The Inflection Point

My Top 10 albums of 2023: Overall, a generally down year for music it feels like. I’m not sure why – maybe the streaming services, maybe a lack of rap stalwarts. Regardless, amongst a hectic year of life in Charlotte, travelling Europe, and of course, increasing stockholder value, here’s my top 10.

10. Lil Yachty: Let’s Start Here

So Yachty starts over. It’s a tremendous growth from the man, almost as if he looked in the mirror and asked how he could stay relevant. Grabbing Alex G, Kevin Parker, and more of the tremendous psychedelic scene provided great beats – and there are some actual great songs loaded in here. The chorus and bridge of “drive ME crazy! is some of the best stuff I’ve heard all year. Yachty makes a compelling case for starting here.

9. Noname: Sundial

A girl has Noname. Years after making sure Kanye, J Cole, and the rest of the modern rap scene took account of who she was, Noname comes back half a decade later with an album that holds no boundaries and knows no names. Everybody is fair game in Noname’s sight, including herself. You won’t hear a better verse this year than her calling out Jay-Z, Beyonce, and Kendrick Lamar as hypocrites before turning the mirror of self-reflection upon herself. It’s the modern age of rap – who can help who? And just what is the industry of rap meant to inspire in the 21st century?

8. Killer Mike: Michael

Killer Mike finally gets his victory lap. He includes all of Atlanta / Southern Rap. It’s Killer Mike’s time to flex, many years after his underground prowess. He proves yet again, you either Run the Jewels, or lose your fingers. His magnum opus leaves nothing to be disappointed at.

7. Dominic Fike: Sunburn

Modern pop music is a tough scene. Fike leaves behind all the meandering and lack of focus of previous EP’s/Albums and enters here with an album to finally make everyone take him seriously. Calling upon Weezer and others enhances the album – proving that the millennials still have their fingers correctly on the pulse of pop music. Fike demonstrates himself to be among the best at the moment of connecting with the audience.

6. Slowthai: Ugly

Slowthai has never been un-abrasive. Here he connects, spilling a tell-all about his recent success and the pitfalls he’s found immediately within. A therapeutic session, anchored by a switch-over to alternative and indie rock, gives Slowthai a fresh breath and creative platform to work with. Standouts include the crazed, drugged out opener Yum, alt-jammer Sooner, and the overall reckless vibes Slowthai takes throughout.

5. Paramore: This Is Why

Hayley Williams and Co. are back after a long hiatus. It’s fun. It’s catchy. It’s timely. Williams again solidifies herself at the top of the alternative music mountain in terms of songwriting. Songs like This is Why and Running out of Time immediately get bumped into the Paramore’s Greatest Hits collection.

4. Westside Gunn: And Then You Pray For Me

“I SWEAR PARIS WILL BE PRAYED FOR”. The highly anticipated follow-up from Artist, Designer, Producer, and “Curator”, Mr. Westside Gunn, from his 2018 Pray for Paris album, inspired and designed by the late, great, Mr. Virgil Abloh, and contender for best rap album of the past five years. Here, Gunn again plays conductor, allowing fellow artists and Griselda cohorts to take the limelight, and while some of the southern rap anthems here venture far from the Griselda schtick of shiny, cocaine era art samples, the finished product remains certain. With a JID verse of the year included, the FlyGod continues his flight up the rap pantheon.

3. Drake: For All The Dogs

Drake is tired. Drake is exhausted. Drake is at a creative dead-end. Drake simply doesn’t care anymore. The 6 God knows anything he touches will go platinum, and why spend more time than needed? You want excess songs for money? Have them. You want a deluxe addition to grab the headlines and articles? Sure. Who cares about quality? Why care about the art itself? Here he plays it all out, and even a mid-tier Drake album can deliver. Some of Drizzy’s best songs in a few years (see Tried Our Best, Drew a Picasso, 8AM in Charlotte, Daylight, and What Would Pluto Do?) are scattered throughout.

2. Oddisee: To What End

I must admit I had not heard of Oddisee. Despite his longevity in the underground rap world, his relative unknown status for his 10th studio album caught me by surprise. A lot of this album reminds me of Open Mike Eagle, and Oddisee’s nimble, clever, and self-reflective raps, along with the incredibly sublime and subdued production throughout, makes this one of the most enjoyable and replayable albums of the year.

1. 100 Gecs: 10,000 Gecs

Shit slaps. No music this year has been more fun, modern, or loud. I can’t think of any other music that can accurately describe the post-modern landscape of endless tabs, videos, and stimuli that we currently live in. Endless replays for any circumstance. Give me 100,000 Gecs.