My buddy @playbwah (follow him on Twitter) is probably one of the most avid music listeners you'll ever meet. He put together a list of the top ten albums from the past year. He has such a knack for music critique that I decided to put it on here for you all. Debate amongst yourselves or with @playbwah on twitter. To see and comment on the original post on Facebook, CLICK HERE Now. Partake:
Top 10 albums of 2009 (No Particular Order)
1. Kid Cudi ~ Man On The Moon
Cudi shocked a lot of people with this album (including myself). Some people thought it was "too emo" but I could identify with his story, so I felt it, and he experienced with sounds on it to make it a truly unique & enjoyable album
Top joints:
Cudi Zone
Hyyer
Sky Might Fall
2. Maxwell ~ Blacksummernight
Maxwell took the music scene by storm with his random cameo & haircut on the BET awards for the Al Green tribute. But this man lived up to the hype with his last album. This joint defines smooth...good look for a special night with ya lady friend. *Wink wink*
Top joints:
Badhabits
PrettyWings
Stoptheworld
3. Mos Def ~ The Ecstatic
Someday we will give Mos his respect as a lyricist....and as an actor (but thats a whole other story), this album is all over the place, but somehow it still all works.
Top joints:
Auditorium (ft. Slick Rick)
History (ft. Talib Kweli)
Roses
4. Raekwon ~ Only Built for Cuban Links 2
When everyone was checking for Blueprint 3..another hip-hop vet dropped a well anticipated sequel. The chef continues exactly where OBC41 left off..with bangin production by Dre, Pete Rock, Alchemist...and of course the RZA.
Top joints:
Sonnys Missing
Kiss The Ring
About Me (ft. Busta Rhymes)
5. Rick Ross ~ Deeper Than Rap
As many of you may know im an avid Rawse fan...why you ask?...because he's the BAWSE. On a more serious note Ross put out a great album this year & smashed 50 in the beef, when it came to music because "Before I Self Destruct" was a ticking time bomb.
Top joints:
Maybach Music 2
In Cold Blood
Valley of Death
6. Royce da 5'9 ~ Street Hop
In my opinion Royce da 5'9 is the best rapper out of Slaughterhouse (debatable) but he proves why he's a top MC with this album. Wiity rhymes, hard beats, and sometimes disturbing imagery, prove why Royce can battle with his Caucasian counterpart for the King of Detroit.
Top joints:
Shake This
Mine Is Thiz
Gun Harmonizing
7. Ryan Leslie ~ Transition
Honestly I didn't really listen to R Lez before this album, and dude really proved something to me with this album. It's smooth, Neptune like production, make you feel like you're riding on a starship wave of love listening to it. And I say that with the utmost masculinity.
Top joints:
Something Like That
When We Dance
Promise Not to Call
8. Skyzoo ~ The Salvation
I say this with a stone cold serious face...if you don't know about Skyzoo...get familiar like...yesterday. Skyzoo has always been an ill lyricist to me, but he really brings it home for me with this album. Flawless victory
Top joints:
Under Pressure
Maintain
Dear Whoever
9. Snoop Dogg ~ Malice in Wonderland
The big homie from the west who is probably just as old as all our uncles drops another album. To be honest I didn't have much hope for it after I heard "Gangsta Love" w/ Dream, but Snoop really surprised me with this album. He made a solid album that can bang in the whip pre-club & he even found a way to make Lil Jon relevant again on "1800".
Top joints:
Pronto
Upside Down
I Wanna Rock
10. Wale ~ Attention Deficit
I'll be honest, I was hard on my dude Mr. Folarin when I first heard this album. But after listen after listen...he really did his thing on this one. Song after song...not afraid to explore any topic... killin every track lyrically (although he got SLAYED by J Cole, but we'll save that convo for another day) Kudos...way to bring life to the DC music scene man...I know the DMV is proud.
Top joints:
Beautiful Bliss
Shades
Mama Told Me
Honorable Mention:
1. Dream- "Love V/S Money" One of my homies told me this joint was ill...and honestly, it's a lot better than I gave it credit for. Great album by the walking Teddy Graham known as the Dream.
2. Fabolous- "Loso Way" It really hurt my heart not to put one of my favorite rappers Fab on the top 10 this year. He put out a GREAT album, and did everything the critics said he couldn't do, story telling, being sincere with his rhymes, talking bout more than money & sex, etc. But unfortunately it was just a great year for music...,maybe next time man
3. Slauhgterhouse "Self-titled"-Man I struggled not to put this on the list. Lyrically this may be the hardest album that came out this year, but I just couldn't put it over anything else on this list that I enjoyed listening to a little bit more.
Album of the Year (Don't Hit Me)
My album of the year is.............
Skyzoo ~ The Salvation Click on song links below to listen:
First off: If you've never heard the album, don't even talk to me. Like don't argue with me like i'm whylin when you have no basis for your argument. Listen to it &; then we'll talk, now this is why:
Honestly for me it was b/w this Man on the Moon, Street Hop, &; Attention Deficit. I chose Skyzoo because he combined great production, with phenomenal lyrics that you sometimes had to rewind 4-5 times back to see what he was saying, and it sounded better EVERY TIME.
Skyzoo also explored all different types of subject matter and did it effortlessly without sounding preachy (which was my problem w/ Wale "90210" sounded like a weak PSA..dont hit me) Skyzoo went through the typical "im ill and can spit tracks", tracks about relationship issues, he wrote a track where he battles his reflection in the mirror, and he also wrote a track to HIS NOTEBOOK "Dear Whoever" like who does that!
At the beginning of the album Skyzoo stated "I didn't aim to make a classic, I aim to state what happens, if the outcome gets praised then blame the havoc"...coming out of one of the worst recessions in US history...I guess Skyzoo can thank the havoc for making a classic &; beautifully arranged hip hop masterpiece.
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