Honorable Mention (no particular order):

David Bowie – Blackstar

Kendrick Lamar – untitled unmastered.

Gallant – Ology

Noname – Telefone

Flume – Skin

Isaiah Rashad – The Sun’s Tirade

Rihanna – ANTI

Kweku Collins – Nat Love

The 1975 – I like it when you sleep, for you are so beautiful yet so unaware of it

Childish Gambino – Awaken My Love!

10. A Tribe Called Quest – We got it from Here… Thank You 4 Your Service

    

Until 2016, A Tribe Called Quest’s last album dropped before anyone on the Prowler Staff was born. Their November album, “We Got It From Here… Thank You 4 Your Service” showed that after 18 years, the rap group is still as relevant and in touch with their world as ever.

From the album’s opening of MCs Q-Tip and the late Phife Dawg synchronously chanting, “We gotta go left and not right / Gotta get it together forever / Gotta get it together for brothers,” Tribe shows that on this album, they would use their classic tug-of-war rap style for a modern day activist’s call to action.

With all its modern themes and messages, ATCQ also incorporates a healthy amount of its 90s glory into “We Got It From Here..,” with cleverly sampled beats and appearances from the usual suspects from past Tribe albums, Busta Rhymes and Consequence.

But what makes this album great is Tribe’s refusal to rely on only nostalgic appeal to sell records. Instead, they reinvent themselves with top-of-the-line, more complex production and nods to modern hip-hop.

While many old guard rappers jadedly criticize modern rap, ATCQ embraces it. As Phife, Tip, and Jarobi seamlessly trade bars over a jazzy, guitar-driven beat in “Dis Generation,” Tip gives a shoutout to several modern day rhymers: “Talk to Joey, Earl, Kendrick, and Cole, gatekeepers of flow / They are extensions of instinctual soul.”

Much of this stylistic shift is owed to ATCQ’s production, led by executive producer Q-Tip on this album. Whether tastefully blending a chopped Elton John sample with Jack White rock elements in “Solid Wall of Sound” or laying down a syncopated bassline on “Movin’ Backwards,” ATCQ show why they are still the best in the business of production.

Best tracks: “The Space Program,” “Movin’ Backwards”

Click here to listen to “We got it from Here… Thank You 4 Your Service”

9. Sturgill Simpson – A Sailor’s Guide to Earth

   

Let’s be honest with ourselves. Hardly any of us outside the sparse alt-country fan base even knew this album existed until it landed a Grammy nomination for Album of the Year alongside megastars Adele, Beyoncé, Drake and Justin Bieber. But that really is a shame, because with “A Sailor’s Guide to Earth,” Sturgill Simpson delivers a hearty, adventurous country album that should appeal to listeners of blues rock, folk, and even soul.

Simpson, a Kentucky native, makes use of uniquely eclectic instrumentation that defies his label as a country artist; the album employs plenty of pedal guitar and fiddle, but taking centerstage here are full string ensembles and vibrant horns that would carry a film score, making Simpson’s vagabond stories sound like an epic screenplay.

That vibrance reaches its peak in standout track, “All Around You,” in which Simpson enlists the Dap-Kings for a symphonic, resounding climax that feels like the eye of a sax-filled hurricane.

The soulful horns of the Dap-Kings make meaningful contributions in five out of the album’s nine tracks, adding a tasteful piece of motown to “Welcome to Earth (Pollywog)” and a funky groove to “Keep It Between the Lines,” where Simpson lets his bluesy side take over to give fatherly advice, “Keep your eyes on the prize, and everything will be fine / Just stay in school, stay off the hard stuff, and keep it between the lines.”

While Simpson’s sound is far more ambitious than any artist in country’s mainstream contingent, Simpson stays grounded to his roots with sentimental elements that are undeniably country, like in the reflective“Sea Stories,” where Simpson candidly recalls his unpleasant days in the Navy, in “Welcome to Earth (Pollywog),” where Simpson laments in true country-fashion, “Grandfather always said God was a fisherman, and now I know the reason why.”

Simpson’s unique ability to bring exploratory sounds into country music, but still retain his country charm, makes “A Sailor’s Guide Earth” one of the strongest country albums in years, and one of 2016’s best albums overall.

