Rightfully so, albums like Beyonce’s ‘Lemonade’, Frank Ocean’s ‘Blonde’, and Childish Gambino’s ‘Awaken, My Love’ have dominated the music scene of 2016. Albums filled with heart and musical integrity, they deserve their place in the spotlight and their respective Grammy nominations. But never before have we seen so many women and people of color ready to perform at the Grammy’s. Seeing this array of diversity represented at a high level is proof of the importance of representation. But these albums only open the door. Publications like Pitchfork and Rolling Stone believe they’ve dotted their i’s and crossed their t’s in the diversity column by hyping Bey and the like. But saying that these outlets are truly diverse when it comes to the artists they discuss is like your conservative friend saying they’re not racist because they watch Oprah. So we’ve gone ahead and compiled a list (in no particular order) of artists of color, artists that are femme-aligned, and artists that are members of the LGBTQI+ (besides Queen Bee, Frank Ocean, Childish Gambino, and Chance the Rapper) that have been relevant to the music scene of 2016.
Santigold – 99 Cents
99 Cents is full of bass lines you feel in the drop of your stomach, atmospheric synth, and a wide array of borrowed beats – sometimes taking on a reggae tone, other times an 80s hook. Santigold fuses quintessential bits of pop, hip hop, and electronic to create a style uniquely her own. Whether you need music for a smoke sesh, or something to bump on a car ride with your friends, 99 Cents is a perfectly executed eclectic blend of sounds.
Mitski – Puberty 2
Born in Japan, now a New York transplant, Mitski brings issues of cultural misunderstanding to the forefront with her hit track, ‘Your Best American Girl’. Mitski’s painstaking writing is reflected in this album with articulate and sharp lyrics. Her unique voice stretches from dreamy to deadpan with ease as she guides us through the deepest recesses of her brain and heart. Puberty 2 hits you with emotional harmonies led by a fuzzy guitar amp. Mitski provokes thought with an album that causes us to consider how culture and music affect each other.
Open Mike Eagle – Hella Personal Film Festival
Hella Personal Film Festival is just that, personal. This album feels as if you have been sat down in a theatre for one as MC Open Mike Eagle casually raps about radical politics and personal struggles over whistles and easy hooks; there is nothing left unsaid by the end of this album. Between songs that discuss racism and toxic masculinity, Open Mike Eagle seems to do the impossible: allow his rap to be vulnerable. With his own jokes mixed in, the album seems carefree at first, but look a little deeper and you’ll feel the undeniable heart.
Sad13 – Slugger
Taking a break from being frontwoman of indie rock band, Speedy Ortiz, Sadie Dupuis has started a solo career by the name of Sad13. Sad13’s mission? To use decadent lipstick, dreamy pastel outfits, and alt pop to make a statement about feminism. The tracks on Slugger champion bodily autonomy, the importance of friendship between femme-aligned people, and reflect on women’s real desires, all over lush beats and a sturdy guitar. Slugger processes the pain of being a woman in a positive way as Sad13 chirps over a mix of whimsy and indie rock. Slugger is dipped in glitter but has knuckles like razor blades. Sad13 proves that femme ain’t frail.
Mykki Blanco – Mykki
After spending years dedicated to deconstructing hip hop, Mykki Blanco is using afropunk influence and dense rhymes to create high concept music for her first studio album. Mykki, holds fast to Blanco’s “fuck-you-queer” persona. On this album we get the pleasure of hearing a genderfluid woman mix quips about smoking in the club with bars about identity politics. Her identity is held so close to her that Mykki never feels like an album that’s trying to be radical, that radicalism is just an inherent part of Blanco’s music. With hypnotic soul, Blanco creates tracks of bubblegum rap, eccentric musicality, and absolute bangers. Mykki Blanco unabashedly breaks through misogyny and social taboos that surround her to drop an album that has a perfect blend of introspection and flash.
