The Best Albums of 2022

Image via Complex Original

Label: 88Rising/Warner Records

Released: November 4

It feels strange to describe an album with song titles like “Die For You” and “Feeling Like the End” as soothing, but that’s exactly what Smithereens is. Full of calming melodies and lush beats, Joji’s latest LP is the kind of project you’ll want to put on at the end of a stressful day and play from top to bottom. Since transitioning from YouTube fame, Joji has made major leaps forward with each project, fine-tuning his skills as a songwriter, vocalist, and producer. Smithereens is his best, most complete work to date. Come for the beautifully haunting vocals on “Glimpse of Us” and stay for the deceptively hard-hitting “1AM Freestyle.” He can do it all. —Eric Skelton

Label: Never Broke Again, LLC/Atlantic Records

Released: October 7

If you only have time to play one of the seven projects that NBA YoungBoy dropped this year, we strongly recommend 3800 Degrees. He’s in peak form on the 13-song mixtape, ferociously barking over hard-hitting production (“Won’t Step On Me”) and belting out addictive melodies (“Hard”) to equal success. This is the most experimental project we’ve ever heard from YoungBoy. On  “Handle One,” he stretches his voice to such extreme proportions that he barely even sounds human, making it emphatically clear he’s still evolving (and nowhere near the end of his current hot streak). He even got an E-40 feature, just to keep you on your toes. —Eric Skelton

Label: Duars Entertainment/Sony Music Latin

Released: November 11

Rauw Alejandro is the Latin Urban market’s new pop prince who is on his way to becoming a household name. At the tail end of the year, Rauw released Saturno, a project that shows and proves Rauws creative range is far more than anyone thought. With the overall theme being centered around the otherworldly, Saturno takes the listener for a galactic ride from start to finish with beats and rhythms that are disco-house on “Dime Quien????” to classic beats from the 90s on “Dejau’.” Saturno is an album you’re going to have to get used to hearing online and on Latin dance floors. —Alejandro De Jesus

Label: Dreamville/Interscope

Released: February 25

At the heart of EarthGang Ghetto Gods is soul. The Atlanta duo specializes in making music that fills your spirit, and the 17-track project shows their skill at bending the boundaries of rap as they infuse it with R&B and neo-soul. On Ghetto Gods, EarthGang demonstrates an ability to write their own story without having to rely on their Dreamville commander-in-chief J. Cole. That being said, standout tracks like “Waterboyz” featuring Cole and JID finds the Fayetteville rapper delivering one of his best verses this year, while other songs like “American Horror Story” and “Amen” featuring Musiq Soulchild bring different flavors out of the duo that fit all occasions. As EarthGang continues to navigate the industry, Ghetto Gods is a shining example of how they will proceed down their own path, and not one charted for them. —Jordan Rose

Label: Lost Kids Venice Stem

Release Date: July 8

“Everybody talkin’ bout R&B shit, I’m just talking me shit,” Brent Faiyaz says confidently on his breakout 2020 project, Fuck the World. Much has changed in Faiyaz’s life since the critically acclaimed EP hit the streets before COVID, but the Maryland singer is still authentically himself on his 2022 endeavor, Wasteland. Faiyaz lives his truth on Wasteland, and with the help of Drake, Tyler, the Creator, Alicia Keys, and more, he strings together a complicated story about the price of fame and self-indulgence. “I’m rich as fuck but I ain’t nothin’ at the same time,” he bellows on “Rolling Stone,” encapsulating a core theme of the album: Everything that glitters ain’t gold. —Jordan Rose

Label: Interscope Records

Release Date: August 12

Every generation has its musical legends: Stevie Wonder, Biggie Smalls, 2Pac Shakur. Wave hasn’t reached that stature yet, but his latest studio album, Beautiful Mind, shows that no ceiling is too high. Wave is one of the most elite melodic rappers in the game right now because of how he’s able to make his pain sound beautiful. The album’s outro, “Cold December” puts all of Wave’s skills on full display as he sings about his heartache in a way that sounds both relatable while still talking about situations that are unique to him. Beautiful Mind develops his sound past previous projects like his third studio album Soulfly and is much more grounded. The Florida singer makes his melancholy feel relatable, which is why he commands a legion of lovesick fans. —Jordan Rose

Label: Saba Pivot, LLC

Released: February 4

Saba is a multi-hyphenate creative who has many talents, but at his core, he’s a storyteller. The Chicago artist allows his tales of family, self-discovery, and success to spill into every record on Few Good Things, as lush instrumentation helps guide us through the stories. These confessions are raw in some moments, like on “Survivor’s Guilt” featuring G Herbo, and revelatory in others, like on “Still” with 6lack. Through it all, Saba never sounds satisfied. Few Good Things distills his determination as he delivers one of the clearest snapshots of his life thus far. Like in previous albums, Saba’s strong family ties inform how he shapes songs and how he sees the world, to thrilling results. —Jordan Rose

