In No Ranking Order: The 16 Best Albums of 2016

Now that you've caught up on the sounds and sights that rattled our senses in 2016 (and maybe even picked up a few overlooked joints,) the big reveal is upon us; the one you've all been asking about, the one that's had this writer up well past reasonable hours for weeks on end. Not mad, though. It's an important question. One we can't help begrudgingly asking ourselves annually, as if it somehow actually adds an intrinsic value to the experience in the moment of consumption or even in hindsight. But we're all adults here. We all know these conversations go nowhere even in the tightest, most link-minded cyphers. Dancing around it considerably here, but you all know the final list of the year is devoted to the no-longer-holy album. And seeing as how you've already let us know what was getting the heaviest rotations in your earholes, it's time for us to let you know where we stand on the matter. After weeks of heart-crushing deliberation, tears and sleepless nights, we present to you: the best of albums of 2016. In no ranking order, of course (again: silly premise.) No more dancing. Not in a figurative way, at least. See y'all on the better side of New Year's Eve. — Zo

Kanye West - The Life Of Pablo

Call it PR proficiency or genuine instability, but it doesn't seem we'll ever really know how the gears grind in the madcap mind of Kanye West. But with Pablo, the lid of the factory is cracked just enough to catch a glimpse. And it doesn't necessarily take a lifelong Yeezy apologist to readily-identify that despite what you may think of Kanye: The Man, the artist in him is still out here pushing boundaries. Though not a conventional outing by any set of metrics, Pablo is a singular presence in Kanye's catalog (certainly amongst this year's grip of multi-layered releases,) as apparent in the album's campaign as the opening swells of "Ultralight Beam." With his seventh studio album we finally see the dark twisted fantasy for what it is. Where god complex meets clinical depression. But there's profound beauty in West's concerted chaos. And the church, by way of Kirk Franklin, Chance The Rapper, Kelly Price and the banished Pastor TL Barrett, serves as a constant source, though it's not inundated with spirit in a Coloring Book way. On Pablo, gospel's just another shade in Kanye's palette, a necessary light to offset excesses. And even if everything after "Wolves" is for the heads, the sheer breadth of configurations this album's gone through gives it breath, makes it as human as its creator. God complex and all.

Chance The Rapper - Coloring Book

Much has been said about how Chance The Rapper was an ultralight beam in a year that was defined by loss, tragedy and despair. But while a lot of music chases happiness with an escapism detached from reality, Chance delivers through community and the belief in people’s ability to create a better world. To do so is an exercise in faith, so the assortment of gospel chords and choirs fall right in line with Chance’s exuberant singing and rapping. As a new father, the lyrical themes are manifestation, camaraderie, and joy. By eschewing record labels and inspiring the Recording Academy to change its rules for the Grammy Awards, Chance is embodying the transformation he wants to see, and building up other young people to believe that they can do the same.  - William E. Ketchum III 

Solange - A Seat At The Table

There's a meditative mood that defines A Seat At The Table. In its anger, despair and frustration, Solange articulates what are often interpreted as extreme emotions with an air of calm and lightness, backed by some of the most cohesive and compelling production of her career. Throughout the album's 21 tracks finds Solange exploring her experiences as a black woman in America. Her tone is assertive and powerful, but subdued: a voice of someone whose travels have made them weary but wiser nonetheless. Along her adventures she gets advice from Master P; gets Lil Wayne to provide one of the most captivating raps he's offered in recent years; dances with Sampha; and simply immerses herself in black brotherhood and sisterhood. To take a seat at the table comes with confrontation — an acceptance and awareness of the joys and pains that come with being black. You will cry; you will dance; you will sing — A Seat At The Table is therapy, and Solange our therapist. - Elijah Watson 

A Tribe Called Quest - We Got It From Here… Thank You 4 Your Service

A Tribe Called Quest experienced loss with the tragic death of founding member Phife Dawg, but they blessed their fans with a gift: the first Tribe album in 18 years. Q-Tip’s production gives the group a fuller, modernized realization of their stripped jazz/soul loops from the 90s, and the rappers - Q-Tip, Phife, a returned Jarobi, and extended family Busta Rhymes and Consequence - all lend inventive flows and lyrics that pack sentiment without ever fully letting themselves stay down. They address loss and tragedy with a composure and maturity that’s almost difficult to believe, but Phife wouldn’t have had it any other way. - William E. Ketchum III

Kaytranada - 99.9%

After years of heaters upon heaters being released on Soundcloud, stunning remixes of popular songs that have thoroughly circulated dance floors and transmitted through aux cords Montreal producer Kaytranada, born Louis Kevin Celestin, dropped his debut album 99.9%. From the smooth and vibe filled track “Bus Ride” with the stuttering drums of Karriem Riggins to the extremely danceable “Lite Spots” Kaytra knows exactly what he’s doing. The album has multiple features, all expertly chosen and executed bringing out the most of Kaytra’s often complex and thumping rhythms that often pay homage to the producer’s Haitian roots.  99.9% is stuffed with r&b, hip-hop, dance, and house all mixed into musical perfection. The vocals of Anderson .Paak, Vic Mensa, Little Dragon, Craig David, Gold Link, AlunaGeorge, and more act as another paint brush with which Kaytra utilizes to create a beautiful track, filled with rhythm and complex depth, and more so a beautiful album. - Abel 

