Every year, I try my best to listen to as much new music as possible. I use Amazon Music and Spotify. Of course, there's too much music for this list to be comprehensive. I am also not a music critic, so this list is simply based on what I personally like. I'm not a big fan of heavy metal, hardcore rap or honky tonk. I don't listen to a lot of traditional country music. I do enjoy a lot of folk music and a lot of R&B, which is reflective of this final list. I ultimately crafted 30 albums that are my preference. That full list can be found on my personal blog. From those 30 titles, here are my top ten.
10. LET GOD SORT EM OUT by Clipse - This is the fourth studio album by the hip hop duo from Virginia Beach. The duo consists of brothers nicknamed Malice and Pusha T who were born in the Bronx but moved to Virginia Beach where they grew up. They have been recording artists since 1997. Yet, they haven't had the best of luck or the most success, which is why they've only recorded four studio albums over the course of 30 years. Some artists take their time to craft their albums. Some simply get dropped from their record label. Clipse has been the latter. However, Pharrell Williams has been a supporter of them and their work with Kanye West has kept them in the game. This album is currently nominated for 5 trophies at the 68th Annual Grammy Awards, including Best Music Video for "So Be It," Best Rap Song for "The Birds Don't Sing," Best Rap Performance for "Chains & Whips," Best Rap Album and Album of the Year.
9. SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL by Miley Cyrus - This is the ninth studio album by the country artist-turned-pop icon. It's up for Best Pop Vocal Album at the 68th Grammy Awards. It didn't get as many nominations as her last album Endless Summer Vacation (2023), which made my Top Ten of that year. This is her third time being up for Best Pop Vocal Album. She didn't win before. She probably won't win this year, but, aside for one other artist on this list, she would absolutely be my choice. It was originally conceived as a visual album but again the songs are incredible as she usually delivers.
8. ALL AMERICAN F*CKBOY by Duckwrth - This album is up for Best Immersive Audio at the 68th Grammy Awards. This is a category that recognizes the surround sound component. The award goes to the audio engineer who mixes the four or more channels required for surround sound. I didn't listen to this album in surround sound, so I can't speak to that aspect. This is the third studio album from the 36-year-old rapper from Los Angeles. He's had his music featured in several films and TV shows, including Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018). According to Ty Cole of Revolt.TV, "[The album is] loud, messy, honest, and fully in its feelings. The sound jumps from punk to R&B to house music without warning, but that’s the point. The album feels like a mix of moods stitched together with confidence. Duckwrth leans all the way into the chaos, unpacking ego, desire, and heartbreak without ever losing the beat."
7. BABY by Dijon Duenas - This is the second studio album from the 33-year-old, R&B singer-songwriter. With a score of 94, this album is ranked #3 in best albums of 2025 on Metacritic. Magazines like Pitchfork, Paste, and Rolling Stone have put this album on their top ten lists, ranked #5 or higher. Dijon is up for two prizes at the 68th Grammy Awards, including Producer of the Year, Non-Classical, and Album of the Year. However, the prizes are mainly for his work on Justin Bieber's Swag (2025). Yet, this record, which is about Dijon becoming a father, is just as strong, even though it's style is nowhere near what Bieber did this past year. Dijon's voice is so unique that it's also worthy of its own recognition.
6. THEE BLACK BOLTZ by Tunde Adebimpe - This is the debut studio album for the 50-year-old rock star. 25 years ago, he founded the band "TV on the Radio," which made my best-of-the-year list for their album Nine Types of Light (2011). He's also done some acting here and there. He's an incredible talent that hasn't really been recognized for it. He's probably not doing what he's doing for awards or anything, but the fact that the Grammys or any other award show hasn't honored him is a shame. So many TV shows and films have used his music on their soundtracks, which is an honor in and of itself. I would have to agree with Ross Horton for Music OMH, "Highly accomplished, elegantly performed, wonderfully sung, this is an album by a master craftsman using his keen ear to create something beautiful. The man has never missed."
5. BIG MONEY by Jon Batiste - This is the ninth studio album by the 39-year-old musician from Louisiana. He's a two-time, Oscar nominee and he won the Academy Award for Best Original Score. He's up for three trophies at the 68th Grammy Awards, including Best American Roots Song for "Big Money," Best American Roots Performance for "Lonely Avenue," and Best Americana Album. His last two albums World Music Radio (2023) and We Are (2021) both were #1 on my Top Ten lists of their respective years. Batiste is a clear and undeniable talent.
4. IS by My Morning Jacket - This is the tenth studio album from the rock band that hailed from Louisville, Kentucky. Like with TV on the Radio, this band also made my best-of-the-year list for their album Circuital (2011). Their music has also been used in tons of TV shows and films. The first single from this album "Time Waited" is one of the best songs and records of the year. The fact that it's not up for those respective categories at the Grammys is also a shame.
3. WORTHY by Anderson East - This is the sixth studio album from the 37-year-old American artist from Athens, Alabama. He was nominated for Best American Roots Performance at the 61st Grammy Awards for his fourth album. His fifth album didn't make much noise nationally, but he's doing good work. He's been signed to a major record label for about a decade. As evidenced by other names on this list, one can go decades without any proper recognition. However, it doesn't change the quality of the work, which is very strong here and Anderson's voice is incredible as well.
2. SWAG by Justin Bieber - This is the seventh studio album from the Canadian pop star. He's been a frequent nominee at the Grammy Awards, since the 53rd Grammys. This year, he's nominated for 4 prizes, including Album of the Year, which is now his third time in that category. His song "Yukon" is up for Best R&B Performance and "Daisies" is up for Best Pop Solo Performance.
1. BREAK OUT by Jussie Smollett - This is the second studio album from the 43-year-old actor-turned-singer. He started as a child actor in the 1990's. He did several independent films, but his big break-out role was in FOX's Empire (2015) in which he played a singer. That role rocketed him to super-stardom. However, all of that came to a head in 2019 when he reported to be the victim of a hate crime. However, the City of Chicago sued him claiming that the hate crime was a hoax. He was tried in 2021 and convicted that year. However, the Illinois Supreme Court reversed his conviction. A Netflix documentary revealed the truth about what happened. Nearly a decade after all of that, he has released what is by far the best R&B album I've heard this year and quite frankly the best album of the year. It won't be recognized by the Grammys nor the NAACP Image Awards, which honored him, during his first year on Empire. There's a chance the BET Awards could honor him, but, regardless this album is tops.