Best Tracks: “Welcome to Earth (Pollywog),” “All Around You”

Click here to listen to “A Sailor’s Guide to Earth”

8. Solange – A Seat at the Table

   

When Solange wrote an impassioned essay on her family’s struggles with racism for Saint Heron back in September, the essay barely made ripples in the media. However, when Knowles extended her message with “A Seat at the Table” later that month, the world took notice.

Solange’s essay “And Do You Belong? I Do” begins with a question, and ends with an assertion, “We belong. We belong. We belong. We built this.” The same confident spirit amidst injustice translates into Solange’s album, as she takes on the subjects of oppression and black womanhood with determination and poise.

While “A Seat at the Table” covers a broad scope, Solange maintains a deeply invested, highly personal narrative throughout the album’s 21 songs, many of which include interludes with Civil Rights Era anecdotes told by her parents.

The storyline benefits from Solange’s emotional songwriting, as every lyric on “A Seat at the Table” is written by Solange herself. However, the true brilliance of the album lies in how well Solange’s emotion is conveyed through its lyrics as well as its musicality. From the cautious tiptoe of “Weary,” to the triumphant brass of “Don’t Touch My Hair,” to the slap bass funk of “Junie,” each mood Solange creates with her lyrics seamlessly coincides with the production of each track, which are all also at least co-produced by Solange.

In lyricism and production, Solange shows with “A Seat at the Table” that she stands tall as a singular powerhouse of modern R&B, evolving fully from her previous image as Beyoncé’s hipstery little sister. It almost seems wrong to even mention the Beyoncé comparison when talking about “A Seat at the Table,” as the album strongly accents Solange’s powerful voice, which stands alone, enunciated and unwavering.

Best tracks: “Cranes in the Sky,” “Mad,” “Junie”

Click here to listen to “A Seat at the Table”

7.  Blood Orange – Freetown Sound

   

In the wake of the deadliest mass shooting in American history in an Orlando nightclub, families mourned for their lost loved ones, Donald Trump thanked Twitter for congratulations, and Blood Orange’s Dev Hynes released a politically charged masterpiece.

Though Hynes’ third album under the moniker Blood Orange was years in the making, on its release date 18 days after the attack on Pulse Nightclub, the album’s sprawling narrative on race, sexuality, and identity reflected the outcries of a community and the distressed confusion of a nation.

Though Hynes is more well-known for his production for Florence and the Machine, Solange, Carly Rae Jepsen, and other pop artists, his solo work as Blood Orange stands strong on “Freetown Sound.”

The 58-minute project is as captivating as it is turbulent, as Hynes blends ethereal vocals and gliding synth lines with 80s pop elements and African percussion, with splattered sound bites of spoken word and stirring quotations riddling the album’s interludes. Hynes’ masterful blending of genres shines on standout track “Best to You” where marimba and woodblock race alongside the aching vocals of Hynes and featured guest, Empress Of.

Wherever Hynes ventures musically on “Freetown Sound,” he always makes a point, like in the misleadingly peppy “Hands Up,” where Hynes references Trayvon Martin and Black Lives Matter: “Keep your hood off when you’re walking ‘cause they… / Hands up, get out.”

But most of Hynes’ lyrics are much less clear and even self-deprecating, like the repeated introspection of “E.V.P.,” where Hynes questions his own social consciousness: “Do you ever think boy, or does it just feel better numb?”

“Freetown Sound” is filled with observations from one of society’s most troubled perspectives through one of music’s most self-aware voices, as Hynes gazes at his distraught world with no solution in sight. Hynes does not provide any answers to society’s problems with his wandering mind, rather, he captures its befuddled nature. After all, in 2016, answers have been hard to come by.

Best tracks: “Best to You,” “E.V.P.,” “Thank You”

Click here to listen to “Freetown Sound”

6. KAYTRANADA – 99.9%

   

Electronic/EDM music has long served as a hotbed for expansive, uninhibited creativity. 2016 furthered EDM’s notoriety for experimentation, with DJ/Producer KAYTRANADA as its chief alchemist.

The Montreal native’s debut, “99.9%” gives a more diverse look at the pounding, upbeat symphonies that fill the halls of clubs and house parties around the world. While KAYTRANADA’s sound does not follow the stadium-filling sound of contemporary acts like Flume or ODESZA that have brought house music into the public eye, “99.9%” creates its own path of innovative electronica.