Label: Field Trip Recordings/Geffen Records 

Released: September 9

When Yeat first blew up, he was closely associated with rage beats—a high-energy, synthy production style that’s been used by everyone from SoFaygo to Trippie Redd to Playboi Carti. But on Lyfë, Yeat raps on rage beats sparingly, choosing instead to flex his versatility over eccentric production. This shit sounds like something a Martian would rap over. Forming a tight bond with BNYX, who produced half of the project, Yeat gleefully chirps as many zany ad-libs and off-the-wall one-liners as he can, while pulling off some of his sturdiest melodies to date. As weird and experimental as Yeat can get, songs like “Talk” and “Can’t Stop It” are among his most accessible yet, hinting that his mainstream ceiling might be even higher than we once thought. —Eric Skelton

Label: RCA Records

Released: July 22

You Still Here, Ho? is an adventurous and fun album that finds Alabama’s it-girl flexing her rapid flows and witty bars over hypnotic beats. The project follows a unique concept, drawing inspiration from popular VH1 and MTV reality TV shows from the early 2000s (I Love New York, Bad Girls Club). But the 22-year-old balances the vintage influences with refreshing skits and timely themes on relationships and womanhood. What’s most memorable about this project is Flo Milli’s aggressive delivery on vicious singles like “Bed Time” and girlish and confident performance on other anthems like “Conceited.” From 2020’s Ho, Why Is You Here? to 2022’s You Still Here, Ho?, Flo Milli has continued to show her promise as a rising star to watch. —Jessica McKinney

Label: Drumwork/Griselda/Shady/Interscope

Released: February 25

With critically acclaimed albums like La Maquina and From King to a GOD under his belt, Conway had already reached the upper echelon of rap lyricists before making God Don’t Make Mistakes, and he could have coasted if he wanted to. But he’s not the kind of guy to take it easy. Instead, he pushed himself to go even harder and made the most introspective, well-rounded album of his career. Throughout the project, he peels back the curtain on his personal life, sharing stories about getting shot (“Guilty”) and grappling with the deaths of family members (“Stressed”). He mixes this in with the usual hard-edged grit we’ve come to expect from Griselda (“Bruiser Brody”) and even throws in some streaming-friendly gems (“Scatter Brain”). His Shady Records debut has it all. —Eric Skelton

Label: Tan Cressida/Warner Records

Released: January 14

Earl Sweatshirt has always taken the road less traveled. He has no desire to romanticize his memories, instead allowing stories to spill from his brain as they are. Thus, Sick! sounds like an audible collage of snapshots from different points in his life. The edges aren’t rough, they’re just wrinkled, as he meticulously tears away at the seams of his youth, irons them out, and puts them to rhyme. This patchwork is reflected throughout Earl’s varying rhyme schemes and deliveries on the album. The Alchemist and Black Noi$e offer the perfect easel for these images, with each beat cutting deeper into the membrane of our collective psyche. Sick! fills in the blanks regarding where Earl has been over these last few years. “2010” transports us to his mom’s house while she’s playing Liz Claiborne, while “God Laughs” gives us a closer look at what his present looks like. Earl is filled with nostalgia but doesn’t let the past jade him, and Sick! makes it clear that he’s still figuring out how to navigate through life, one unbalanced step at a time. All of his thoughts are written in shorthand, making them difficult to understand at times, but the album is also digestible and lends itself to multiple listens with a concise 24-minute runtime. If Sick! has any overarching message, though, it’s that we need to experience the world ourselves in order to make sense of it. If Earl can do it, you can, too. —Jordan Rose

Label: Cinematic Music Group

Release Date: July 22

Joey Badass is strongest where his roots reside, and in his third studio album, 2000, the Brooklyn rapper reflects on his life and career while paying homage to one of his most pivotal mixtapes, 1999. The spiritual anchor of 2000 is Capital Steez—Joey’s best friend, former Pro Era labelmate, and rapper who took his own life the same year 1999 dropped. Badass honors Steez on “Survivor’s Guilt”—a sequel to their track “Survival Tactics”—and while he demonstrates his musical growth throughout the project, Joey still finds time to remind listeners why he pushes forward. Long live Capital Steez. —Jordan Rose

Label: Atlantic Records/Bird Vision Entertainment

Released: November 18

Roddy Ricch rose to prominence with his 2019 debut studio album Please Excuse Me for Being Antisocial. He was undoubtedly one of the best new artists at the time, but in the last year, he struggled to recreate the magic of his debut. On this year’s Feed Tha Streets III, however, Roddy has returned to greatness. On the 15-track project, Roddy Ricch delivers new slick, melodic bangers like “Blue Cheese” and “No Rest” that rival his early commercial hits. But he also finds balance by throwing in some of his more vulnerable records such as “Letter To My Son” and “Heavier,” which examine thoughts about his family, fame, and mental health. This project is a balanced body of work that demonstrates Roddy’s versatility as a creative and his complexity as man. Feed Tha Streets III may have a skippable song or two, but it still flows smoothly and is a more than satisfactory entry in his discography. —Jessica McKinney

