounded like he enjoyed making this project, and the results were stellar. Highlights; DadBod, Soul Food ll
4. Kxxng Crooked & Joel Ortiz, H.A.R.D
This is the Pinnacle of Lyricism. Joel and Kxxg Crooked show that they can blackout with the best of them, but they also display elite lyricism while telling stories. Crook and Ortiz made a statement with this album that they are the full package. Their songwriter abilities are on full display. Highlights: Lose My Mind, Catchin Bodies
3. Jessie Reyes, Before Love Came to Kill Us
Jessie proves that she is here to stay with this album. Her unique voice and powerful songwriting ability combine to produce one of the best listens of the year. This album is oozing with talent and soul. Jessie is quickly establishing herself as one of the Elite artists of this generation. Highlights; Intruders, Ankles
2. Royce Da 5'9, Allegory
Royce is on another level. I do not know what he will do next album to top this just ascend to godhood? He produces the whole album, and it is his first stab at producing, and it is fantastic. His rapping is Elite, and the subject matter is topical and timeless, and powerful. He is on a run right now, and this conscience album cements Royce in the goat conversation. Highlights Upside down, Young world
1.Eminem, Music To be Murdered by
Eminem has been making great music for decades now, but as he says in higher every time he thinks he has reached his Ceiling, he goes higher than he has ever been. This is Eminem's best album since Eminem Show. He is firing off his song maker skills at a high clip. He is rapping with the best while trying new sounds and features with legends and younger artists, and the result is stupendous. Music to Be Murdered is everything you wanted from Em and everything you did not know you needed from him. Eminem has gone off the chart. He continues to blaze a trail and show how far you can go as an artist. Highlights: Darkness, Leaving Heaven
Top 20 songs of 2020
20. Kid Cudi Ft. Eminem, The Adventures of Moon Man and Slim
This was a big moment when Em and Cudi came together for the first time. They are not two artists; most people would expect to sound good together, but the collab was seamless. Eminem stepped into Cudi's world to fantastic effect.
19. J.Cole, The Climb back
J Cole returns on dreamy production, delivering his best track of 2020. The most impressive part of this track was Coles rising and falling flow.
18. Drake, Time Flies
This track is Drake's best of the year. It is excellent on the first listen, and the melodic hook will be in your head for days. This song really should have been pushed as a single it would have done great. I know I won't stop listening to it anytime soon. Also, it seems especially relevant as we are all locked "inside the crib on our own."
17. Russ, NightTime Interlude
I have heard some good things from Russ before, but this song made me a fan. He killed this. The beat is such an infectious vibe, and the silky vocals are perfect.
16. Skylar Grey, Sunscreen
(There is an official music video for this song but you have to go to youtube to watch it)
Skylar's slow sensual bouncy production is perfect for her suggestive lyrics and playful singing. It is difficult to decide what is better on the track, the lyrics, or vocal performance.
15.Logic,DadBod
The production is very relaxing. It feels like a lazy Sunday inside. It was charming to hear Logic storytelling like this. Logic seems to think his everyday life is boring, and yea, if you plot through the events, it is not the most eventful story, but that is not the point. This track shines because Logics' real personality drives it; it is witty, funny, and authentic. Here, Logic inadvertently showcases one of Hip Hop's core truths that anything can be riveting if you do authentically and skillfully.
14. Lil Wayne, Mahogany
This is Waynes best track of the year. The production hits just right, and Lil Wayne rode it perfectly. He switched in out of the pocket like the expert he is. This track was a masterclass in Lyricism and Flow.
13. Joyner Lucas,Will
Joyner pays homage to one of his heroes, Will Smith, in Will. The concept is cool; using all of Will's movies in the rap was a great idea. Also, the track is laced with confidence. You just cannot help but feel like the one while listening to this track. Also, Joyner's flow was flawless on this track. One of the most fun tracks from a year that was not very much fun.
12. Freddie Gibbs ft. Conway The Machine, Babies & Fools
Some of the best production you will hear from 2020(Alchemist). The production is a smooth backdrop for Gibbs and Conway to show a more vulnerable side. This track answers the call from those that complain that rap glamorizes the streets without showing the other side. Here both rappers show what they sacrificed and lost to give the streets all of them and get to where they are today.
