Culture Check 2018: Accolades of the Year

Accolades of the Year

If I had to give 2018 a stat line Hip-hop and R&B averaged a triple-double for the year. As both genres accounted for 30% of All U.S. music streams in 2018 with Drake being the most streamed artist according to Nielsen Music. Artist came to the court of 2018 ready to play with their best line-ups and for the most part they showed up and showed out. Hip-Hop a genre that’s only existed for just 45 years continues to evolve as new sounds our brought to the forefront and 2018 was no different as Trap Rap blossomed as the new norm as artist like Migos, Lil Baby, Young Thug, and Gunna seem to anchor the sound this year. We see R&B return to a classic indie form in 2018 as artist like H.E.R., 6lack, The Internet, and Ella Mai own the sound this year and make us want to fall in love all over again.  From the start of the year to the very end it seems like everyone was dropping projects J. Cole, Jay-Z & Beyonce, Cardi B, to new comers like Juice WRLD, J.I.D., and Jorja Smith giving listener’s a breath of fresh air with their unique sound. 2018 has now commenced and as always, we like to debate the accolades of the year with who dropped the best music of the year and below I will be ranking music that dropped in 2018 from best album, song, verse, artist of the year etc.

SONGS OF THE YEAR

1. Travis Scott ft. Drake – SICKO MODE
2. Drake – God’s Plan
3. Drake – In My Feelings
4. Sheck Wes – Mo Bamba
5. Lil Duval – Smile

Top 5 Verses of the Year

1. Jay-Z – What’s Free

Verse 3

Best Line: “Look at my hair free, carefree, niggas ain’t near free/Enjoy your chains – what’s your employer name with the hairpiece”

2. Black Thought – Twofifteen

Verse 1

Best Line: “I heard murder ran this vast deserted land/Since back when Burning Man was blacks in Birmingham/Before the presidential election diversion scam/Matter fact, before they clapped Franz Ferdinand”.

3. Pusha-T – The Games We Play

Verse 3

Best Line: “This ain’t for the conscious, this is for the mud-made monsters/Who grew up on legends from outer Yonkers/Influenced by niggas straight outta Compton”

4. Cole – 1985

Verse 1

Best Line: “Just Remember what I told you when your shit flop/In five years you gon be on Love & Hip-Hop, nigga”

5. Nipsey Hussle – Blue Laces 2

Verse 3

Best Line: “Really not too spoked, calmly asked me, ‘Am I dyin now?’/All I know is keep you calm and collected/Crackin’ jokes like, ‘Nigga, now you gon be finally respected’”

Hip-Hop Artist of the Year

1. J. Cole

Dropping one of the best albums of the year only after 3 days of announcing it to be released on 4-20 and breaking first day streaming numbers with 64.5 million streams in the first 24 hours in the U.S. Cole didn’t seem to let up shortly after. We all know him to be one of not doing too many features but in 2018 we seen him go on a run that we never seen before featuring on tracks with 6lack, Moneybag Yo, Wale, Rhapsody, 21 Savage and his fellow Dreamville label mates Bas, J.I.D. and Ari Lennox. We even got to see him be the soundtrack for the 2018 NBA Playoffs and in 2019 doesn’t seem like he’s letting up as he’s gearing up for the release of his Dreamville Label Compilation Album “Revenge of the Dreamers 3”.

2. Drake

As we all know Drake continues to push to make himself relevant in Hip-Hop and things didn’t change in 2018. His single’s and features didn’t disappoint this year as he had some of best hit’s this year with God’s Plan being the most streamed song of the year, as it accumulated 1.566 billion on-demand audio and video streams which was a calendar-year record for a song, other songs to mention were Nice for What, In My Feelings, featured songs with Blocboy J in Look Alive, Gunna and Lil Baby Never Recover, and Travis Scott in Sicko Mode plus more. Drake is like Lebron in Hip-Hop always making the case to be considered MVP each year.

3. Cardi B
4. Travis Scott
5. Meek Mill

R&B Artist of the Year

1. Ella Mai

The underground Instagram cover singer grew into a Star in 2018 with her 2017 release Boo’d Up blowing up in early 2018 as a social media favorite as the song went number one on The Billboard Hip-Hop/R&B airplay and with platnium as a single record and we can all agree the song made us want to be shacked up with that special significant other. Becoming one of R&B’s biggest names in 2018 she didn’t disappointment with her self-titled Album “Ella Mai” and features Meek Mill 24/7 and Tiiied with J.I.D. and 6lack.

