Lilac Burrell, Features Editor

 

1.) Funk Wave Bounce by Calvin Harris (2017)

Funk Wave Bounce was a great DJ album to vibe to. When “Slide” dropped in late February 2017, I fell in love with everything Calvin Harris released after. The singles were great but the way Harris brought together most of 2017’s hip-hop and pop — Frank Ocean, Migos, Travis Scott, Pharrell, Snoop Dogg, Nicki Minaj, Big Sean, Katy Perry and etc — reserves any top tier DJ and 2010’s music list.

Cosign: Jair Hilburn

 

2.) Because the Internet by Childish Gambino (2013)

“Because the Internet” released on my birthday in 2013, but I wouldn’ hear it in its entirety until 2015. I remember sitting in my high school art class studying cubism and perspective with “Urn” and “Flight of the Navigator” and “Life: The Biggest Troll”. I’d sprinkle tracks in playlists after my initial hype came down, but fell in love again when I got to college and identified with “I. The Worst Guys”. After my first semester I was summed up by the whole verse ending with “smart guy” because that was my reality… and I felt like a smart guy.

 

3.) Wolf by Tyler the Creator (2013)

As discussed in my “IGOR: Growing with Tyler”, WOLF was the first album I listened to all the way through. I skipped school to listen to it and felt personally connected with Tyler, thus motivating my love for him now. It basically started my personal music journey and has a special place in my heart. It hits close to home with “IFHY”, “Treehome95” and “Lone”, especially “Lone” after this year.

 

4.) Blonde by Frank Ocean (2016)

Blonde is one of my favorite albums of all time. When Blonde was first released I didn’t have Apple music. The girl I talked with at the time would facetime me at night, play Blonde on a speaker and we fell asleep for 14 days straight sleeping and waking up to Blonde together over the phone. Unlike most albums, my feelings listening to Blonde never went away. Blonde gave me a new understanding of feeling and I’m forever indebted.

Cosign: Jair Hilburn

 

5.) Choose Your Weapon by Hiatus Kaiyote (2015)

In high school I sand in a band with upperclassmen around my city. We sang funk, jazz,and soft rock and (most importantly) we shared music with each other. “Choose Your Weapon” was my favorite album they shared with me and gave me an appreciation for future soul. 

6.) 4:44 by Jay-Z (2017)

Before 4:44 I never listened to Jay-Z seriously. “Watch the Throne”, “Magna Carta… Holy Grail” and some features were my only reference of Jay-Z music. 4:44 showed me how combining honest lyricism with “4:44” and “Marcy Me” then utilizing intentional production like on “Legacy” will result in a masterfully mastered album. This album’s visuals are unquestionably thorough and no song misses its mark. Jay even slips in some bars about Black wealth accumulation on “The Story of O.J.”.

Cosign: Jair Hilburn

 

7.) Con Todo El Mundo by Khruangbin (2018)

I found this album at the end of Spring semester 2018 in the Youtube wormhole. It offers electric bass heavy instrumentals and it’s a great album to do homework. This album sounds like the score of a desert sunset has a funky timbre that meshes Western film with a synonymous styling to BADBADNOTGOOD.

 

8.) Divine Feminine by Mac Miller (2016)

This album gave me my love for Mac Miller. The short tracklist and heartfelt rhymes feels like a hug in song. After Mac Miller’s death in 2018, the hug feels warmer. He brings together eccentric features including Kendrick Lamar, Anderson Paak, Ty Dolla $ign and Ariana Grande. Mac Miller’s second to last album delivers a special intimacy with “Congratulations (feat. Bilal)”, ”Stay”, ”We (feat. Ceelo Green) and “God is Fair, Sexy Nasty”. If you need love or know it, you’ll enjoy this album.

Cosign: Jair Hilburn

 

9.) Telefone by Noname (2012)

I had my phone confiscated when this album released. A friend sent me a link to “Yesterday” through Twitter and found the whole project on Spinrilla’s website. This album has a sweet melancholy that indulges the senses with nostalgia and whist on “Yesterday” and “Shadow Man”. Noname’s authenticity speaks comfort to the occult through smooth pro-Black bars found nearly nowhere else. Hopefully, 2019 isn’t the last time audiences her music.

Cosign: Jair Hilburn

 

10.) TWENTY88 by Twenty88 (2016)

Twenty88 dropped around a few days after I got my heart broken for the first time. It helped me put myself back together.  This break up was so smooth that I bought Tidal to listen to it when it first released. The love influenced soundtrack by Jhené Aiko and Big Sean sold somber, so I steeped myself in sadness to songs like “Selfish”, “Memories Faded”, and (most importantly) “Talk Show”. I was also pensive over the album label. I thought and dreamed of circumstances that could fix my feelings right when I read “Getting Out of Your Dreams” label. The samples and instrumentals were a bitter medicine, yet I learned a lot from my thoughts through this time, so I it’s definitely a top contender for best decade album.

Cosign: Jair Hilburn