Anderson .Paak - Malibu

It is no secret that Anderson .Paak & The Free Nationals were hella busy in 2016. From packing out our own Roots Picnic to jamming out in the house of black soul, Harlem's Apollo Theater — .Paak has become the new age Mr. Dynamite with his frenetic stage show and captivating songs. All this was thanks to Malibu, an effort loaded to the brim with creative imagery, swagger and a commanding presence that make you say, Yes Lawd!. For me, on a personal note, "Lite Weight" is it for me as my go-to-dance song and "Heart Don't Stand A Chance" still gets rotation in the AM or else Kevito comes into work a very cranky person. - Kevito

YG - Still Brazy

A lot has happened in the two years since YG’s breakthrough album My Krazy Life: he fell out with production partner DJ Mustard, and he barely survived a shooting attempt on his life. Meanwhile, police brutality against young people of color continued to intensify. YG wisely compacts that all into Still Brazy, a tense, G-funk-fueled meditation on “paranoia down in killer California,” as he says on the title track. Don’t let the sun, palm trees and funky Terrace Martin production distract you. Between his would-be assailant, leechy folks from his hood, rival bangers and racist police, YG feels like the world is out to get him. “And they wonder why I live life looking over my shoulder,” he grumbles at the end of album closer “Police Get Away With Murder.” It’s tough to blame him for such sentiments. - William E. Ketchum III

Danny Brown - Atrocity Exhibition

Danny Brown is so criminally slept-on that those still slumbering should be placed in captivity wearing Kanye West's inspired-by-Donald-Drumpf internment outfits. The leader of the Bruiser Brigade drops a dense, frenetic nuclear bomb of an album that features all the things hip-hop heads love: dope beats, competitive rhymes and feature guests who deliver inspired verses. From "Really Doe," which features some of the West's best on a track to "Downward Spiral," which samples Nine Inch Nails. Atrocity Exhibition is Danny Brown showcasing his rappity-rap abilities and proves why no one can flow over a beat quite like he can. Thank producer Paul White who is proven money alongside Danny Brown on the 10 tracks they work together on. With true-to-the-heart writing, stellar, otherworldly production. Atrocity Exhibition captures Danny Brown's honest-as-fuck hip-hop style and delivers as an entry in our best albums of 2016 list. - Kevito 

Childish Gambino - "Awaken, My Love!"

Childish Gambino, Donald Glover's musical persona, has been hard to take seriously at times, but at the very least with each release he's offered there's been an indication — a desire — to grow. Awaken, My Love! roars with a certain confidence and freedom that Gambino has been exploring ever since Because The Internet, but instead of diving deep into the wormhole of the world wide web, his latest album finds home looking for comfort in the sounds that raised him. Parliament-Funkadelic, Sly & The Family Stone — the funk drives Awaken and Gambino finds liberation in the funk. But in that sonic exploration also comes surreal but poignant commentary on everything from racial fear ("Boogieman") to being a father. Sure, you can accuse Gambino of pastiche (yours truly did), but if there's ever a moment of skepticism in which you wonder just how committed he is to this album, just skip to 2:40 of "Redbone." A scream like that doesn't come without dedication. Hopefully Glover is speaking to himself with the album title of Awaken, My Love! Here, we're witnessing the return of an artist who seems to finally be making the music he's always wanted to, looking towards the future while simultaneously celebrating the past. - Elijah Watson

Jamila Woods - HEAVN

Chicago, as it has for some time now, continues to make huge waves musically. Jamila Woods’ Heavn is no different. The difference that lies in Heavn, what sets it apart from others projects is it’s explicitly political nature, one that doesn’t come across as didactic, it is the political as personal expertly blended into stunning melodies. It proclaims an immersive love for black girls who have been told again, and again that they are not worthy of it. The proclamation that black lives matter is embedded deep within the album’s fabric. The blackness that vibrantly shines through the voice of Woods or the album’s lush soundscape is beautiful and triumphant, a refusal to succumb to a hate-filled world and to remain fiercely proud of one’s self. Heavn is a gorgeously powerful protest album that requires listening and re-listening, it will raise the hairs on your arm and make you raise your fist. - Abel 

