I set a goal last year to try to listen to most of the albums that came out in 2018. I focused mainly on rap and R&B since they are my two favorite types of genres of music. Every time an album came out, I tried to listen it. Now before I start I just want to clarify that I know that my taste in music might not be the same as yours. Some might disagree with the album or artists that I placed in the list, but just know that this is my personal list, meaning its not based on mainstream media or popular vote. The list is made up of MY favorite albums of 2018.

Honorable Mentions

There were too many great albums in 2018 that I just can’t fit them in the list. For this reason, I want to start off by telling you guys about some of the albums that I personally loved, but were overshadowed by those in the list. I won’t go in depth on them because the post would then be too long but I’ll just mention them quickly: DiCaprio 2 by J.I.D., I am > I was by 21 Savage, TA1300 by Denzel Curry, A Love Letter to You Part 2 by Trippie Redd, Love Me Now? by Tory Lanez, and beerbongs & bentleys by Post Malone.

10. STOKELEY by Ski Mask the Slump God

At the 10th spot we have Ski Mask the Slump God’s STOKELEY. The album, named after him, is his debut studio album. Before releasing it, he made songs with Members Only, a hip hop collective formed in 2014. The group is composed of many artists, like XXXTENTACION, Bass Santana, and Kid Trunks, just to name a few. He quickly became one of the most popular members because of his innovative and unique cadence and flow that makes him stand out from any other artists in hip hop. His voice and lyrics make him one of the best in the group. My favorite songs are “Nuketown”, “LA LA”, “Unbothered”, “Get Geeked”, and “Faucet Failure”. The album was quite a short one, but in the future I hope makes more albums like this one because I really loved it.

9. Championships by Meek Mill

At the 9th spot we have Meek Mill’s fourth studio album Championships. Meek became a spokesperson for criminal injustice and corrupt police work after being sentenced in 2017 to two to four years in state prison for violating parole. He was released in April of 2018 after a long battle in court. He released the album a couple of months later. In the album, Meek talks about his experiences and issues with social justice as well as his renewed sense of purpose and direction. Championships has 19 tracks, with huge features from Drake, Cardi B, Jay Z, and Anuel AA among others. I loved Meek’s message of striving to get a better criminal system as well as his own development as a person. His distinctive flow, lyricism and bars were on point . My favorite tracks are “Going Bad”, “Intro”, “Uptown Vibes”, “Tic Tac Toe”, and “Pay You Back”.

8. East Atlanta Love Letter by 6LACK

6LACK, pronounced black, released his second studio album East Atlanta Love Letter. In the R&B and soul album, 6LACK opens up about his emotions and talks about personal subjects such as his relationships and his fatherhood. It features big artists, like J.Cole in “Pretty Little Fears”, Offset in “Balenciaga Challenge”, Future in “East Atlanta Love Letter”, and Khalid in “Seasons”. I really loved the album because of how personal 6LACK gets. Al so, the atmospheric trap beats really complement his singing and laid back flow. My favorite tracks are “Nonchalant”, “Balenciaga Challenge”, “Loaded Gun”, “Switch”, and “Sorry”. Overall this was a great album and he really silenced all of the people that were saying that he was just capitalizing on the popularity of R&B artist like The Weeknd and Frank Ocean. He’s becoming one of the best artist of his genre and is blowing up really fast so I can’t wait for more of his stuff.

7. Life’s a Trip by Trippie Redd

Trippie Redd had a huge year, he released Life’s a Trip, which is his first studio album, and A Love Letter to You 3, which is his third mixtape. Both were great, but I liked his studio album the most. Trippie has a very distinct way of singing. Some might say he screams, which I can totally get, but it really brings a new way of differentiating himself from other artist. In the album, we see a lot of versatility in terms of the different generes that he touches on, like emo rap, pop punk, rap, and R&B. Al so, it has a very high production coming from different producers like Murda Beatz and Diplo for example. My favorite songs are: “Underwater FlyZone”, “Forever Ever”, “BANG!”, “UKA UKA”, and “Dark Knight Dummo”. I really liked this album and I hope to see more of his content in the future.