11.Meg Thee Stallion ft. Beyonce, Savage Remix
This track provided another great musical moment of the year when Beyonce, the hottest female artist of the last few decades, collided with the hottest female artist of today to create musical magic. Beyonce's vocal stylings definitely upgraded the track, but Meg's hard flow and confidence definitely brought something new out of Beyonce. The result was an incredible Houston collab that ended up being one of the best songs of the year.
10. Big Sean Ft. Tee Grizzly, Kash Doll, 42 Dugg ,Payroll,Drego,Cash kidd,Boldy James,Sada Baby,Royce Da 5'9,Eminem, Friday Night Cypher
This cypher was an event. It was great to hear Detroit united and showcasing their various styles and talent. It was an excellent look for the city. It is a long song, but everyone was so good that it does not feel as long as it actually is. This was a terrific idea by Big Sean. One of the most memorable music moments of the year.
9. Jessie Reyes, Intruders
Truly beautiful music. The production sounds like the soundtrack to being sprung. It is full of emotion and love that stops just short of being sad. You can feel the fluttering of butterflies in your stomach from the track. Jessie's vocals on the track are simply amazing. Her low vocal tones perfectly stitch together the concept of the track.
Intruders is also very symbolic of the album violently acting out the passion inside Jessie.
8. Kxxng Crooked & Joel Ortiz, Catchin Bodies
This track's soul loop was the perfect set up for a kill shot, and Joel and Crook do not miss. It is precisely as the track title says they are catching bodies. So many incredible lines that will have you rewinding the track and coming back for more. Elite lyricism and flow.
7. H.E.R, I Can't Breath
Her delivers an absolute ballad crying out to the listeners to have some basic fucking empathy. Her's hums also make it a bop too sonically; it's appealing to all. Lyrically it is powerful. This track is a masterpiece, and it deserved so much more attention than it got.
6. I Prevail Ft Joyner Lucas, DOA
I have no idea how this fell under the radar. Easily one of the best songs of 2020, Joyner and I Prevail was a perfect match. Joyner is mostly stepping into their world, but he brought a hip Hop element to this track that fits into the song's anti-arrangement message, and I Prevail's vocal metalcore style gave this song a fiery passion that could not have been achieved without them. This is definitely one of the more powerful social justice songs you will hear, and it was significant that it was across genres.
5. Conway The machine, Front lines
This track is one of Conway's best conceptually. He Delivers flowise and lyrically over this haunting beat by Beat Butcha. This track really embodies the protest to me. It feels like the soundtrack to black America having enough after the murders of Floyd Ahmaud and Breanna Taylor.
4. Royce Da 5'9 Ft Benny The Butcher, Upside down
This track has dreamy production by Royce and is representative of the entire allegory album. Great production and lyricism and features and splashes of knowledge and societal/cultural commentary.
3. Juice World,Wishing Well
This is a beautiful ballad. Listening to it feels like Juice going off into the sunset at the end of the movie of his life. The lyrics are so powerful though it feels like Juice is talking to us from beyond. Legendary track.
2. Lil Baby, The Bigger Picture
This is the song of the summer and an instant classic. Lil Baby caught lightning in a bottle, with the perfect beat, perfect flow, and powerful lyrics that give me chills every time I listen. The emotion of the track is palpable. If you cannot feel this track, you cannot feel it.
1.Eminem, Darkness
One of the best tracks of Eminem's entire career and that is saying something if you know Em's discography. Brilliant flip on the production by Royce. Brilliant songwriting by Eminem making a double entendre song about himself and the Las Vegas shooter. The double entendre is seamless. The track sends a powerful message about gun control, and that is quite the evolution for Eminem, who started making shock rap about shootings. He has also been arrested for his use of guns and advocated for arming yourself in We As Americans on Encore deluxe. However, thousands of shootings and lives lost later here. Em is calling to stop the violence, asking the government to do their jobs, and appealing to those who may not understand why it is necessary. Darkness is hip hop at its best.
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