TOP 14* FAVORITE ALBUMS

My music taste started to take form in about 2006. Since then there has been so many great albums that have shaped me into the person and artist I am today. I was there when 808s & Heartbreak changed the game. I was keenly paying attention when Lorde killed us all with Pure Heroine. I remember the hysteria around Britney Spears' Blackout. I witnessed a lot but this list outlines projects that caused a personal renaissance in my thirty-one years.

I mostly see everything and try to engage myself in sampling lots of different musicians. That's where my playlists come in. For almost thirty seasons I have been adventuring through music, sampling different cultures and genres. I was listening to full discographies in 2014 but I felt I wasn't really getting pleasure from it. Every season it's a new mountain to climb...finding music and engaging with new artists. It's so satisfying. I feel like I'm effectively wading through our current music landscape.

My playlists are publicly available on the SCC YouTube.

[14] Wish You Were Here - Pink Floyd

This record is one of the craziest things I have ever laid ears on. How can this album have been released in 1975 and it still feels experimental and weird? It was used in my playlist blurb; I found it by entering the search term 'wish you were here' on YouTube. What a find! I love the themes, sonically it is masterful and the cover gives me chills!

[13] Bionic - Christina Aguilera

Bionic is the thirteenth song on the list. I had to put bionic because it's so clean. From beginning to end there's high energy and massive lyrics. It came at a time when I was dancing everyday, I had tons of friends and I was just getting into sex. The lyric 'I'm kissing on the boys and the gurls' was my jam back then. The whole nostalgia trip really made me realize yeah. A lot of people rejected it because they said it was her trying to be like Gaga but I'm like yeah, ok, she did it flawlessly. We really see Christina take pop at the time for a ride with great vocals too. Definitely a 10/10.

[12] Once In A While - Seth MacFarlane

Number twelve is Once In A While by Seth Macfarlane. I still listen to this album at least once a week. This is one of Seth Macfarlane's Jazz albums. I found this album in 2019 and I used it in my playlist psst. It's really good for a gray day or a bad mood. Really good entry into Jazz too. I remember one time I was giving someone a ride and playing this album and she said "Oh I didn't know Seth MacFarlane could sing." And I'm like .... Have you ever seen any of the fucking shows he works on? All hail seth!

[11] Vows - Kimbra

Vows is the eleventh album on the list. Vows is one of those albums that really can transport you. And.....I'm not saying it like transport you somewhere else. Transport you inside yourself, like, to see what's really there. And I wanna be in that place; she took me to that place. It was nostalgic hit after nostalgic hit. Definitely glad I got to listen again.

[10] Beyoncé - Beyoncé

Our tenth project in the list is the album Beyoncé. This was the surprise album from 2013. This album makes the list because from start to finish it was 11/10. The videos, the lyrics, the vocals. I had given up on Bey for the most part. I was on team 'she's on the way out'. She proved all of us wrong and made this while on tour and with a toddler! I can't say enough about it. It was filmed all over the world, so many sources...so much pulled out flawlessly. It was just wig snatched.

[9] Trilogy - The Weeknd

Trilogy is what's known as The Weeknd's first release but it was released in three parts over the course of a few years. I had just moved out and become a stoner. My friend who was about to graduate from Xavier University put me on. I started listening right before Echoes of Silence, the third and final came out. This work dominated my music until KissLand came out. I remember sitting by the pool at my apartment complex every night smoking and just vibing hard. He's a few months older than me and I felt so connected to him. At the time I was YouTubing and learning about directing and editing. I actually made my first ever music video for Wicked Games. It was about a man(me) having an extramarital affair. It was hot. These mixtapes ushered me into adulthood and cemented my 'fuck it' attitude lol

[8] Finally Famous Trilogy - Big Sean

Number eight is Big Sean's trilogy Finally Famous. This mixtape has all the hallmarks we know Big Sean for today. Hot beats, stern introspection and a firm grip on making a body of work. For his first albums these mixtapes are jaw-dropping. I discovered him in a period when I was checking the blog Dopehood every morning in 2011. His music was above all the rest on that site. We saw a lot of rappers come out of this era but Sean was like STRAIGHT TO THE TOP FLOOR! Unlike many artists, in the past decade+ he hasn't lost a bit of steam. He has pulled off releases almost every year and it's always welcomed. Big Sean is truly an American treasure lol