And that path is a windy one, as the album bounces from one style to another, never skipping a beat, or giving the listener time to recover. While songs like the upbeat “Together” highlight KAYTRANADA’s Haitian roots with dancehall rhythms and layered drums, “Weight Off” with Toronto jazz quartet BadBadNotGood and “Despite the Weather” highlight the producer’s jazzy leaniencies.

However, “99.9%” does not neglect the best parts of the current EDM scene, it incorporates them masterfully. The enveloping basslines of “You’re the One” and the 808s of “Glowed Up” reside harmoniously with KAYTRANADA’s unique synth elements. Rap’s invasion into electronica is also evident here, as KAYTRANADA shows his beatmaking skills on “Glowed Up,” the J Dilla-influenced “Bus Ride,” and the hard hitting “Drive Me Crazy” with Vic Mensa.

Though KAYTRANADA’s mind wanders from one end of music to the next on “99.9%,” he feels at home wherever any one track lands. The sheer coherence of “99.9%” is a feat, but KAYTRANADA’s stylistic range make the album one of the year’s best.

Best tracks: “Glowed Up,” “You’re the One”

Click here to listen to “99.9%”

5. Frank Ocean – Blonde

   

Four years of passed due dates, agonizing teases, and infinitely many rumors surrounding an album would build an impossible amount of hype for any other artist to live up to. Any other artist, but Frank Ocean. When Ocean dropped the long-awaited followup to his 2012 classic, “Channel ORANGE” he did everything but disappoint.

Despite the universally acclaim of “Channel ORANGE,” Ocean reinvents himself on “Blonde,” a bold work of minimalist production, trippy vocal effects, and melancholic lyricism that reflects Ocean’s reluctance as a popstar.

“Blonde” finds Ocean isolated and vulnerable, with little background or guest appearances to hide his voice. Even when Ocean employs vocal effects, which are used heavily throughout the album, never does he sound less authentic, with high-pitching to reflect immaturity (“Self Control”) or itchy distortion to show frustration (“Ivy”).

However, Ocean does show in the most sentimental tracks of “Blonde” that his voice is best left unobstructed. Alongside wispy electric guitars in “Seigfried,” a lone organist in “Solo,” and quiet synth in the heartbreaking “White Ferrari,” Ocean pours out his best songwriting to date with little to distract from powerful vocal performance and the unparalleled rawness of his lyricism.

Features are rightfully scarce here, but producers like Pharrell (“Pink + White”), James Blake (“Solo”), and Francis Starlite (“Close to You”) add meaningful contributions to the tone of the album. Beyoncé also provides a heavenly aura of background vocals on “Pink + White,” while André 3000 follows up his “Pink Matter” verse with a densely lyrical interlude in “Solo (Reprise).”

But make no mistake, “Blonde” is a masterpiece by Frank Ocean and for Frank Ocean. With the album’s minimalist production making way for a uncanny display of raw talent, Ocean turned the music world from impatiently frustrated to immensely grateful overnight, all without the help of a major label. Only Frank Ocean could do that.

Best tracks: “Pink + White,” “Nights,” “White Ferrari”

Click here to listen to “Blonde”

4. Beyoncé – Lemonade

   

While stopping the world has seemed more and more routine for Beyoncé over the years, Bey has officially outdone herself this time.

Lemonade, emotionally conceptual and sonically varied, shows that Beyoncé’s larger-than-life popstar status does not limit her versatility. From the raging hard rock of “Don’t Hurt Yourself” to the slow burning “Love Drought” to the prideful resonance of “Freedom,” Beyoncé proves here that versatility and vulnerability are her strengths.

Lemonade made headlines for its narrative on infidelity, an unforeseen switch up for one of the proudest voices in pop. But Beyoncé’s sixth album contains more than just a new story, but several new sounds as well. Any critics of Beyoncé’s one-dimensionality should be silenced here, as Lemonade draws from blues, rock, soul, and even country to showcase Bey in moods we have never witnessed her before. While “Daddy Lessons” highlight Beyoncé’s Texas roots with foot-stomping country and New Orleans jazz, “All Night” finds Beyoncé soaring over a slow blues-rock ballad, backed by guitar twangs and funky brass sampled from OutKast’s “SpottieOttieDopaliscious.”

