2020 Music Wrap Up

I used to pick an album of the year, but this year I'm just going to write about the music I liked. I don't want to pick just one album, or just one song for a whole essay; I just want to make some notes and jot down some thoughts on a variety of music that I connected with this year. Obviously this year has been quite odd, but it didn't stop some of my favorite artists from putting out new albums, or stop me from finding new stuff I liked that I would not have expected. I certainly did not think I'd be writing about Machine Gun Kelly making pop punk songs, nor a man in a ski mask interpolating a country song into a trap anthem. I did expect that Action Bronson and Curren$y would come with fire though, as they are the most consistent rappers in the game. 

My absolute favorite shit this year is just a vibe, a genre - the "lo-fi chill beats to study/relax/quarantine to". This is on in the background for me all the time, especially when I've writing or working. Just smooth beats, all day every day. The Will Smith "Chills Beats to Quarantine To" is one of my favorites, along with his Summer Beats to Social Distance To one as well. So many days spent Trappin' in Japan and Trappin' in Quarantine. This year was the year of background music for me for sure. Shoutout Eric Jensen - found this dude on Instagram making jazzy trap beats like this too. There are even ones that are just "Coffee Shop Vibes" - sometimes just background noise, not even beats. Or the ones like "old timey music playing in the other room for 10 hours". My background jam; millennial elevator music. 

I didn't really find a lot of new rock that I liked this year, other than one standout - Caamp. I first heard their song Peach Fuzz, and thought dude's voice reminded me a lot of Rod Stewart. Their next single By and By though - that one hit different for me. It's kinda bluegrassy, kinda folky. I love it. I can tell that song will be one I will revisit years from now and smile, like Wagon Wheel or Wait So Long.  The only other rock I really liked was Machine Gun Kelly's Tickets to My Downfall album. This was a pleasant surprise for sure - I had heard the single in the Tony Hawk game and liked it, so I gave the album a listen. I was not expecting pop punk; I really only know this dude from his Eminem beef, and his work with Puff. This was different, and a throwback to high school in 1998 for sure. Kinda sounds like earlier Blink. The dude is friends with Mod Sun - my hippy hop dude from back in 2010 - They hang out with Travis Barker, so apparently that's where they got that Blink vibe. While we're at it, Mod Sun's Karma was a great track this year too. 

AND A LATE ENTRY from out of nowhere in the "Songs that hit me right in the fucking feels" category - Blind Fury sings an Original Country Song". Yeah, that same blind rap battle champion Blind Fury. The dude who absolutely merked every single cornball challenger in every battle on Freestyle Friday. The man's off the top bars are literally career ending for his opponents; his cleverness is unmatched. But this isn't rap...this unfinished country song just hits me in a certain way that I can't describe. I'm gonna be singing the chorus for days "trying to forget, chain smoking cigarettes, and drinkin' IPAs". There is something sonically about this composition that just makes me want to listen to this on repeat; goosbumps for real. I hope he makes a polished studio version of this and that it becomes a huge country hit in 2021. This dude deserves the shine. Bonus - check this one out too.

And next we come to rappity raps, which dominated my year of music, as usual. 

First, my single of the year - Royce da 5'9" featuring Westside Gunn - Overcomer. EH YO. Holy shit, this beat, and the RAWEST raps from Westside Gunn. All we did was slang dope, shit broke the blender. Westside Gunn over soul beats makes me so happy (see Whoopy or Connies Son for previous examples). The bridge with "I neeed your sweeet love..." This has been on repeat for me, for the whole year. I keep going back to it. I don't necessarily like that Royce's verse has that Yelawolf diss; not that I like Yelawolf, but I just wish I didn't have to hear that beef bullshit in the middle of the rest of this fire. "Inspired by Cool J driving Saabs"...such a dope line. I also like that my google assistant says "Sure, now playing Royce the five foot nine inches..." when I ask for this LOL. You know I like sped up soul samples, and this was undoubtedly the illest beat I heard all year. 

Runner up for Single of the Year is RMR - Rascal. I saw this posted on Reddit, and immediately hit repeat. What the fuck was I listening to? More accurately, what the fuck was I watching? This shit was hard, but the incongruity between the sounds and visuals was what really got me. I think I sung this in the shower for like 2 months straight, bangin' out the waterproof bluetooth. [Waterproof bluetooth sounds like a Riff Raff line, possibly referencing blue diamonds in his teeth] I had no idea it was an interpolation of another song until I played it for my girlfriend, who knew the melody from the Rascal Flatts song. Front me extra, show me love; I came up and so could you. So fucking inspirational. Gotta hustle and find the plug for whatever you do in life. Anthem; this shit is legendary. 