Label: Quality Control Music

Released: October 14

The best version of Lil Baby is when he is both honest and vulnerable with his raps. On It’s Only Me, Lil Baby gives us our fair share of just that. On tracks like “Real Spill” and “Russian Roulette,” Baby paints a vivid picture of what his superstar lifestyle looks like right now, while making it clear how much his past played into his path to stardom. Lil Baby also shows he’s committed to expanding his craft on this project as he toys around with new flows and beats on tracks like “Heyy.” It feels like the highs of the album would’ve felt higher if it was trimmed to 18 or less songs, but even so, It’s Only Me feels like a welcome addition to Lil Baby’s discography. —Stefan Breskin

Label: TDE/Interscope Records

Released: August 5

A title like She/Her/Black Bitch is a little jarring at first glance, but once listeners hit play on Doechii’s EP, it all makes sense. The project isn’t but five songs long, but it is just as bold and sassy as its title. Swinging from sultry R&B vocals on “Persuasive” to pop-infused house music on songs like “Bitch I’m Nice,” Doechii brings her versatility to center stage. The project draws clear inspiration from female rap muses Nicki Minaj and Azealia Banks, but also demonstrates Doechii’s creative and artistic choices. Paired with daring instrumentation, heavily produced by TDE producer Kal Banx, Doechii delivers feisty bars and flows. She/Her/Black Bitch is meant to be a pit stop on the road to Doechii’s debut album. If this is what she can do with only five tracks, it will be exciting to see how she will deliver with a full LP. —Jessica McKinney

Label: RCA Records

Released: March 25

Listening to Buddy, whether that be on social media or on wax, it’s difficult not to adore him. And his new project Superghetto gives us even more reasons to love the endlessly charismatic Compton rapper. The title itself suggests a very distinct sound, but what you’ll actually find on the album is a collection of versatile, fun, and eclectic styles. “Hoochie Mama” is your “ratchet” twerk bait; “High School Crush” is your Gen Z prom anthem, and “Wait Too Long” is your west coast cruising record. With just 10 tracks and a 32-minute runtime, Superghetto isn’t here for a long time, but it’s definitely a memorable moment that’s bound to get each and every listener out of their seats. —Jessica McKinney

Label: Quality Control Music/ Motown

Release Date: October 7

Familial ties are stronger than money, fame, or jewelry because they last forever. That is the central message of Quavo and Takeoff’s first and final album as Unc & Phew, Only Built For Infinity Links. “With us, it was really family that kept us strong,” Quavo told Complex. The sudden and tragic passing of Takeoff makes the themes of Infinity Links hit home even more, with every song tapping into either the duo’s childhood (like sampling Outkast’s “So Fresh, So Clean’’) or their bond, like on the album’s intro. Takeoff may be gone, but Only Built For Infinity Links proves that the Migos family ties are infinite. —Jordan Rose

Label: Motown

Release Date: October 28, 2022

Smino has become a master at creating worlds using his unique and eclectic St. Louis sounds combined with his signature melodic rap flavors, and his third studio album, Luv 4 Rent, builds upon the universe he’s already created. Sucking other artists from different planets into his orbit, every piece of this project fits with each other, from Lil Uzi Vert adopting a unique flow on “Pudgey” to Doechii stealing the show on “Pro Freak.” Luv 4 Rent proves that Smino doesn’t need to change his style to fit larger stages. He’s able to shine while being himself and this album reminds others to do the same. —Jordan Rose

Label: Freebandz/Epic Records

Released: April 29

On I Never Liked You, Future leans into his persona as the “toxic king.” Songs like “For A Nut” give the people what they want (sometimes to a fault) as he delivers sleazy bars over classic trap beats and anecdotes on his reckless rockstar lifestyle. At times, his beat selection suffers from monotony, and this won’t go down as the best or most unique album in his discography, but Future is at his best on I Never Liked You when he explores the duality of his toxic behavior and his desire to find love. —Jessica McKinney

Label: Columbia Records

Released: March 18

There have been very few projects released this year as charming and immediately enjoyable as Rosalía’s third studio album, Motomami. Just as she sings on standout ballad “Hentai,” the most confessional record in her discography is “so, so, so, so, so, so good.” With assistance from everyone from Michael Uzowuru to Tainy to Pharrell, her impressive cast of collaborators help bring her futuristic vision to life on the 16-song album. Motomami—dishing on themes of fame, femininity, and love—manages to feel whole despite playing around with all kinds of sounds, like pitched-up vocals on “Diablo,” pretty organ licks on “G3 N15,” and a sensual feature from The Weeknd on single “La Fama.” It’s been a few years since Rosalía has gone global, and this record’s legacy just might take her to planets even outside of our own. —Brenton Blanchet

