I feel like 2025 had some ups and downs in terms of music that I listen to or would want to listen to. I think I spent a good chunk of this year just listening to older stuff. Some projects I was excited for didn’t live up to the hype, but there were also some sleepers. Overall, for me, last year was just solid with some highs. If it’s not on this list, I just didn’t get around to it, or I was left disappointed. The two biggest “snubs” are probably Let God Sort Em Out by The Clipse and God Does Like Ugly by JID. Just real quick, I was disappointed in both of these albums, even though they have a few of the best songs of the year (The Birds Don’t Sing, Community, Gz, and VCRs). My problem with the Clipse album is that it is very formulaic, and a lot of the beats sound dated. Malice is a superstar on here, though. The second half of JID’s album is just too meh compared to how strong it started. So yeah, that’s my gripes with those, and onto the list.
I limited myself to only 5 favorite tracks at most because in previous years I got a little wild. Also the highlighted track is my favorite.
#13 – Addison by Addison Rae
Favorite Tracks: Diet Pepsi, Aquamarine, Summer Forever, Times Like These, Headphones On
This came out of left field. For someone my age, I am currently and really have always been not so in the loop with social media personalities. So I’ve known of Addison Rae and what she did prior to making this shift to music, but knowing of her is really it. I think I also listened to the first song that she dropped years ago that people clowned and thought it was just eh. I was surprised to find that I actually enjoyed a good portion of this album. Now look, I fully accept that this is a case of surprise and expectation vs what we got, but even taking that away, this is some really solid pop music, with some surprising bangers like Diet Pepsi and Headphones On. She has clearly come a long way since her first release and has really put effort into becoming a better vocalist. This could easily be a flash-in-the-pan moment, but this album hits.
#12 – STAR LINE by Chance the Rapper
Favorite Tracks: Star Side Intro, Ride (feat. Do or Die), No More Old Men (feat. Jamila Woods), Gun In Yo Purse (feat. Young Thug & TiaCorine), Letters (feat. Rachel Robinson)
I wouldn’t say I was ever a big, big Chance fan, but I really enjoyed his output from 2013-2017. Albums, loosies, features, he was killing it. Then 2019 happened, and despite him dropping some really great tracks since The Big Day, he had never really fully recovered from the mess that was that album and the drama around it. This album, however, is a serious return to form. Everything that propelled this man to the top almost a decade ago, he showcases again here, while also showing some genuine growth and introspection, sprinkling in that Chance weirdness. I had a really great time with this album, and it makes me happy for him and excited for whatever he releases next.
#11 – BELOVED by Giveon
Favorite Tracks: MUD, RATHER BE, TWENTIES, STRANGERS, KEEPER
I love Giveon. This man has a once-in-a-lifetime voice, and he knows how to use it. His brand of RnB is so soothing and really hits the soul. I don’t love this album as much as his previous output. A few too many songs blend into each other, but it does complement the vibe. And the songs that do stand out are simply amazing. Strangers is one of this man’s best songs, and that’s saying something because he has a crazy catalog. This is a really solid album, though.
#10 – HURRY UP TOMORROW by The Weeknd
Favorite Tracks: Wake Me Up (feat. Justice), Cry For Me, Baptized In Fear, Niagra Falls, Red Terror
For an album on this list, I’m going to be a bit negative. Mainly because I have been a fan of The Weeknd since 2012. I’ve experienced all of his eras. He is one of the greatest artists ever. So the bar for him is high, and this album really didn’t come close to reaching that bar, BUT it’s still solid. His albums tell a story in themselves, but also as a whole. You could draw a through line from House of Balloons to this album, and obviously, this album exists as the 3rd of this second trilogy, so it has strong ties to After Hours and DawnFM.
I enjoy the themes on this album about fame and being kind of over it, but feeling for the fans. But the songs themselves are kind of eh. There are some really strong moments on here, though. Wake Me Up and Cry for Me are sensational openers that seem to set this up to be something great, and it falters from there, but there are some more moments sprinkled throughout, like the incredible Red Terror. I think this album is fine. I find myself coming back to a handful of songs and appreciating the idea behind them. I just think this sound he has been on this decade, peaked with After Hours, and if he is to continue making music, I’m ready for something new.
#9 – Finally Over It by Summer Walker
Favorite Tracks: Robbed You (with Mariah the Scientist), No, 1-800 Heartbreak (with Anderson .Paak), Heart Of A Woman, Get Yo Boy (with 21 Savage)
One of the queens of rnb. I became a fan of Summer Walker pretty late relative to when she was really blowing up, but her last album blew me away, and I’ve loved her music since. The best way I can describe this album and her music overall is soulful and ghetto. Which, at its heart, is as old school rnb as it is. There’s no doubt she has lived a life, dealing with relationships, family, pregnancy, and anxiety. She really speaks from a place that’s real to her always, and that’s felt through her voice and her music. Disc 1 is stronger than Disc 2, but even that still has some great songs on it. Summer is just an essential RnB artist of the past decade, and she keeps delivering.
#8 – KPop Demon Hunters Soundtrack by Various Artist
Favorite Tracks: TAKEDOWN, How It’s Done, Soda Pop, Golden, Your Idol
The first soundtrack on this list (but definitely not the last). These songs are heat. Every time I heard a fire track, I thought it couldn’t get better, and they kept getting better until the end of the movie. I wasn’t even that big of a fan of Golden when I watched, but hearing it constantly made it grow on me. Your Idol is still the best song on here, though. That’s the best thing about this soundtrack: it really has it all. Hits, sleepers, bops, slower songs. I can put this on anytime and just jam. Great album.