clipping. – Splendor & Misery
Fresh off his time gracing the stages of Broadway, MC Daveed Diggs and his crew drop a concept album that is sadly appropriate: one about the end of the world. According to the group, Splendor & Misery “follows the sole survivor of a slave uprising on an interstellar cargo ship, and the onboard computer that falls in love with him”. clipping. uses a mix of futuristic and classical hip hop to push an ambitious chronicle. Armed with the industrial sound clipping. has been known for and a multi-faceted blend of prog rock and P funk, the group skillfully evokes the hum of machinery. In addition, Splendor & Misery is loaded with spitfire, tongue-twisting bars. The album is tightly wound, but never trying too hard. Splendor & Misery succeeds in something that many hip hop groups wouldn’t even attempt: relying on succinct and creative narrative to push the music forward.
White Lung – Paradise
White Lung frontwoman Mish Way stormed onto the Canadian punk scene in 2006, and four albums later, the band is still taking risks. Although Paradise is more story-centric than previous albums, the band continues to be outspoken and anthemic. Paradise is provocative and challenging, never attempting to be “accessible”. With spitting guitars, reckless drumming, and Way’s thrashing voice, White Lung continues to explore female power and agency. With a dry ice tone, the band questions what “good feminism” is and asks if their politics are their identity or if it’s the other way around. Regardless of what answers you take from Paradise, ten years later, White Lung still epitomizes punk.
Jamila Woods – HEAVN
HEAVN opens with angelic voices as Jamila Woods’ sensual vocals are folded in with undeniably bubbly synth. The dreamy, vapory tone of the album becomes quickly addictive. The beats remain cloudy, but Woods’ voice is sharp as she explores black womanhood, childhood innocence, and reclamation of femininity. But do not underestimate the sweetness of the tracks for naivety. As Woods spits bars that act like part rap, part stream of consciousness, she showcases her wit and understanding of the sociopolitical climate. Each track maintains its own unique qualities whilst flowing seamlessly into the next. An artfully put together album, borrowing from children’s games and eighties hits to create music that’s soft but poignant. HEAVN listens like young girls double-dutching on the sidewalk on a summer evening.
Banks – The Altar
Still as confessional as ever, Banks takes her sophomore album to a new level. No longer is she the shy girl sharing her diary notes over synth hooks, she is unabashedly emotional and no longer gives a fuck about what you think of her. Perfecting her blend of electronic and alt-R&B, Banks uses Altar to provide herself an edge. Although, by the end of the album, you’ll realize that Banks’ desperation to prove that she is indeed, dangerous, becomes counterintuitive. Altar shows Banks more vulnerable than ever. But this type of vulnerability is accompanied by confidence and anger- a new sound for any woman in the music industry.
Crying – Beyond the Fleeting Gales
Beyond the Fleeting Gales discusses personal transformation from the get go. Crying inverts compulsory heterosexuality with a smooth mix of synth and slamming acoustics. With emotionally heavy, sweeping guitars and spitting drums, Singer Elaiza Santos manages to sound positive about her relationship with the world around her. Her sweet vocals accompany a well-blended instrumental harmony. This album is catchy and impassioned. We often associate masculinity with skillful, sweeping rock like this, but Crying manages to give a wink to cultural norms as Santos uses her youthful voice to bravely reclaim rock in an increasingly oppressive world.
Cakes da Killa – Hedonism
The smooth voice of Cakes da Killa guides us through Hedonism, switching from tongue splitting bars to sensual crooning. Cakes da Killa has a knack for simultaneously creating tracks that make you laugh out loud and talk about radical acts of identity. Rhyming passionately about his experiences as a gay man, nothing on Hedonism tries hard to please you, but instead maintains Killa’s well known lack of subtlety. Each track is charismatic and raunchy, launching new wave hip hop as Cakes da Killa proudly (and rightfully) raps about being a “bad bitch”.