Label: Atlantic Records

Released: May 20

Ravyn Lenae has made a name for herself by delivering a series of impressive EPs and offering her vocal talents to assist other artists, but on her debut studio album, HYPNOS, she unleashes the gauntlet. Through 16 songs, Lenae flexes her range and delivers tracks for both lovers and friends. Every song on the album has layers to it, with lush melodies and bridges that put her in a league of her own right now. Throughout the tracklist, she makes it clear that her love is fleeting, so every moment shared with her should be cherished. HYPNOS is a truly beautiful album, and it represents a landmark next step in Ravyn Lenae’s already promising career. —Jordan Rose

Label: Forever Living Originals

Released: November 1

Sault’s projects serve as a sort of sonic soul food. “Let the love set me free,” is the heartcry that kicks off this collection, and the motto at the center of all of their work. At times soothing (“Fight For Love”) and full of blissful release (“Together”) at others, this project beckons the listener to view love as a form of rest and action. Filled with sweet melodies from the likes of Cleo Sol and Little Simz, this album was released at the tail-end of the year as a part of a five-album surprise drop—initially a password-protected .zip file, now available across streaming platforms. This project, like others from the cohort, is a reminder of music’s healing power. —Ecleen Luzmila Caraballo

Label: CMG/Interscope Records

Released: November 11

GloRilla is the woman of the moment. After the success of her breakout single “F.N.F. (Let’s Go) and “Tomorrow 2” featuring Cardi B, the Memphis rapper has a lot riding on her debut EP under Yo Gotti’s CMG Label. The 22-year-old admitted to Complex that she felt a lot of pressure surrounding her EP. But it’s safe to say that Big Glo delivered all the way. The project includes three of her pre-release singles including “Nut Quick,” but the project doesn’t rest on her past success. GloRilla also delivers a handful of potential radio hits with “Blessed” and “Get That Money.” Her thick and husky Southern accent makes her one of the most memorable voices in the game right now. At her best, Glo is aggressive yet girlish, suggestively raunchy, but cryptic in her wordplay and delivery. GloRilla may be full of contradictions, but one thing you can’t deny is that she’s one of the hottest rappers out right now. —Jessica McKinney

Label: Griselda Records/EMPIRE

Released: March 10

Buffalo’s own Benny the Butcher wears his city on his back and his heart on the brim of his perfectly adjusted fitted, as he tears through songs on the fourth installment of his Tana Talk series. With a penchant for high-level bars, Benny takes us on another trip down his familiar streets as he tells new stories from the vantage point of his foreign vehicle, instead of his father Johnny P’s Cadillac. The best moments on Tana Talk 4 are where Benny challenges himself, like when he spars with J. Cole on “Johnny P’s Caddy,” or takes on Biggie’s classic “10 Crack Commandments” and puts his own pen to stone to make additions on “10 More Commandments.” And the most frightening thing (for his competition, at least) is that Tana Talk 4 reveals Benny the Butcher is only getting better with time. —Jordan Rose

Label: RCA Records

Release Date: November 11, 2022

It was a difficult task for Wizkid to find a way to build upon his stellar 2020 album, Made in Lagos, but the Nigerian singer managed to do it on More Love, Less Ego. As the name implies, Wizkid gives love a sonic identity with rich saxophone instrumentation that is paired with his mesmerizing voice. While the album’s central theme is humility over hubris, songs like “Balance” find Wiz reminding listeners that he can still talk slick and make it sound sweet. More Love, Less Ego is ultimately the culmination of personal growth meeting musical maturation to create a complete record. —Jordan Rose

Label: Warner Records Inc.

Released: April 8

Omar Apollo is one of those artists who is highly slept on, but whenever someone listens to his music for the first time, they are easily hooked forever. Ivory, Apollo’s debut studio album is a perfect introduction to his sound. The album is a culmination of the singer’s musical influences—from electro-pop to alternative R&B. And, even as he draws inspiration from different genres, the sound sounds authentic to him. Apollo commands attention with his haunting vocals that are played up by transformative instrumentation. A lot of artists are being marketed as “genre-bending” these days, but with this album, Apollo truly shows that he can be put into any box. Ivory is a lengthy debut with 16 tracks, and only two features (Daniel Caesar on “Invincible” and Kali Uchis on “Bad Life”), but it still manages to keep listeners’ interest with electric and emotionally-rich music. —Jessica McKinney