[7] Control - Janet Jackson

Janet Jackson's Control has a special place in my heart. I discovered this album aside from the singles in 2013 and I connected with her struggle to get out from being 'the younger sibling'. I love how it was so staunchly female and independent. I think that it still holds up sonically to this day unlike many 80s albums. I love Control for the same reason I love Serena Williams and Elizabeth Olsen. I'm a younger sibling and I know the drive to make your own way, bigger and better. Ms. Jackson did her thing on this one!

[6] Lorde - Melodrama

This album from Lorde is one of my all-time favorites because I like how muddy it is. There's so many subject matters and samples of different musical genres. Lorde is one of those artists that you can't categorize. Sure she gets called a pop star because she's white but you get a little bit of everything from her. I love artists that don't fit in 'their box'. She is my Hair Icon and I strive for her relationship with fame. Lorde is the pop star we need to keep things realistic and different. I'm here for all of it.

[5] G.O.O.D. FRIDAYS / MY BEAUTIFUL DARK TWISTED FANTASY

I think anyone who was into rap in 2009/10 would say Twisted Fantasy and G.O.O.D. Fridays are indelible artistic artifacts. This is the beginning of rap becoming apart of pop for me. Today I see rap as apart of pop. We've got Doja Cat killing it and Drake is our arch duke of pop. The film, G.O.O.D. Fridays, the Coachella, every one of the features...this project captured pure artistry so well. It shows a man that has the world in his palm like shoot a clean 3-pointer with his celebrity.

[4] 1000 Forms of Fear

I discovered this Sia album in early 2014. I had just been diagnosed with BiPolar Disorder and it made me feel so safe. I was fresh off of writing three books of poetry and had decided to pursue songwriting. I felt alienated from everyone in my life because of my diagnosis but this album was like a mommy cradling her baby. Sia is a lyrical wizard! She always seems to come out with something that feels candid but curated and clean. Whenever I'm having a bad day I can put this album on and just sing my heart out and I feel better. Sia and I are simpatico in our sobriety and artistry. I'm so very grateful for Ms. Furler sharing herself with the world.

[3] K.I.D.S. - Mac Miller

Rest his soul. Mac changed my life in early 2011. When I discovered Mac Miller I was so confused about my future. I was about to leave high school and I was just not in the place of being an adult. This album aided in pushing me to apply to college and just chill. This album is still the coolest album ever made to me. I developed a sense of calming in myself through Mac's music and personality. He is a cultural phenomenon in my life through his whole discography.

[2] Childish Gambino - CAMP

The second most influential album and most important in my artistry. I listened to this album by Childish Gambino for the first time while writing my first album in early 2015. I was in album mode for no reason at this time. I would wake up and write for as long as I wanted and then listen to a new album while taking a bath. I love the fact that Mr. Glover clawed his way to the top being exactly himself. The discovery of him helped me to feel that I could write rap and be apart of the culture without a backwards cap and a drug dealing past. He is the shining light on the hill for us oreos who love rap. Donald Glover is my standard for a lot of things. This album is such a vibe. Chill but still intense at times. Gonna be listening forever.

[1] Torches - Foster The People

Okay *drum roll* the number one album of my lifetime is Foster The People's debut album Torches. If you've heard this album your life is different because of it. The subject matter but the pop vibe...it just makes sense somehow. This is another album I can put on and feel like I have a place in art. I played this album out so hard. This project is straight up pop. I don't care what anyone says. 20/10 lol

[Honorable Mention] Amy Winehouse

Amy Winehouse is an archetype. A beacon of light in music. So raw and real. I have heard every song I could by Amy and it saddens me that we didn't get more of her. I think at the core her story comes down to taking care of yourself as an artist. So many people had their hand in her life and didn't care what was happening behind the irreverent drunk performing. All of the albums and singles and demos are pure Jazz. 21st Century NEW Jazz! I just wish she could have course-corrected in time.