Still, songs like “6 Inch” and “Formation” remind us why Beyoncé got to this position in the first place, with pounding hip-hop beats and braggadocious confidence. When that attitude is combined with her newer, bluesier sound on “Freedom,” Bey delivers one of the best tracks of her career, with the help of a stellar organ-driven beat from Just Blaze and a powerful verse from Kendrick Lamar.

With Lemonade, Beyoncé shows us that no artist is too commercially successful to branch out, both conceptually and musically. Beyoncé has always radiated a unwavering message of self-confidence, but Lemonade delivers that message in a powerful, authentic way, journeying through frustration, anger, melancholy, and redemption to show the winding path to self-love.

Best tracks: “Hold Up,” “Freedom,” “All Night”

Click here to listen to “Lemonade”

3. Bon Iver – 22, A Million

   

In Bon Iver’s first two albums, bandleader Justin Vernon tackled themes of nature-inspired isolation and grandeur in a way that felt heartfelt, yet highly confusing. His first album in six years, “22, A Million” sees Vernon taking a leap out of the woods, advancing Bon Iver’s sound into experimental techno, but carrying the same heartfelt crypticism that made their first two albums classic.

Vernon’s lyrics are poetic at their best, and just incoherent at their worst, filled with neologisms and puzzled ramblings. Track titles are just as enigmatic: “666 ʇ,” “____45_____,” “29 #Strafford APTS’” to name a few. The album reads like a religion-themed puzzle filled with symbols and figures. Its storyline seems to follow Vernon taking a calculus approach to reading the bible.

As confusing as it is (and it is), Vernon strings words together beautifully, even if they make little sense, and even if some of those words are made up: “To walk aside your favor /
I’m an Astuary King / I’ll keep in a cave, your comfort and all / Unburdened and becoming.”

Vernon has plenty of help to create his mysterious work, though. “22, A Million” sounds more of a group effort than any of Bon Iver’s previous albums, with blaring cosmic production in “10 d E A T h b R E a s T ⚄ ⚄” and “33 ‘GOD’” and crescendoing saxophone ensembles in “666 ʇ” and “8 (circle).” There is plenty of modern experimentation here too, as songs like “715 – CRΣΣKS” and “____45_____” build from isolated prismized riffs into grandiose harmonies, creating a sound minimalist yet ominous.

The album’s eclectic production, complete with droning vocal samples, vibrant saxes, and abrasive EDM elements, is as ambitiously odd as its lyrics. But Bon Iver shows here that their unique ability to make bizarre music feel intimate has not faded with time.

Best tracks: “22 (Over S∞∞N),” “666 ʇ”

Click here to listen to “22, A Million”

2. Anderson .Paak – Malibu

   

In 2012, Haley Rineheart was a contestant on American Idol whose drummer was named Anderson .Paak. Since then, that drummer’s career has skyrocketed. Primarily a vocalist nowadays, .Paak made a strong first impression on Dr. Dre’s “Compton” in 2015, then took 2016 by storm, being named an XXL Freshman of the Year, earning two Grammy nods, dropping a full-length collab album as one half of NxWorries, and adding features to three other albums on this list.

But .Paak’s crowning achievement came back in January, with his sophomore album, “Malibu.” Drawing influences in everything from 70s soul tunes to modern disco and funk to lyrical west coast rap, “Malibu” is an expansive masterpiece.

Anderson .Paak’s diverse mix of sound made him somewhat of an oddball in the XXL Freshman class alongside more orthodox MCs like 21 Savage, Lil Uzi Vert and Denzel Curry. But .Paak shows on “Malibu” that his soulful sound does not compromise his rhyming skill. .Paak dances over beats on “The Waters” and “Without You” with plenty of wordplay and rhythmic complexities to show off, but sounds equally impressive when he lets his verse sink into a groove on the latter half of “The Season / Carry Me,” over a head-nodding guitar driven beat.