Label: Atlantic Records

Released: January 14

FKA Twigs isn’t looking to be understood, she’s looking to be free. From the onset of her career, it’s been clear that Twigs is on a shapeshifting path all her own. Collaborating with the likes of sound benders like Arca and Devonté Hynes in the past, she’s admitted to have gotten lost behind production on projects prior. On this album’s predecessor, Magdalene, we see the beginning of that mold breaking and the result is a vehemently vulnerable career standout. With Caprisongs, Twigs finds an unlikely yet fitting partner to unleash her dashingly disenthralled artistic era in Spanish producer El Guincho. After what may have been perceived as a public undoing and a further shedding of layers for an otherwise quite private artist, this album is effortless and never over-thought, and therein lies its beauty. Caprisongs is the heartcry—and joyous release—of a creator who is and has it all because she’s caught wind of that most relished kink: freedom. —Ecleen Luzmila Caraballo

Label: Erskine Records Limited

Released: May 20,

Harry Styles feels like he’s finally right at home. Just a few tracks in, you get the sense that Harry is less concerned about creating that next radio earworm (which he did anyway) and more focused on expanding his skills as an artist. We already coined “As It Was” as one of the songs of summer for 2022, but that was just a sampling of the catchy, vibrant and mature offerings on this album. Off the rip with “Music For A Sushi Restaurant” and “Late Night Talking,” you can hear Harry let the classic rock and indie influences melt away, as the 70s and 80s pop influences shine through over a bouncy selection of beats and infectious synthesizers. This feels like Harry’s most honest and intimate work, while also his most fun and colorful. —Stefan Breskin

Label: Warner Records

Released: September 30

I wasn’t sure what to expect when this tracklist dropped. The producers and guest features were eclectic and unexpected to say the least, but they worked. This was the “major label” debut Gibbs has always wanted to make. With a couple of classics with Madlib already to his name, he has a proven track record at this point in his career. Often, major label albums give us bullshit radio filler, but this wasn’t that. Cohesive and lyrically aggressive, $oul $old $eparately is a Freddie Gibbs album, without a doubt. In fact, it’s one of his best. Tracks like “Too Much” featuring Moneybagg, “PYS” with DJ Paul, and “Gold Rings” co-starring Pusha T are the standouts on this impressive “major label” debut. —Angel Diaz

Label: DMG

Released: January 21

“I’ve always treated songwriting like a conversation,” Che Noir told Complex earlier this year, and if her albums are discussions, Food For Thought is one of the most nourishing, life-affirming talks we heard all year. The Buffalo rapper-producer focuses on food and biblical themes throughout the 12-song project, spitting with precision as she fills each verse with thoughtful observations and clever truths. Each song is better than the last, featuring guest appearances from peers like Rome Streetz and Armani Caesar, and the whole thing builds up to an emotional finale, “Communion,” anchored by one of our favorite rap verses of the year. —Eric Skelton

Label: YSL Records/300 Entertainment

Released: January 7

There’s a reason Gunna was able to surprise much of the music industry and outsell a global pop star when he released DS4EVER in January. Since emerging half a decade ago, he’s perfected an addictive sound that has an almost liquid quality to it. On songs like “Alotta Cake,” he floats on top of the beat, rather than powering his way through it, and his melodies have a way of washing over you. This fluid approach is part of the reason his music performs so well on streaming services, but unlike the bland playlist-bait that some of his peers release, Gunna’s songs succeed because of his ability to pepper each song with eccentric catch-phrases and unique observations (the ultra-viral “Pushin P” is the most obvious example of this, but it’s far from the only one). And by now, it’s no secret that he has one of the best ears for beats in the business. When DS4EVER dropped, Gunna was truly on top of the world, which makes the news of his RICO indictment even more difficult to grapple with. With each album, he brought more joy into the world, and it’s extremely unfortunate to think of him sitting behind bars right now in a case that uses his lyrics as evidence. —Eric Skelton

Label: Stones Throw Records

Released: September 9

Brittney Denise Parks is a force. After a timidly confident and tall introduction via 2018’s critically-acclaimed Athena, Natural Brown Prom Queen is both an unexpected and natural follow-up—adept at interpolating positively audacious lyricism and ornate composition that mimics no one but honors and beckons home to many; it re-introduces the multihyphenate as an undeniable great. Traversing a multitude of moods, this album is a mere glimpse of an artist with a seemingly infinite well of range. If there was any doubt of the Ohio native’s prowess—and the power of a Black/Brown queen (who, in this case, ironically didn’t go to prom), this album is either a slap, an affirmation, or both, depending on which angle you come at it from. Exiting this project, it’s nearly impossible to put it, or Sudan Archives, near the word “average,” but if for some reason you felt inclined, she reminds you on the title track (over 36 times) that she is not. —Ecleen Luzmila Caraballo

Label: Atlantic Records

Release Date: June 24

If anyone thought that real rhyme-spitting was becoming a dying art, Lupe Fiasco’s Drill Music in Zion quieted those comments. Lupe is no stranger to stringing together complex rhyme schemes and concepts into a cohesive project, but his eighth studio album finds the Chicago rapper in rare form. Everything about the album is artistic, from the spoken word delivered in the intro by Ayesha Jaco to the soulful jazz production juxtaposed with heavy-hitting bars like a trumpet bellowing trap adlibs. With Drill Music in Zion, Lupe bridges the gap between backpackers and club promoters yet again. —Jordan Rose

