Two-thousand-sixteen is drawing to a close and many have considered this year to be one filled with L’s (losses). Let’s not recap on the negative but, the positive such as this year possibly foreshadowing 2017 as being a wonderful year for the music industry specifically in the R&B (rhythm and blues), hip-hop, and rap world. This is W (wins) is something we can most definitely recap on.

Let’s go back to the beginning of 2016, the essential snowball that started it all, “All the Way Up” displaying the rhymes of Fat Joe and Remy Ma and featuring some of hip hop’s largest rappers like French Montana and new comer, Infrared. This was one of the largest songs to hit the charts from Terror Squad in about eight years since the release of the group’s “Lean Back” which still holds the amazing bass trademark undertones that keeps listener’s dancing in “All the Way Up”. Going hard on the brass section carrying most of the song with the same mix tune as the group did back in “Lean Back”. This can be noted as the first sign of a return of classic dance tunes and music from the early 2000’s. Holding us over with this number, the hip-hop, R&B, and rap world were met not too long after with the massive release of Beyonce’s album Lemonade on April 23rd, 2016.

Lemonade took the world by force turning just about everyone who didn’t live under rock into members of Bey’s following, the Beyhive. Lemonade’s first chart topper was Formation, featuring Bey’s raspy vocals in the introduction before hitting the hook with the upbeat techno rhythms on the lyrics, “My daddy Alabama/ My ma Louisiana/  You mix that Negro with that Creole/ Get that Texas-Bama”. The song talked about her background before going into her success as musical artist and a black woman, basically saying that no matter how high she rises with her success and wealth in music she still is her southern-country self, “I got hot sauce in my bag/ Swag” . According to genius.com Beyonce’s sixth album and first album since 2013 is, “a conceptual project based on every woman’s journey of self-knowledge and healing.” Relating to today’s world Lemonade, dove into the issues women face everyday that society likes to hide or mock, because of this the album gathered an even greater following. Upon the album’s release came the video album lasting as long as a special episode (which it was for the hip-hop, R&B, and rap world) lasting about an hour, touching upon southern African-American culture and the image and life of women, more specifically black women. Lemonade was just the beginning of the string of albums to be released.

Following Beyonce came, everybody’s favorite self-produced hip-hop artist, Chance the Rapper’s third mixtape, Coloring Book on May 13th, 2016. This Ended the long wait of anticipation from his 2013 release of, Acid Rap to begin the summer that was filled with the endless replaying of Bey’s Lemonade, Chance’s Coloring Book, the never tiring playing of J Cole’s 2014 Forest Hills Drive. Coloring Book with it’s choir like organ hymns and vocals captured the hip-hop world’s heart with upbeat rhythms creating enormous hype like in No Problem (featuring Lil Wayne & 2 Chainz), to pulling heart strings in Same Drugs which was said to be inspired by the 1991 movie Hook starring the late Robin Williams as Peter Pan. Chance the Rapper took the cake in his rise to fame over the past few years while gathering a large following. Amidst not knowing what you’re going to do with all of this new music the rumor’s began about the contemporary soul man, Bruno Mars, releasing an album in November. If you couldn’t get any more excited well…this was another reason to get excited. Impatiently waiting fans were able to purchase the album virtually released on November 18th; the essential Superman in saving our minds from the whirlwind election Bruno Mars laid it down with, 24k Magic. Mars’ old school vibe brought back James Brown-esque soul music such as the song, Perm which revisits Brown’s technique of repeating the same lyric accompanied by rhythmic notes from the brass section. But, the one that brought us to first love 24k Magic, was the album title song, mixing hip-hop like beats and rhythms with the perfect auto-tuned introductions before hitting you with the drums engaging you in 80’s type bounce to hook you into this automatic classic Bruno Mars R&B song.

Last but, not least to bless the ears of his listeners was the one and only J. Cole. He released his album 4 Your Eyez Only on December 9th, 2016. After almost three years of waiting Dreamville fans were finally able to listen to one of hip-hop’s greats but, honestly considering the fire rhymes that comes out of his mouth, it was worth the wait. Taking on a different approach than his previous album 2014 Forest Hill Drive there is an earthier vibe or earthier (natural sounding instrumentals) authenticism to his music but, with his signature beats and chords with his raspy poetic emotion filled vocals and haunting background chorus vocals each song tells its influential story.

Amongst these top charting artists are also Kendrick Lamar who dropped his album Untitled Unmastered, after his amazing rise to practically a household name with To Pimp a Butterfly and Frank Ocean released the long and well waited for, Blonde help to conclude the hip-hop, R&B, and rap masterpiece called 2016. While 2016 was filled with a good number of L’s the biggest W was the music that was produced. The question that remains, “Is 2016 just a glimpse of what will be released in 2017?” In all honesty I have no idea. Some of the greatest dropped monumental albums this year, hopefully more decide to come out and play because us music lovers are listening…until then we have a pretty amazing playlist waiting to be sifted through.