#7 – Sinners Soundtrack by Various Artist
Favorite Tracks: Seance, I Lied to You, Pick Poor Robin Clean, In Moonlight, Last Time (I Seen the Sun)
Soundtrack 2/3. I had no clue that there would be as much music in this movie as there was going into it, and man, what a journey. Every track tells a story. There are so many fun and emotion-packed songs in here that just take me back to when I saw this in theatres. And I Lied to You is just an actual insane musical arrangement that really shouldn’t work, but does so well. Miles Caton is all over this, and he has a voice on him. Not to mention getting songs from Jack O’Connell and Hailee Steinfeld. Any soundtrack Ludwig touches is always going to be special; this is no exception. An amazing soundtrack to an amazing movie.
#6 – $ome $exy $ongs 4U by PARTYNEXTDOOR & Drake
Favorite Tracks: MOTH BALLS, CRYING IN CHANEL, SPIDER-MAN SUPERMAN, NOKIA, DIE TRYING
No hate to PND, I have actually always enjoyed hearing him, but never really listened to a full project of his, but this goddamn album is the reason why he was in my Spotify Wrapped, and I hate it. Besides that, I loved this album. Drake has been releasing his best rnb cuts over the past few years, and having an album almost full of that was a treat. He and PND have always been a great compliment to each other, and that’s in full force here. I go back to so many tracks on this album, there are just too many memorable, singable, and quotable moments and tracks not to. This feels album feels like its a cover. A snowy day in Toronto and its great.
#5 – MAYHEM by Lady Gaga
Favorite Tracks: Disease, Garden Of Eden, Zombieboy, Love Drug, Shadow Of A Man
Gaga fandom was thrust upon me two years ago because my girlfriend is a super fan. It was a shock to us all when she released Die With A Smile with Bruno Mars, and even more shocking when she announced her album right after. I was actually pretty lukewarm on this when I first listened to it, but man, did it grow on me. The highs on here are so damn high, and even the songs I don’t particularly jive with are still solid. What really takes this over the top for me is that I got to see her perform this live in Chicago, and she is just a phenomenal performer. That show was a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and it gave me a new way of looking at the album, and I’ve come to really love it.
#4 – EUSEXUA: Afterglow by FKA Twigs
Favorite Tracks: Love Crimes, Wild And Alone (feat. PinkPantheress), HARD, Touch A Girl, Predictable Girl
Spoiler alert: the original album is a few spots higher than this. This gets its own position on this list because it’s pretty much its own thing. A whole extra album and the songs that she added to what was already an amazing album are just as amazing in their own way, and somehow the weirdest music that she’s released, but it’s all a vibe and still somehow sexy. Love Crimes is one of her best songs, and what an opener it is.
#3 – HEARTS SOLD SEPARATELY by Mariah The Scientist
Favorite Tracks: Sacrifice, United Nations + 1000 Ways to Die, Eternal Flame, Burning Blue, Like You Never
This is like compact greatness. I don’t think this album is over 35 minutes long, but all 35 of those minutes are some of the best rnb out right now. I’ve always loved Mariah’s vocals, but have never really dug into her discography. This is the one right here. There have been long stretches of time last year where I would literally just loop this album. Hell, on the plane to and from Chicago to go see Lady Gaga, this was all I listened to. I could never get tired of this album. She has a special voice that really works for this modern rnb sound. Tracks 1-6 are something special. This album has a lifetime rotation spot.
#2 – EUSEXUA by FKA twigs
Favorite Tracks: Eusexua, Girl Feels Good, Perfect Stranger, Drums of Death, Wanderlust
As long as I’ve been doing these lists, Twigs has had a spot on it. I have been craving new music from her since 2022, and this was my most anticipated album for last year, and it didn’t disappoint. I love how someone with such a beautiful voice and pen isn’t afraid to get weird with it. All of her work tells such an enthralling story. This one in particular is very sexually free and, in turn, spiritually free. And it’s clear that’s the journey that she has been on for a while now, and through her lyrics and voice, you can tell it has been a long road. I love all 11 tracks on this album; it’s something that took me a while to digest, and I’m still somewhat doing that. For someone who released one of the greatest pieces of music ever (MAGDALENE), it amazes me how Twigs is still able to put out such quality and tell her story in her own way. To me, this is the second best project shes put out and would be my album of the year if it weren’t for…
#1 – Wicked: For Good – The Soundtrack by Various Artist
Favorite Tracks: Thank Goodness/I Couldn’t Be Happier, Wonderful, No Good Deed, The Girl in the Bubble, For Good
The short and sweet of it is, I’m a sucker for musicals. The singing and storytelling on these tracks enthrall me so much. I can literally vividly visualize the moments in the movie that pair with each moment of each track. Yeah, this doesn’t have Defying Gravity on it, but it has the next best thing. No Good Deed is absolutely amazing. And almost just as good as Defying Gravity. As I said in my movie review, this soundtrack, from top to bottom, is what makes me love it. There’s not a song I would skip. It’s full of amazing moments and performances. It’s just as much of a spectacle as the movie itself.