Label: Def Jam Recordings

Released: June 3

070 Shake’s sophomore album is a spine-tingling experience from top to bottom. Mike Dean’s fingerprint is all over this album; his dreamy synths and hard hitting drums paired with Shake’s woozy delivery of self-reflective tales of love make for an intoxicating 49 minute journey to some alternate reality. Shake shines brightest on tracks like “Skin and Bones” and “Body” where her vocal performances add yet another dimension to an already otherworldly arrangement of synths. ‘You Can’t Kill Me’ is euphoric, dark, enchanting, and cinematic all at the same time, making for an overall beautiful piece of work. —Stefan Breskin

Label: Love Renaissance/Interscope

Released: June 17

Maturation is impossible in an echo chamber. Westside Boogie breaks a cycle of trauma and repeated mistakes on More Black Superheroes, an album dedicated to Black mental health. Beyond repeatedly advocating for more Black people to go to therapy (!!), Compton-born Boogie uses his second studio album to tell the story of how he reached this point, against all odds. In beautiful fashion, Boogie strings together stories about his upbringing and dealings with love to prove that anyone can heal, no matter where they’re from. —Jordan Rose

Label: Red Bull Records

Released: April 22

To put it simply, Blxst’s Before You Go is feel-good music for the soul. It feels like an R&B album at heart, but it will appeal to the classic rap fans as well, and it’s the kind of music you can throw on at a kick-back, but it’s much more than just background music. It’s calming, but evokes movement. Some of the best moments on the album are when Blxst’s vocals are paired with horn-based instrumentals, and the 13-track project truly has no misses. Over the last year or two, Blxst has become one of rap’s go-to guest vocalists, but Before You Go makes a great case for why he deserves to be up front and center. —Jessica McKinney

Label: Mass Appeal Records

Release Date: November 11

At 49, Nas is only getting better. His go-to collaborator, California legend and talented producer Hit-Boy, struck gold once again on the third installment of their King’s Disease trilogy. The project is a surgical display of rhyme-spitting and storytelling. Throughout its 17 songs, King’s Disease 3 spends an equal amount of time reminiscing as it does looking ahead, which is most evident on tracks like “First Time.” The production is a combination of soul samples mixed with more modern beats and helps King’s Disease breathe so that the gravity of Nas’ bars can be felt. Who said rap is a young man’s game? —Jordan Rose

Label: OVO Sound & Republic Records

Released: June 17

Honestly, Nevermind, which took Drake “six, seven months to make,” finds him swerving left and fully embracing dance music, and doing so with admirable execution. The strength of the album lies in its production, which blends dance, house, and Baltimore club with contributions from the likes of Gordo f.k.a. DJ Carnage and Black Coffee, the latter of whom also had co-executive producer duties. “Massive” lives up to its name in sound, “Sticky” cuts up the dance floor to great effect, and the summertime vibes are present throughout. Lyrically, Drake keeps things relatively light, at times yearning for what was lost in past relationships through a somber croon. At 14 tracks, it’s a smooth listen with enough replay value that should see it run up streams when warmer months arrive. A slight detour from the rest of Drake’s catalog, Honestly, Nevermind keeps things interesting for an artist still looking to evolve in his mid-30s. —Edwin Ortiz

Label: GDF Records/The Freeminded Records/EMPIRE

Released: March 25

With just 11 tracks, 2 P’z in a Pod is a concise body of work that plays into Jay Worthy and Larry June’s penmanship expertise and strong ears for beats. If you were to guess this album was created in the ’80s, no one could fault you, and the whole thing has a timeless quality to it. The duo float over an excellent selection of soulful beats from LNDN DRGS producer Sean House, capturing the regality and rawness of decades past. The guest features list, which includes appearances from CeeLo Green and Roc Marciano, only adds to the appeal, helping to make 2 P’z in a Pod a dark horse for one of the best rap albums of 2022. —Jessica McKinney

Label: ALC/Pimpire International

Released: August 26

“He can’t keep getting away with it!” is what the Roc Marciano detractors say to themselves in the mirror whenever the god drops another masterpiece. This time around, Marciano came through with Alan the Chemist to bring the game another set of scriptures to live by. On track four, he boasts, “You know my body quality over quantity/He couldn’t possibly made another quantum leap/Top of the heap, ask my colleagues.” Every time he’s on that mountain and that burning bush talks to him, you know he’s coming back down with that shit that’ll make you question who’s really the true and living god mc. He and Alchemist are a match made in heaven and you take away new lessons with each listen. Play these jewels and get your life right. —Angel Diaz