6. Come over when you’re sober part 2 by Lil Peep

At the 6th spot in the list is, at the time, the last album Lil Peep’s team released, since he passed away back in 2017 from a drug overdose. I started listening to him when the first part of his album came out and I really enjoyed it. His distinct voice and guitars that he used in his beats really made him stand out from any other artist. The album was delayed because of his death but was eventually released almost a year after his death. The track list is composed of songs that Peep recorded between 2015 and 2017. The album covers the genres emo rap and pop punk. I loved the album because of the personal and real subjects that he talked about and it really impressed me how he blended guitar strings in every single song. My favorite songs are “IDGAF”, “Broken Smile (My All)”, “Life is Beautiful”, “16 lines”, “Runaway”, and “Falling Down”.

5. Lost & Found by Jorja Smith

Next up we have Jorja Smith’s debut studio album Lost & Found.  The album has no concept and instead was a collection of songs that Smith had already written from the age of 16 to 21. Before the album came out, she had released her singles “Blue Lights” and “Teenage Fantasy”. Although I had not heard them at the time, a friend of mine showed me a performance she did of “Blue Lights” on the YouTube channel “COLORS” later on. From there on, I started listening to her music and it amazed me how good she was, from her vocals to her amazing voice. As soon as I found out that she had released an album, I quickly listened to it. It was, in my opinion, one of the best overall albums of 2018 and my favorite R&B / soul album in the past decade or so. My favorite songs are: “Blue Lights”, “The One”, “Wandering Romance”, “Goodbyes”, “Teenage Fantasy”, and “Tomorrow”.

4. ? by XXXTENTACION

? was the last studio album XXXTENTACION released during his lifetime before getting assassinated in June 2018. The tragic news still haunts me to this day because he was one of my favorite artist, but at least he left us with a great album, which peaked at #1 on the billboards top 100 list at one point. X was known for his knack for catchy hooks and incredible versatility. In the album, he displayed various genres, like hip hop, emo, alternative rock, indie rock, emo rap, and soft rock. My favorite songs from the album are “ALONE, PART 3”, “the remedy for a broken heart (why am I so in love)”, “infinity (888)”, “before I close my eyes”, “Moonlight”, “SMASH!”, and “Hope”. Songs like “SAD!”, “Moonlight”, and “changes” gained comercial recognition and made it to the billboard top 100 charts, with “SAD!” peaking at No.7. The album definitely deserved the fourth spot on the list.

3. NOT ALL HEROES WEAR CAPES by Metro Boomin

Making the 3rd spot on the list is producer Metro Boomin who had retired in early 2018 but came back and released one of his best albums yet. NOT ALL HEROES WEAR CAPES has features of big artists like Drake, Travis Scott, J Balvin, 21 Savage, Offset, Gunna, Swae Lee, J Balvin, Gucci Mane, Young Thug and Wizkid. Metro has always been my favorite producer. His distinct melodies and high production have always caught my attention. My favorite songs from the album are “Borrowed Love”, “Overdue”, “Space Cadet”, “Lesbian” and “10 Freaky Girls”. The album was a great, the music was great, and the production was great. For these reasons, its on my list.

2. KOD by J.Cole

J. Cole has been in the game for a long time. He’s been my favorite rapper ever since he released his 2014 album 2014 Forest Hills Drive, which went platinum with no features. KOD, which means Kill our Demons or Kids on Drugs, is an album that talks about addiction and the problems that a person may go through in their life. Although many artist in the past have spoken on these things, Cole managed to speak to addicts of all kinds, from things like social media( Photograph) and cheating (Kevin’s Heart), to other subjects like money (ATM) and his personal problems (Once an addict, FRIENDS, The Cut Off). Even though the songs are about serious situations, he manages to still make the songs catchy and delivers impactful lyrics that pull your mind into another world and really make you realize how grateful you are. If were talking story-wise, KOD is the best album without a doubt.

1. ASTROWORLD by Travis Scott

2018 was a HUGE year for Travis. We had been waiting for an album of his since his last one Birds in the Trap Sing McKnight from 2016. He kept doing lots of features with other artists and he even made two collaborative albums, Double or Nothing with Big Sean and Huncho Jack with Quavo. Don’t get me wrong, they were good albums but the fans just wanted to see a proper Travis Scott album, and he delivered. ASTROWORLD is full of many great songs, like “SICKO MODE”, “YOSEMITE”, “STARGAZING” and “CAN’T SAY” (my personal favorite). The production of the album was the best I’ve ever seen. Other than the music, Travis provided amazing music videos and a huge tour. He placed #1 on my top 10 most listened artist of 2018 so I didn’t hesitate to put him at the top of my list.

If you guys wan’t to know what music I’m listening to, just follow my Spotify playlist by clicking –>here <—