A couple of weeks ago, Apple Music’s list of the 100 Best Albums grasped the attention of music lovers. While the list includes its share of puzzling selections, it concludes with a generally uncontroversial top ten — finishing with Lauryn Hill’s classic, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. Apple Music’s list compelled me to create a similar ranking, but with a condensed selection of 25 albums — with one selection per artist. I wanted to curate a list long enough to showcase the totality of my musical interests while being forced to omit classic albums due to a lack of slots.
My criteria for selection was simple: which albums have had the most impact on me and continue to hold significant replay value? I found myself favoring the projects that display excellence in storytelling and production, each amplifying the artist’s theme or aesthetic. The list showcases how much my personal life has been influenced by music, and vice versa. Whether being the catalyst to expanding my musical palate or emotionally comforting me in ways people could not, my life’s story cannot be told without these records.
At times, being authentic was challenging. I constantly had to assess whether I was including an album because it resonated with me, without being swayed by its cultural reception/impact. Ultimately, I had to let my ear and taste in music get the final say.
See below for my favorite 25 albums of all time, with some notes.
- Voodoo (2000) — D’Angelo
Voodoo is nothing short of a musical masterclass — blending neo-soul, rap, and funk with genres from across the world. Unfortunately, the album’s brilliance is undermined by its most popular track, “Untitled: How Does it Feel.” D’Angelo guides the listener on an erotic journey that ends in a fiery climax with passionate screams that resemble Prince. The music video adds to the sensuality as he seductively stares at the camera without closing, playing to his physical attraction while forcing the viewer to imagine the parts of his body that are beyond the frame. “Untitled” made D’Angelo a star, the embodiment of sex, but left little room for Voodoo to get the praise it deserves.
Voodoo is an album with no limits. D’Angelo contrasts moments of sensuality with heartbreak — see “The Root” and “One Mo’Gin”. Tracks like “Chicken Grease” are rooted in the funk, with the baseline enticing listeners to move their bodies at its command. Few albums display an excellence quite like Voodoo, with D’Angelo being the anchor that prevents its ranging sounds from feeling out of place.
D’Angelo is a combination of the greats before him — blending Ronald Isley’s smooth demeanor, Teddy Pendergrass’ sultriness, Sly Stone’s funk, and Prince’s audacity to push the boundaries. Voodoo is an immortal project for its ability to combine the best pieces of our past in a manner that has yet to be replicated.
If we look past our desire to be him or be with him, we are left with the most musically complete album of all time.
2) When I Get Home (2019) — Solange
I recently wrote about the album, and what it means to me.
3) To Pimp a Butterfly (2015) — Kendrick Lamar
My favorite rap album of all time, with its beauty lying in concepts the public has yet to fully grasp. The themes relating to race are easy to identify — especially following the death of Mike Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. “Alright” became the protest anthem, but is filled with nuances that escape the listener.
“Painkillers only put me in the twilight. Where pretty pussy and Benjamin are the highlight” — Kendrick Lamar (Alright)
“Alright” finds Kendrick rebuilding himself after reaching his lowest point on the preceding track, “U”, which finds the Compton-rapper grappling with the loss of a friend in a drunken state. Though the track became an upbeat call to millions, on the album it functions as Kendrick’s emotional pivot. From there, songs like “Momma” and “Complexion” continue his effort to break free from the emotional and mental scars of his newfound success, and those he left behind.
The contrast between tracks is what drives To Pimp a Butterfly’s greatness, making it the most layered storytelling in rap history.
4) Mama’s Gun (2000) — Erykah Badu
Badu followed her immensely popular debut album, Baduizm, with a project that plays in the spaces between genres. The traditional grooves of neo-soul are still prevalent throughout Mama’s Gun, but Badu delights in moments when the tempo is slow. “Cleva” and “Time’s a Wastin” showcase the massive strides Badu made as a composer, finding ways to utilize instruments like the flute to amplify her lyrics. “Green Eyes” best encapsulates the growth of Badu and is one of the most beautiful R&B songs I’ve ever heard.
5) Midnight Marauders (1993) — A Tribe Called Quest
Midnight Marauders feels like hip-hop in its purest state, with a simplicity that never fails to delight. The ability of Q-Tip and Phife to balance flexing their individuality while never straying too far is remarkable — see “Electric Relaxation,” my favorite rap song ever.
6) Pronounced Jah-Nay (1994) — Zhané
My favorite 90s R&B album checks all the boxes. Pronounced Jah-Nay features a plethora of upbeat hits, but equally shines in moments that rely on their ability to harmonize singers — which is increasingly rare today.