Label: PH/Loma Vista Recordings

Released: March 25

Denzel Curry’s fifth studio album is an exercise in introspection. Traumatic events in society, as well as in his own life, led Denzel to take inventory of his own unfiltered thoughts as he realized he had more to say following the release of Zuu and Unlocked. On this project, we hear a version of Curry that is more in tune with himself as he unpacks a lifetime of trauma, calls out the world for its flaws, and conquers his demons over a series of softer jazz, neo-soul, and traditional hip-hop type beats. On “Walkin’” Denzel exhibits his resilient approach towards life despite all of its injustices, which he expands upon on “The Last” as he tackles recurring racial issues. His invited collaborators—Slowthai, Robert Glasper, Buzzy Lee, Karriem Riggins and more —help paint Denzel’s most cohesive piece of work to date. —Stefan Breskin

Label: Dreamville Records

Released: August 26

Most stories start at the beginning, but JID likes to tell his tales backward. The Dreamville rapper’s highly anticipated third studio album, The Forever Story, delivers his origin story and fills in the gaps so listeners can understand how he became the rapper and man he is today. The album is split into two parts—with the first half touching on JID’s upbringing and the second on how his familial relationships shaped his outlook on life and fame. He is able to teleport listeners to these different childhood moments, and with elite instrumentation, JID makes us feel like we’ve been there with him the entire journey. When you flip the number 8 sideways, it also makes an infinity symbol, bringing the album’s themes full circle. —Jordan Rose

Label: OVO Sound

Release Date: November 4

What do Drake and 21 Savage have in common? On paper, besides being wealthy rappers, absolutely nothing. It’s in the unlikeliness of their union that they find and create something special with their first collaborative project, Her Loss. While the album sounds like a Drake project featuring 21, it still manages to include some of their most recognizable attributes, like Savage’s patented mob talk, Drake’s hyper-specific flexes and petty disses, and enough one-liners for fans to have Instagram captions until 2023. Ill-advised shots sent at Megan Thee Stallion spoil the party, but despite its missteps, Her Loss still reflects some of Drake’s most complete music in the last few years. —Jordan Rose

Label: L-M Records/RCA Records

Released: July 15

When some people think of Steve Lacy’s Gemini Rights, their minds immediately go to his No. 1 single “Bad Habit,” but this project is so much more than just its commercial hits. True to a Gemini’s propensity to juggle a variety of passions and interests, Steve Lacy’s 10-track project plays with a variety of sounds from rock to funk and R&B to jazz. It’s a fun summer jam session that also finds depth in exploring relationships, heartbreak, and identity. Though there is a lot of complexity in its composition production, the music itself (and songwriting in particular) is so straightforward that it reaches a diverse audience. Aside from its chart-topping single, other tracks like “Give You the World” and “Static” were also compelling potential hits. Gemini Rights is for the spots where all the cool kids go. —Jessica McKinney

Label: XO/Republic Records

Released: January 7

The Weeknd’s Dawn FM is a fully-realized concept album that goes hand and hand with After Hours. On his critically-acclaimed 2020 album, Abel embraced darkness and mania, but on the follow-up, he emerges in a different light. Dawn FM is a road trip to the other side of darkness, and it’s pop gold, full of retro pop beats and stylized radio skits courtesy of Jim Carrey, which fulfills our need for nostalgia. The Weeknd’s charisma and hopefulness provide a refreshing new perspective on an artist who was once known for his drug-induced music that gained traction on Tumblr pages. Not everyone will get Dawn FM, especially the fans who are still attached to his early-era aesthetic, but it’s an album that will only build on the legacy of a global superstar. —Jessica McKinney

Label: Motown Records/Blacksmith Records

Released: April 8

The best communicators can get even the most layered of points across in very few words. That’s what Vince Staples accomplishes in 41-minutes on Ramona Park Broke My Heart. His autobiographical fifth studio album takes listeners on a trip down memory lane with Vince through Long Beach’s more rugged corners as the West Coast rapper discusses how street violence has affected him and his people. Staples gives his hood an extended moment of silence by way of Long Beach bounce, using his grumbling flow to immortalize the darker side of the Golden Coast. The heart of Ramona Park lies in “When Sparks Fly,” on which Staples raps in the first person as he talks to a lethal weapon to illustrate the insidious relationship guns have with his community. This project is special, because it’s a tale specific to Staples, but also one far too familiar to anyone else who grew up in similar circumstances. —Jordan Rose