Kamaiyah - A Good Night In The Ghetto

With the release of her debut mixtape, Kamaiyah, a mercurial talent armed with a laid-back flow and all of the braggadocio in the world, joined the Bay Area's elite. At first glance, A Good Night In The Ghetto is presented as the ubiquitous party-starter, a suitable score for intimate and blown-out affairs alike. The 16-track swagger suite glides on shimmering synthesizers and an icy 808 boogie, ample space for K to seduce and ruminate over jealous lovers. But the cap on AGNITG, "For My Dawg," maybe her brightest moment, pivoting towards introspection and mourning, where the libations are revealed to be as much coping method as celebration. A record with deceptive depth and feel-good G-funk anthems galore, Kamaiyah's debut proved to be nothing short of stellar, and even leaves room for growth. - Zo 

Schoolboy Q - Blank Face LP

A worthy submission for Best Albums of 2016 because Q, as you already know (link out to Staff Pick x Kevito Best Album), the Figg Side Crip gives audiophiles a merciless, heartless, psychedelic trip into some pretty dark territory. "Groovy Tony," "Dope Dealer" and "THat Part" were heavy hitters on the YouTube screens and playlists, but what really helped to showcase Q's growth as an artist were songs like "Summer Madness" and "Kno' Ya Wrong". Those latter tunes proved that Q is out here paying attention to more things than just a party or a robbery attempt, so with an engaging effort that pulls from different creative angles Blank Face shows why Groovy Q is a force to be reckoned with. - Kevito 

NxWorries - Yes Lawd!

With their debut as NxWorries, Anderson .Paak and Knxwledge crossed the streams to make a cinematic and deeply soulful record that feels like it could have taken a day or a year to make. Neither would be much of a surprise. The union of two respectively prolific artists always has an air of intricate spontaneity, a clear connection juiced by glances and facial expressions alone. The best duos had that creative telepathy, and Yes Lawd! is a potent example of the magic in those rare bonds. If you weren't swept up by "Suede" or  seduced by "Link Up," the full-length still provides ample charm. .Paak's vocal acrobatics are front-and-center throughout, but Knxw's crate-digging and king fu swing really carry this thing. Yes Lawd! is as much hot-streak sustenance for man-of-the-year as it is a deafening pronouncement of a new heir to the loop-digging throne. The type of record that incites sample excavations amidst plumes of weed smoke and heavy pours. - Zo 

Travis Scott - Birds In The Trap Sing McKnight

No, this is not last year's extravaganza, Rodeo, presented for the 2016 jockey camels just arriving late on the hype of Travis Scott. In fact, Trav's second studio effort sees him doubling down on the party by adding extra layers of creativity in production with ambition on guest appearances. This ramped up version offers intriguing flashes of visual candy, but leaves the finality of these scenarios to the listener. Can one find cell "service in the mountains" and still text their accountant? What is the law against spending a honeymoon in a brothel? Either way, songs such as "way back" and "beibs in the trap" do well to paint a picture of what Travvy is trying to sell: success. As aware he is of his impact in the game, Birds in the Trap excels as his best work to date and one of the best albums of 2016. - Kevito 

Rihanna - ANTI

Anti was one of the bravest and most compelling pop albums of 2016. Right from the beginning Rihanna had made a very explicit statement with the album's first single "Work": this is an album celebrating my heritage and, most importantly, me — and I don't give a fuck what you have to say about that. Here, we see the singer not only explore new sonic territories with an ensemble of popular music producers, but tread such a well crafted line between empowerment and vulnerability. Often times, those two characteristics are seen as separate — one cannot exist with the other. Yet, Rihanna struts with a confidence throughout the album's 13 tracks — from the sultry and sensual "Kiss It Better" and "Work," to lovelorn ballads "Love on the Brain" and "Close to You" — offering a duality that's not often afforded to black women in pop music. Plus, "Sex With Me" is one of the greatest fucking songs of all time.  - Elijah Watson 

Noname - Telefone

Light, ethereal, and delicate sounds populate Noname’s debut Mixtape Telefone. The ethereally jazzy sounds of Telefone are punctuated by the poetic force of Noname’s charming and endearing vocals. Lyrical, confessional, introspective, poetic, sometimes shattering, the words dance through the bleakness and despair of the world inciting an unexpected hope. Alongside the scenes of black pain and particularly the pain of black women of living in a doubly patriarchal and white supremacist society, there are moments of joy and resilience sweeping in and out throughout the lean but full ten-track album. Telefone is a splendid project through and through, a love letter to the Chicago MC’s city, one that is simultaneously loving and critical. - Abel 

Honorable Mentions: 

Frank Ocean - Blonde/Endless

KING - We Are King

Blood Orange - Freetown Sound

Isaiah Rashad - The Sun's Tirade

Beyonce - Lemonade

Robert Glasper Experience - ArtScience

NAO - For All We Know

De La Soul - And The Anonymous Nobody

Bon Iver- 22, A Million

Oddisee - The Odd Tape

James Blake - The Colour In Anything

BADBADNOTGOOD - IV

D.R.A.M. - Big Baby D.R.A.M