.Paak is not one to forget his soul roots, though. On the album’s opener, “The Bird,” an old-school R&B jam with slow rolling choruses and prominent brass, .Paak fittingly croons, “I learned my lessons from the ancient roots / I choose to follow what the greatest do.” The old school sound reverberates throughout the album’s retro hip-hop beats, but takes most prominence on “The Bird,” the slow jam, “Water Fall” and the feel-good gospel tune, “Celebrate.”

The brilliant musicality of “Malibu” almost takes a backseat here though, as .Paak’s charisma takes centerstage throughout. From the moment .Paak says with a laugh, “I been catchin’ you staring” on the album’s second track, he charms a helpless audience.  Whether proclaiming his carpe diem attitude (“Am I Wrong”), belting out heartbroken frustration (“Put Me Thru”), or channeling a cocky, boozy-headed James Brown (“Come Down”), .Paak’s persona is classically animated and sweetly infectious, one truly unreplicated in today’s music.

Anderson .Paak wears many hats as a singer, rapper, drummer, and producer. But whatever epithet a music writer might put in front of his name, .Paak throws all his talents on the table with undeniable presence on “Malibu,” making the album a uniquely fun ride through the past, present, and perhaps future, of soul.

Best tracks: “The Waters,” “The Season / Carry Me,” “Parking Lot”

Click here to listen to “Malibu”

1. Chance the Rapper – Coloring Book

   

Chance the Rapper broke down the door on 2016 back in February when he delivered the first proper rap verse on Kanye West’s “The Life of Pablo.” Amongst all of the controversy surrounding West and his album, Chance’s “Ultralight Beam” verse turned heads for its self-affirmation, as Chance called the shots of his year just two months in: “He said let’s do a good a– job with Chance 3 / I hear you gotta sell it to snatch the Grammy / Let’s make it so free and the bars so hard that it ‘aint one gosh darn part you can’t tweet.” Though the verse was a mere feature on West’s album, Chance made something clear with his next lines, “This is my part, nobody else speak.”

2016 was Chance’s part, and “Coloring Book” was his grand soliloquy. Though “Ultralight Beam” offered Chance’s craftiest, most complete verse since 2013’s “Acid Rap,” it was only a warning shot for his conceptually driven, independently powered third mixtape.

Chance has an established place as a unique happy face in rap’s progressive contingent, with a knack for laughing in the face of the music industry and shedding light on the turbulence of inner-city Chicago while maintaining a childlike optimism on his mixtapes “10 Day” and “Acid Rap.” But a lot has happened since 2013. Chance is a father now, and his new family along with his rising fame has given him a widened perspective on life. That same youthful joy is still their, but his new outlook gives Chance’s third mixtape a powerfully spiritual tone.

Released in May, “Coloring Book” comes as a forceful proclamation of faith in a music world where Christian rap is laughed out of the room for a rep of cringe-worthy lyrics, and painful self-unawareness. Chance obliterates that conception on “Coloring Book,” channeling that trademark optimism to make an album that is honest and beautifully reverent.

But this is more than Chance’s “Jesus Walks” moment. Biblical themes have always made their way into hip-hop albums in sparse notes, but God holds an unwavering presence in “Coloring Book.” Joined by gospel choirs in “All We Got,” “How Great,” and the overjoyous “Finish Line / Drown,” vocal arranger Peter Cottontale and features from the Chicago Children’s Choir and Nicole Keen paint soulful backdrops for Chance to deliver lyrical raps that would impress rap critics and make your local pastor smile.

While Chance has proved his lyricism on his prior mixtapes, he ups his game for “Coloring Book.” Telling stories of faith, childhood, and his outsider’s role in rap, Chance makes his story feel authentic through poetry slam-worthy bars: “Magnify, magnify lift it on high / Spit it Spotify to qualify a spot on his side / I cannot modify or ratify, my mama made me apple pies / Lullabies and alibis, the book don’t end with Malachi.”

But Chance’s outspoken faith does not distract from his trademark personality, it accentuates his innocence and bright outlook. The modest tone of “Blessings” and “How Great” translates well for more anecdotal songs from Chance’s childhood: catching lightning bugs (“Summer Friends”), meeting girls at a skating rink (“Juke Jam”), and friends growing apart (“Same Drugs”). This works especially well on “Summer Friends,” where Chance is aided by the wispy groove of a Francis and the Lights sample, delivering a reminiscent verse about his upbringing: “Socks on concrete, Jolly Rancher kids…  / …79th Street was America then.”

