Best Music of the Decade

Since I started my blog back in 2009, I've been keeping track of really good music. Making lists of albums has been daunting because I am not a music expert. My taste in music isn't as refined as my taste in film. Each year though, I favor around 30 or so albums in various genres. Over the course of the decade, I've noted hundreds of albums, if close to 300. It's difficult for me to go back and listen to certain albums after I've listened to so many in order to make my year-end top ten or so. It's also clear that R&B and Hip Hop music is my favorite, particularly R&B. If one is looking for the definitive rock or country music list, I won't be able to provide it. Yet, I have a nice mix that people who like general pop artists will appreciate. Hopefully, there will be some albums here that those who read this will also appreciate.

25.  UNBREAKABLE (2015) by Janet Jackson - Not much needs to be said about Janet Jackson. She is one of the world's best-selling artists of all-time. She's a veritable icon. Her height was in the 80's and 90's. Her release of this record came after the longest hiatus that she's ever had in between albums. For those who feel she's been out of the public consciousness for the better part of a decade or more, this album feels like a return to her height in the 80's, including Rhythm Nation 1814, arguably her best album.

24. BIG DAY IN A SMALL TOWN (2016) by Brandy Clark - She began as a songwriter for country artists like Kenny Rogers, Reba McEntire and Miranda Lambert. She did so for nearly a decade before she released her solo, debut album in 2013. She started getting invited to award shows that year, including the Grammy Awards, which she kept getting invitations for four years straight. Both her debut and this album were nominated for Best Country Album. Unfortunately, the album didn't sell as well for Warner Bros. Records as the albums of Miranda Lambert for which Clark wrote songs.

23. NONAGON INFINITY (2016) by King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard - This is one of two artists on this list with Australian connections. It's also one of the few rock albums on my list that really impressed me.

22. COLOURS (2010) by Graffiti6 - This is one of two British musical acts on my list.

21. SONGS FOR IMAGINATIVE PEOPLE (2013) by Darwin Deez

20. RANDOM ACCESS MEMORIES (2013) by Daft Punk - This is the first album on my list to be a number-one recording. It's also the first album to win the Grammy Award for Album of the Year. It's also the only album on my list to win that particular award, presumably the highest prize a musician can get. It's also the only French musician on my list.

19. THE CHIEF (2017) by Jidenna - This is another album that didn't sell all that well. Most people probably won't know who this guy is. His father is from Nigeria. His mother is white from the Midwest. He was accepted to Harvard but attended Stanford University where he studied sound engineering. He signed to Wondaland Records, which is the label owned by Janelle Monáe. He's gotten recognized at certain places, but he needs greater praise, particularly for this work here.

18. THE IDLER WHEEL... (2012) by Fiona Apple

17. NEW AMERYKAH PART TWO (RETURN OF THE ANKH) (2010) by Erykah Badu

16. SOUND & COLOR (2015) by Alabama Shakes

15. GIRL (2014) by Pharrell Williams - This is one of the albums to which I've listened the most, over and over. It's one of the funnest albums of the decade.

14. CONTRA (2010) by Vampire Weekend

13. ACID RAP (2013) by Chance the Rapper

12. THE DEFAMATION OF STRICKLAND BANKS (2010) by Plan B - This is the other British musical act on my list. There are a lot of British artists, some known as blue-eyed soul singers, such as Amy Winehouse, who did R&B and Hip Hop music better than black artists in the United States. This guy whose real name is Benjamin Paul Ballance-Drew has been for me one of those blue-eyed soul singers who has stayed on my mind since listening to this incredible record.

11. TRUE (2012) by Solange - She's known as the sister to Beyoncé, but since her solo, debut album, she's been an artistic force that is just as strong, if at times better than her pop star relative. She certainly doesn't sell records or sell concerts as well as her sister, but she's worth having on a list like this.

10. CHANNEL ORANGE (2012) by Frank Ocean

9. MAKING MIRRORS (2011) by Gotye - This is the other Australian act on my list.

8. DAMN (2017) by Kendrick Lamar

7. BROTHERS (2010) by Black Keys

6. BORN THIS WAY (2011) by Lady Gaga - This is the second album from the now Oscar-winning pop star. When her first album was released in 2008, I didn't embrace her. I didn't think she was that great, even though she had a catchy song from that first album. It wasn't until this album hit store shelves that I came around and became convinced that she was an amazing musician. Her stage persona at the time still felt like a bunch of gimmicks, but focusing just on the songs and music totally won me over.

5. SHE (2013) by Alice Smith

4. FOOD (2014) by Kelis

3. REALITY SHOW (2015) by Jazmine Sullivan

2. LEMONADE (2016) by Beyoncé

1. THE ELECTRIC LADY (2013) by Janelle Monáe - If there has been any album to which I've listened to the most over the past decade, it's this one. I have the CD for this album in my car. For my commute to work, it's played on loop numerous times. I probably have every track memorized. The songs are so strong, so powerful, so deep and beautiful. I am a fan and think every album produced by Monáe has been wondrous. I wanted to include her 2010 album that preceded this one, but I figured it was better to settle on one. It's no question though that Monáe is my all-time favorite artist of this past decade.