Label: Parkwood Entertainment

Released: July 29

Renaissance is arguably one of Beyoncé’s most ambitious projects to date. The album samples and draws inspiration from Black dance and house music of the 80s and 90s, but Beyoncé does not rest on the work or legacy of anyone else. Beyoncé is a wizard when it comes to sampling, but the album’s cohesive mixing and seamless transitions are excellent, thanks in part to the producers behind the scenes such as The-Dream, Mike Dean, Nova Wav, and many more. On “Break My Soul,” Beyoncé transforms the sample of Robin S’ “Show Me Love,” blending the original 1990 hit New Orleans bounce and New Jersey house sounds. On “Alien Superstar,” the veteran singer interpolates the 1991 single “I’m Too Sexy”—the result is a dreamy and whimsical dance track. And it didn’t seem possible, but Beyoncé manages to outdo herself vocally. She switches from powerful ballads that feature hypnotic runs and ambitious notes to hip-hop records that flex Queen Bey’s rap side. Beyoncé is one of the most popular, wealthy artists in the world but by paying homage to the more under-appreciated and underground sounds of Black and queer communities, as well as incorporating that speak to the working class, the Texas darling has made her music even more accessible and relatable to fans. Dance and house are hardly new genres, but her album effectively brought the underground genres to the mainstream spotlight. With Renaissance, Beyoncé and her team produced a modern classic. And to think, Renaissance is just the first album of Bey’s three-installment series. —Jessica McKinney

Label: G.O.O.D. Music/Def Jam Recordings

Released: April 22

Pusha T has dedicated himself to the pursuit of precision. Instead of overwhelming us with long, overly complicated verses, he stays very to-the-point and delivers his messages bluntly. Rarely wasting a bar, most of his tracks are under three minutes long, and he takes a surgical approach to songwriting, leaning into a less-is-more philosophy that runs throughout his discography. Staying true to this ethos, he recently returned with It’s Almost Dry, an album that delivers on the promise of being “more well-rounded” than his 7-song album DAYTONA, while still remaining remarkably concise. After all, with a new son in his life, Push says he’s “very precious of my time” these days. As he explained to Complex, “I don’t have time to play.” It’s with this mentality that he pulled off a concept that could have been unwieldy in a lesser artist’s hands: an album that’s produced half by Pharrell and half by Kanye West. Making clever use of the strengths of each collaborator, Push gives us the best of his two worlds as he raps over an equal mix of hard-hitting, bass-heavy joints from Pharrell and soulful, sample-driven gems from Ye. At this point, Pusha T knows exactly who he is (the coke raps are still here, and just as effective as they’ve ever been) and his formula is only getting more fine-tuned with time. He’s still revealing new layers of his personal story (“Brambleton”) and trying out new sounds (“Scrape It Off”) without losing himself in the process, or wasting a second while doing it. In the streaming era, where we’re hit with unnecessary playlist bait every Friday, It’s Almost Dry is a refreshingly lean album by a self-aware artist who knows what he does well. —Eric Skelton

Label: Rimas

Released: May 14

In May 2022, Bad Bunny took over the summer with Un Verano Sin Ti. Like its heartbroken album cover, this project is mainly about singing the pain away but also, somehow, promises an amazing time. During his 2022 US stadium tour of the same name, which broke records as the most profitable tour for any artist, Bad Bunny encouraged listeners to experience the album as a party. His fourth studio album showcases his maturity—both personally and sonically as we hear him use different sounds, rhythms, and beats to continue demanding the audience’s attention. In “Yo No Soy Celoso” he shares a bossa nova vibe while “Apagon” highlights traditional Puerto Rican plena over lyrics that express frustration on social issues, a roots reggae song that keeps the tropical vacation energy going (“Me Fui de Vacaciones”), and “Tití Me Preguntó,” which uses dembow to make the song of the summer. With Un Verano Sin Ti, Bad Bunny takes over everything in its path just like the sun on a Puerto Rican beach. —Alejandro De Jesus

Label: Top Dawg Entertainment/Aftermath Entertainment/Interscope Records/pgLang

Released: May 13

The thrill of today can become a faint whisper tomorrow. Kendrick Lamar’s offerings—particularly those of the last decade—have never known that plight. His projects (which need I remind you include the Pulitzer Prize-winning DAMN., and the canonical good kid, m.A.A.d city), serve as cultural staples many moons later, challenging the ways in which we love and think. With Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers, it’s ever clear that, although he is willing to quite literally tap dance to the beat of the drum of what is expected or even demanded of him, Kendrick is not a “Savior.” Instead, he asks, “If I told you who I am, would you use it against me?” The question is, of course, rhetorical, as his acquired wisdom lies in the pursuit of more—personally and professionally—and the willingness to be imperfect in the process makes him all the more human to the listener, which in turn serves as the project’s most enriching quality. After 1,855 days, the GOAT returned with an anarchic collection of songs birthed from a place of sweet self-awareness—both in how he is perceived and who he knows himself to be. On its introductory track, “United in Grief”—a timely and multitude-holding triad of words in and of itself—we hear a poetic unraveling of the Compton-native’s thoughts, which are then further shared unsparingly as the album runs. That grief is later cushioned by the pleasures of having a “Rich Spirit” full of bountiful boundaries and a “Die Hard” essence. In that dance, and the fine balance of being both known and in continued maturation, Kendrick is imperfectly perfect. —Ecleen Luzmila Caraballo