Still, however self-conscious Chance may sound on “Coloring Book,” that does not stop him from having the most fun of any artist who made an album in 2016. Even when Chance gets downright biblical, he still tackles those issues with a heavy dose of happy juvenility. That two-sided spirit allows Chance drop lines like “I might give Satan a swirly” on “All We Got” and throw in Harry Potter references after preaching “Shaback barak” on “How Great.”

Amongst all the holy talk, Chance stays grounded on “Coloring Book” by celebrating his Earthly goals as an independent rapper, airing his frustrations with the music industry. On the album’s single, “No Problem,” Chance is joined by 2 Chainz and Lil Wayne to hand a slap in the face to the record companies, poking fun at labels with lines like, “Countin’ Benjis when we meetin’ make ‘em shake my other hand.” Likewise, on “Mixtape,” Chance enlists fellow up-and-comers Young Thug and Lil Yachty to affirm the concept of the mixtape, the free release method beloved by fans and hated by record labels. Both tracks see Chance drawing on the rhythmic nimbleness of mainstream trap rap, but not sacrificing wit or lyricism.

Admittedly, it seems wrong for Chance to be promoting independent music with big name features on “No Problem” and “Mixtape.” But in a way, it would be even more wrong to shy away from making all-star collabs simply out of disdain for their employers. Like he laments on “Finish Line”: “I been getting blocked, just trying to make songs with friends / Labels told me to my face that they own my friends.”

Besides, it’s these contradictions that make “Coloring Book” a truly unique album, one sounding fit for mainstream rap while so blatantly defiant of it. They are the same contradictions that make the “Same Drugs” seem like a song about, well, drugs, when in reality, it gives a heartbreaking story about childhood friends growing apart. The song reads like a children’s book, as Chance squeakily narrates, “The past tense, past bedtime / Way back then when everything we read was real and everything we said rhymed / Wide-eyed kids being kids, why did you stop?”  When backed with a minimal, straight-outta-Sunday-school piano line, more gospel choirs, and a Peter Pan reference here and there, the tagline “We don’t do the same drugs no more” takes an unexpectedly innocent meaning.

The same can be said for “Smoke Break,” which features the notoriously braggadocious trap rapper, Future. On the surface, the song seems like nothing more than a pothead’s anthem (which Chance has made plenty of before) with its repetitive manifesto, “We should be smoking a bowl.” But the song actually gives an emotional take on the importance of slowing down to spend quality time with a significant other, a subject close to Chance and Future, both fathers torn between their career and their families.

At all of its paradoxical turns, Chance the Rapper shines, showing youthful imperfections with a reverent spirit past his years, pairing nimble trap flows with complex lyrical verses, wearing his faith on his sleeve but never in a pretentious manner. And all the while with a warm, unconditional sense of hope.

For such a turbulent 2016, we needed darkly political albums, albums that cried out in the face of oppression for every staggering headline of injustice. We knew that. And we got many of those, as expected. We were not expecting “Coloring Book,” an album so deep rooted in anti-cynicism from its musical content down to its very release method: free across all digital platforms. With Chance’s signature childish optimism and a fresh, triumphant gospel sound, “Coloring Book” was the year’s bright antithesis, ringing out for faith against all odds. We needed that too.

Best tracks: “Summer Friends,” “How Great,” “Finish Line / Drown,” “Blessings (Reprise)”

Click here to listen to “Coloring Book”

Songs of the Year (no particular order)

“Pink + White” by Frank Ocean

“I Need a Forest Fire” by James Blake, Bon Iver

“Reality Check” by Noname, Eryn Allen Kane, Akenya

“The Season / Carry Me” by Anderson .Paak

“Ultralight Beam” by Kanye West, The-Dream, Kelly Price, Chance the Rapper, Kirk Franklin

“E.V.P.” by Blood Orange

“Untitled 03” by Kendrick Lamar

“All Around You” by Sturgill Simpson

“Blessings (Reprise)” by Chance the Rapper, Anderson .Paak, BJ the Chicago Kid, Raury, Ty Dolla $ign

“Redbone” by Childish Gambino