Angel Olsen – My Woman
Angel Olsen is shaking off her “girl-at-the-bottom-of-the-well” typecast with her tongue firmly planted inside her cheek. Maintaining her haunting vocals and echoing guitar, My Woman is raw yet sweet. Mixing bits and pieces of folk and indie rock, Olsen delves into her own sadness, longing, and hope. Her minimalist style can be disarming when you’re hit with the pure vulnerability and yearning of each track; empathy and loneliness are embodied in melody on My Woman. Olsen’s music is elemental and burns with the conviction of fellow great women like Liz Phair and Fiona Apple.
Frankie Cosmos – Next Thing
Next Thing is youthful yet introspective. With a steady stream of guitar fuzz and an easy, tomboy-ish voice, Frankie Cosmos’ brand of indie pop turns short tunes into music that manages to encapsulate brimming moments and full conversation. Next Thing reads like the compelling diary of an introverted twenty-something. With punctuating lyrics in her poetic stream of tracks, Cosmos tells a fluid story of introversion and self-awareness. Next Thing appears to give us a peek into the singer’s own haunted head. This work is well-structured and professional, but maintains that DIY-Bandcamp feel we’re nostalgic for.
Noname – Telefone
Noname leads us through her album, Telefone, with distinctly innocent and soothing vocals that fly over beats brimming with soul. Telefone is filled with captivating optimism and distinctly gospel tones, which make for a positive and delightfully feminine album. At this juncture, Noname may be the only other person in hip hop who poses a threat to Chance the Rapper (though the two are known friends). Her slick bars filled with vulnerability are reminiscent of her days as a slam poet and create a deliciously nostalgic narrative. Telefone is dreamy, fluid music layered under sharp storytelling and undeniable skill.
Colleen Green – Colleen Green
Colleen Green may seem like just another LA girl with a guitar, but she is a master of creating seemingly simple songs, using her trained ear for hooks and wordplay. Which is why Colleen Green is staking a name in the indie pop game. With dirty riffs and an easy going voice, it’s hard not to relate to her signature stoner style. You can’t help but imagine Green watching TV and writing fuzzy songs dripping with nostalgia in her free time. Her amp exudes a muffled tingling as she sings about her relationship with pop culture and her (often failed) romantic endeavors. Colleen Green is bubblegum with a self-aware glaze. While her last album dealt with shedding childhood, Colleen Green seems to be coming into her adulthood with this incredibly well-structured album.
KAYTRANADA – 99.9%
99.9% is an album that moves with flow and easy cadence, each track gently nudging the next along. KAYTRANADA uses addictive hooks and lush atmosphere to back up a name stylized in all caps. As an out gay man, KAYTRANADA stands in a part of hip hop that is pushing boundaries. He balances masculine voices typically heard in rap with funk to create a unique blend of candy synth and tech. This album features everyone from Anderson .Paak to Vic Mensa, but never loses its signature sound. Vaporous and hip, the tracks on 99.9% slide from hazy to white hot. This album perfects flirtatious energy, strong bass, and plain fun.
Kevin Abstract – American Boyfriend: A Suburban Love Story
Openly bisexual rapper, Kevin Abstract, continues to redefine what makes men “manly” as emotional rhymes flow easily onto American Boyfriend. American Boyfriend may sound simple and fun, and it is, but it is also detailed and narrative. Kevin Abstract’s raps are relatable, spanning from frustration due to feeling stagnant, failed relationships (on the track ‘Empty’ he cavalierly states “I hate my boyfriend”), and how we define “home” as we get older. With crooning harmonies, American Boyfriend has a truly All-American nostalgia. Kevin Abstract has a friendly speaking voice that makes him seem like someone you might’ve grown up down the street from. Mixing brassy horns, jazzy piano, acoustic guitar, and classic rap beats, he goes from simple to cacophonic in a matter of seconds. Sound clips of him simply speaking to bites of him breaking down make frequent appearances throughout American Boyfriend. Kevin Abstract skillfully creates an album that revels in accessibility and vulnerability.