7) Bubba (2019) — Kaytranada
Holding my thoughts as his next album is coming soon (June 7).
8) Straight from the Heart (1982) — Patrice Rushen
A beautiful album from start to finish. Patrice Rushen is in total control, with a clarity of voice and direction that is blissfully euphoric.
9) Covert Coup (2011) — Curren$y
A staple of my teenage years, that only gets better with time.
10) Fantastic Vol 2. (2000) — Slum Village
Before commercially successful hits like “Selfish” and “Tainted”, Slum Village was a gritty rap group. There’s a pleasant symmetry in Fantastic Vol 2. between the unusual styles/deliveries of Baatin and T3 with the transcendent production of J Dilla — who also displays a lyrical creativity that often goes unnoticed. Collectively they use the beats as a guide to showcase their ability to be as refined (“Go Ladies”) as they are rugged (“Jealousy”).
11) Nefertiti (1967) — Miles Davis
The album that sparked my appreciation of jazz. Each track is composed to perfection, with the quintet mastering the delicate balance of being complimentary while adding indispensable flair.
12) Music on My Mind (1972) — Stevie Wonder
Stevie Wonder has a knack for writing about love and loss that sticks with you. His drawn-out notes on “Seems So Long” present a level of desire that is heart-wrenching. In my view, Stevie Wonder has the most impressive discography of all time — with Inversions, Songs in the Key of Life, and Hotter than July receiving equal consideration for selection.
13) Forever, Ya Girl (2020) — keiyaA
Forever, Ya Girl is maybe the most demanding album I have ever heard. Its musical and vocal layerings are a hyperactive masterpiece. Its erratic sounds and unusual tempos contrast keiyaA’s pointed storytelling on womanhood. It’s the album that sounds closest in direction and sound to When I Get Home.
14) Black on Both Sides (1999) — Mos Def
I discovered Black on Both Sides in high school through my father. It features a grit that is often associated with New York hip-hop while pushing the boundaries with melodic tracks like “Umi Says”.
15) Supa Dupa Fly (1997) — Missy Elliott
Supa Dupa Fly is liberating through its presentation of sex that has no limits, giving women the space to explore sexual relationships as men. Throughout the album, Missy is unafraid to seek sexual pleasure with no strings attached. We have to acknowledge the courage this requires as a curvy dark-skinned woman. Somehow, time has yet to catch up to Supa Dupa Fly or Missy’s unique artistry.
16) My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (2010) — Kanye West
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (MBDTW) was the album I debated most about including. It would be disingenuous to downplay how the culture revolved around its release following the “Runaway” video and the creative release of the G.O.O.D. Friday singles.
Yet, I find myself struggling with the album — which is an extension of my frayed relationship with Kanye West. MBDTW, along with Kanye’s early production/albums/features, felt uniquely connected to Blackness. Kanye is one of the most brilliant musical minds of all time, but it’s increasingly difficult to enjoy his earlier work without comparing it to what he has become today.
17) Couldn’t Wait to Tell You (2020) — Liv.e
I’ve written extensively about the Dallas singer on various platforms.
18) Fancy Dancer (1975) — Bobbi Humphrey
If you like jazz, especially the flute, this gem is for you.
19) Travel Team, Vol. 3 (2022) — Wakai
Wakai dropped my favorite album of 2023 (Some People Scream, Some People Talk), and it’s nowhere close to Travel Team, Vol. 3.
20) Flower Boy (2017) — Tyler, the Creator
Tyler, the Creator’s output this decade is second to none. Flower Boy remains his most impressive album, combining his skillful production with a vulnerability and honesty that has made his subsequent work equally as enjoyable/refreshing.
21) Disco! (2021) — MIKE
Wrote about this album a couple of years ago.
22) Choose Your Weapon (2015) — Hiatus Kaiyote
If you’re ever curious about the intersection between neo-soul and rock, Choose Your Weapon is a great starting point.
23) Donuts (2006) — J Dilla
I will defer to this amazing video (thanks, Ian) — which explains how Dilla changed music and permanently altered how I listen to instrumentals.
24) A Love Supreme (1965) — John Coltrane
A Love Supreme is the first time jazz evoked an emotional response from me. Coltrane’s exaggerated saxophone solos on “Acknowledgment” feel like an extension of the human voice, conveying hope, optimism, and exhaustion.
25) Anthology (2013) — Knxwledge
Before listening to Knxwledge, I only believed bass and drums could keep tempo on instrumentals. Beats like “Insite” showcase how creative sampling makes everything revolve around the timing and tone of the sample.
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Hardest Cut: Illmatic (1994) — Nas
