2009 was a good year for music, despite what people might have you believe. This year saw some veterans follow up their previous releases with heavy hitting albums, and artists that seemingly came from nowhere and dropped HEAVY albums. Hit the jump to check my favorite albums from this year (this list was hard to compile, and I’m tired of typing!)
Mayer Hawthorne – A Strange Arrangement.
I love this album. The first time you listen you won’t believe it was made in 2009 as it hearkens back to the golden era of northern soul. Mayer Hawthorne came exploding onto the music scene after a clever heart-shaped vinyl release for his first single “Just Ain’t Gonna Work Out” became a consistent sell out at music stores (I mean really, who else is moving VINYL right now?). I highly recommend you pick this up, and make sure you catch his live show if it comes to your city, it’s one of my favorite shows of the year also.
Ryan Leslie – Ryan Leslie
I was playing this album non stop when it first released and if you ask me, it’s one of the most consistent R&B albums of the decade. You have to respect that R Les crafts these songs from the ground up, from production to writing and then to singing. Aside from the album, his branding and marketing skills are brilliant. Convincing existing fans to point new fans in his direction and rewarding them with gifts are just one of the ways he is educating people like me on how to grow a movement organically. Make sure you pick this album up as well as his latest effort, Transition, which dropped in October.
Kam Moye – Splitting Image
This was one of the most consistent hip-hop releases of the year (and I’m not just saying that because I’m Kam’s DJ!). This is a very relate-able album as Kam shifts his focus to stories about honest relationships, depression, and the directions life can take you via the concept of karma. It ends with a Marco Polo produced banger, Forever Fresh, just to let you know it’s not all sweet and that he still has bars. Check the video for Let’s Be Honest, which was recently nominated to be added to mtvU’s rotation. Don’t sleep on this one.
Raekwon – Only Built 4 Cuban Linx Pt II
To say this was an anticipated album is quite the understatement. Hip-hop fans have been waiting for years for this followup, and I know I’m not the only one who shares the opinion of it being worth the wait. This album is a great display of classic wu style, with consistent production throughout and enough street stories to fill a book. Personal favorites from this album: Pyrex Vision, Surgical Gloves, Broken Safety, & New Wu.
Clipse – ‘Til The Casket Drops
The clipse don’t make bad albums, a point they solidified with their third studio release. This is another highly anticipated release as the clipse have built a reputation around intelligent street rap, something that is hard to come by these days. Although they used a small handful of outside producers, the neptunes still handled the bulk of the production, and that’s fine with me (the formula works!). This album also marks a bit of a change for the clipse as some of the later tracks on the album hint at life changes and new subject matter. I think All Eyes On Me could have been left off but even with that blemish, this still remains a near perfect album. Personal favorites from this album: Doorman, Popular Demand, Showing Out, Never Will It Stop, & Life Change.
Diamond District – In The Ruff
Diamond district took us by storm this year when they initially dropped this project for free early in the year. The group consists of Oddisee, XO, and yU. The concept of the album lies behind what a mid-90s era hip-hop album from DC would have sounded like. As you can expect from that description the end result is gritty beats and the trio’s tales of life in DC. My favorite track: Streets Won’t Let Me Chill, where Oddisee states: “developed a mic voice / cause if it don’t work, i gotta go to work and get a job with my white voice, and that ain’t the right choice” – what musician can’t relate to that?
Rick Ross – Deeper Than Rap
You might be surprised to see this on my list, but this is truly a solid album. The j.u.s.t.i.c.e. league put down some thorough and consistent production on this one, lacing banger after banger. Subject matter is exactly what you’d expect from Ross, but at least he is still maintaining his position. Favorite tracks: Maybach Music 2, Gunplay, and Usual Suspects
Tanya Morgan – Brooklynati
Been followin these fellas for a few years now, and they definitely dropped one of the year’s best. It’s hard to describe the Tanya Morgan formula beyond dope beats and rhymes, but what more do you need, right? Consistent production (*insert backcrack sound*), dope rhymes, and strong guest appearances are a formula for success. Maybe that’s the TM formula? Favorite tracks: Morgan Blu, Never 2ndary, On our way, So damn down.
Tab One – The Tabloids
Tab passed me an advance copy of this one night. I put it in my car’s deck that night, and I swear it didn’t leave for two weeks. Front to back, there isn’t a track to skip on this one. Tabloids just gives off that feel good vibe that I used to get back when the NC scene was bubblin’ so heavy early on in the decade. Put this one in when you wanna vibe out and just enjoy being here. Would you expect anything less from the Kooley High fam? Favorite tracks: This way, So it is, Tell us the truth, Land of the brave.
The most amazing thing about this album is that it’s FREE FOR DOWNLOAD
Keelay and Zaire – Ridin High
This is definitely one of the year’s more underrated releases. The west coast bounce is represented in FULL throughout the entire disc. The production on Ridin High is ridiculously thorough, in fact I don’t think there’s a weak joint on here. I had the pleasure of touring Cali with Keelay this summer and I made sure to let him know this joint HELLA SLAPS (on my bay shit!). I play this just about every time I’m on an airplane. The vibe you get from soaring above the clouds and listening to this isn’t really something I can describe in words. Favorite tracks: I’m on swerve, Addicts for real, Cali 2 NY, I used to ride, Alright with me, Wake up (and it was hard to just pick those. Seriously, make sure you cop this album)
I’m gonna end my list there. Truthfully, A LOT of good music was released this year and it was hard to keep up with it all. Some people may read this and say what about album x or album y? Honestly, I can’t listen to everything that comes out, I wish I could though. Some stuff that probably should be on here, probably isn’t . But that’s why it’s just a list of my favorites, just stuff I played a lot when I got it. I hope you found some stuff you might not have heard before. Drop a comment and lemme know what your favorites were this year. Next up is gonna be my favorite mixtapes of the year (there were a lot of those too!) so stay tuned!