And now rap albums. 

CONGRATULATIONS THEY JUST CASTED BAKLAVA IN RAMBO. This opening line of Action Bronson's Only For Dolphins put a smile on my face immediately. And it just goes from there - bars on bars on bars for the whole album.  Fuck around and get your sea bass smothered. So many references to his Jeep Cherokee - but for the life on me I can't figure out why he doesn't have the Trackhawk or at least the SRT. I wanna get dusted at the Mets game with this dude, even if he doesn't have his left leg on. He is recognized as a stand up guy by five families; been hot since miggity miggity miggity mack daddy. The World's Strongest Man deep fake for the Latin Grammys video is absolute gold; it goes perfectly with his quarantine weight loss body transformation. The man is motivational beyond words, he is basically my hero, spirit animal, and inspiration for life. This album is a classic. 

Next up is Curren$y, with three albums in one. This dude has been my favorite rapper for the past decade; so much good shit, so consistent. This year he teamed up with Harry Fraud for a trifecta, and I absolutely loved all three -  The Outrunners, The Directors Cut, and Bonus Footage.  I like to think of them as really just a single long album, as they are certainly on the same vibe. Such solid raps from Spitta as always - Dudes on mushrooms think they could touch us. Super Sport Camaros, Corvettes, and foreigns in a line. Palimino horses on Louis Vuitton saddles. It reminds me a lot of Pilot Talk, in that I can listen on repeat over and over; there are no bad songs here.  There are some great features here too - Conway, Snoop, and Jimmy stand out, but my favorite was Trippie Redd. The hook on Quicksand is catchy as fuck. It's the soundscape in the end though - Fraudy paints it right, a super cohesive mix with so many dope samples. It just sounds so smooth, hits my ears in that certain way - they're almost spooky, airy; there's space to them. These three albums were in my rotation from late summer through the end of the year. I always look forward to Curren$y's work, and these did not disappoint. 

First of all, fuck the fuckin' law, we is fucking raw; steak tartar, oysters on the half shell, sushi bar. I can't leave out Run The Jewels 4, even though it didn't stay in constant rotation for as long as some of these others. Immediate enjoyment from Mikey's opening verse; these dudes are back and still all thorn no rose. Extremely relevant to today's political climate- Mr. Render's activism and social work beyond the music is inspiring and honestly probably had a significant impact in turning Georgia blue - plot, plan, strategize, organize, and mobilize for fucking real. A sick Grand National as the marketing campaign; I fucking love turbo six Buicks. Great Yankee and the Brave skit. Ghost and Rae relating. And 2 Chainz raps about buying a hot dog stand. Certainly makes me think about the dead presidents in my wallet differently. I listened to it again to write this and have a renewed appreciation for it for sure. You hate Run The Jewels? You don't love the troops. 

Statik Selektah - spell his name right! - put out another amazing compilation album this year too - The Balancing Act. Legendary MCs mixed with up and coming dudes - I love these Statik albums because they introduce me to new rappers I'm unfamiliar with. I also love them because of the boom-bap. I've previously written how this dude is one of my favorite producers, and this album only solidifies his place in my producer pantheon. There's too much here to write about every hot verse or beat. Some highlights though - the "Walk On By" beat with Nas and Joey, Jack Harlow's verse about pandemic life - and his story about Statik's reaction to Mac Miller's death, Paul Wall coming through, the "No More" beat with Lil Fame and DZA, a Sean Price verse over a perfect beat, and SO MUCH MORE. This is as close to a prefect mixtape as it comes. 

As I wrap this up, I realize that the ChillHop Vibes YouTube mixes were like 75% of my music this year. I honestly struggled to come up with any more raps that I would want to write about - Alfredo and Man on The Moon 3 are the only ones that I could add here, but just didn't feel like it, as they didn't hit like these others. That background music, just beats, just chill shit that I don't even really pay attention to - that's overwhelmingly my jam. I can't really see that changing either; the shit is just so smooth, so perfect, exactly what I want to hear. So huge shout out to all the unnamed artists in those videos, you're my 2020 music of the year for sure.