Feeling, Healing, and Storytelling: My Top Albums from 2021

2021 was another year of great music and entertainment moments. It felt like most of my favorite artists were getting back into their strides after a year in the coronavirus pandemic, but it still seemed like they (and by “they” I mean more mainstream artists and the industry machines behind them, not local artists who are bearing more of the brunt of COVID-related disruptions and cancellations) navigated rollout interviews, award shows, concerts and promotional tour announcements with a more-than-healthy dose of willful ignorance while we are still quite literally in a pandemic. 

With ongoing conversations about (anti-)capitalism and its relationship with the concept of “celebrity” – along with discussions about racism, misogyny, colorism, homophobia, transphobia, xenophobia, etc. – it was admittedly hard to engage with music and other forms of entertainment media, and the artists and brands who create them. The concept of “separate the artists from their art” has elicited more of a chasm that, at times, genuinely requires us as consumers to become oblivious to the very real influence and, often, the negative impact that is brought on by celebrity – namely the visibility and power it affords those who have clearly not done the reading.

On the other hand, I have become more genuinely curious as to how musicians and celebrities more broadly have personally navigated the pandemic and sociopolitical reckonings – beyond their being a public figure who feels obligated to take a stance, make statements or “open their purse”  impulsively due to public pressure – without taking time to learn and do the internal work. 

I am reminded often that celebrities are human beings who are, like us, navigating very unprecedented times in very public positions. Demanding immediate responses leads to (and has consistently led) to half-baked, performative takes not rooted in actual learning and good-faith evolution, but rather in scrambling attempts to maintain their brand (and subsequently their bank account) with an audience that often sees straight through the gimmicks. This – juxtaposed with “celebrities are people, too” propaganda that is very much alive and well – doesn’t make for well-received attempts at sincerity. 

I say all of this to say: Throughout all of this, I appreciated the artists who continued to use their music to speak to their own genuine experiences and personal interpretations of the state of our world, rather than trying too hard to be a “voice for the people” or an “artist who reflects the times.”

 There is something very powerful and refreshing – especially in the age of everyone chasing virality due to TikTok, streaming and social media algorithms – about seeing (mostly hearing) how the past two years has transpired for my favorite artists as human beings – from love, loss, self-discovery, success, failure, and political enlightenment or even empowerment. Less because it breaks down the perfectly curated facade of celebrity and lets us in, moreso because it is reminiscent of what music, at least to me, is for: A chance to experience a well-crafted body of work that sonically illustrates core elements of the human condition – in a way that bridges the gap between the grandeur of celebrity or artistry and the simpler lives the rest of us live each day.

That said, here are my top albums of 2021 – which, for me, best embodied the reality and potential of humanity...