2. 6lack

3. H.E.R.

4. Chris Brown

5. The Weeknd

Best New Hip-Hop Artist

1. Juice WRLD

Juice WRLD burst into the scene with his hit single “Lucid Dreams” which was released in 2017 but didn’t catch a buzz till 2018. The video for the song which was directed by one of the most beloved video directors of today Cole Bennett and has amassed over 260 million views on YouTube. What makes Juice WRLD different from other artist is his Punk-Rap sound he’s brought to the industry with his album “Goodbye and Good Riddance”, which peaked at #4 on the Billboard Top 200. In 2018 he has established himself as a artist with a platinum single, a mixtape with future, and a album of his own as he is breaking barriers with his new sound.

2. Tekashi 69
3. Lil Baby
4. J.I.D.
5. Gunna

Best New R&B Artist

1. H.E.R.

H.E.R. had a big 2018 the rising of the mysterious and beloved R&B Star first emerged in late 2016 with the EP H.E.R. Volume 1 that showed promised thanks to standout track “Focus”. In 2018 H.E.R. would go on to drop 2 more EP’s with “I Used to Know Her: The Prelude” and “I Use to Know Her Pt.2” in anticipation of her debut album. H.E.R. brings her classic indie sound front stage as she shrouds herself in seductive secrecy and some may say her music is reminiscent of Lauryn Hill’s 90s era cadence as her track “Lost Souls” tackles social issues like materialism, body positivism, and toxic masculinity. With her streaming numbers massive H.E.R. doesn’t seem to be finished as many will be anticipating her debut album in 2019.

2. Jorja Smith
3. Summer Walker
4. Kiana Lede
5. Arin Ray

Top 10 Hip-Hop Albums

1.KOD – J. Cole

In J. Cole’s 4^th studio album KOD which has three meanings “Kids on Drugs”, “King OverDosed”, and “Kill Our Demons” he decided to address the current state of the culture. Mixing the trap-influenced sound with consciousness J. Cole tackled themes of drug abuse and addiction as well as issues he’s confronted. Often balancing between narrating and critiquing with a solid balance he highlights his mom’s past struggle with alcohol (“Once a addict”), stories of friends who have traveled down the wrong path in life (“Friends”) and even showcasing his own issues with his relationship with Love and Money (“ATM” “Kevin’s Heart”). Overall on the album J. Cole keeps the narrative fresh but also continue to give guidance as it was displayed on the closing track “1985” which he takes aim at these new school of rappers and there influence on the culture. J. Cole proved himself through KOD as one of the most vital voices of this generation.

2. Victory Lap – Nipsey Hussle
3. Redemption – Jay Rock
4. DAYTONA – Pusha T
5. ASTROWORLD – Travis Scott
6. Invasion of Privacy – Cardi B
7. Meek Mill – Championship
8. Care for Me – Saba
9. Black Panther Soundtrack – TDE
10. Swimming – Mac Miller

Top 10 R&B Albums

East Atlanta Love Letter – 6lack

After a two-year Hiatus from releasing his first album “Free 6lack” 6lack returned to the scene with his sophomore effort “East Atlanta Love Letter”. For those who have listened to 6lack he’s most known for his dark, trap influenced sound that contains heavy lyrics about various topics from relationships to his own personal struggles in life. In East Atlanta Love Letter he presents the same sound but more wiser as he has become a father, tour the world, and also grown within the industry collecting features from J. Cole, Future, Khalid, Offset, and Ty-Dolla Sign. From standout tracks like Pretty Little Fears, East Atlanta Love Letter, Switch, Disconnect and Scripture 6lack made hearts flutter on this album but more importantly made listener’s think.

2. I Used to Know HER Pt.1 & 2 – H.E.R.

3. Ella Mai – Ella Mai

4. Hive Mind – The Internet

5. Everything is Love – The Carters

6. Lost & Found – Jorja Smith

7. KTSE – Teyana Taylor

8. Saturn – NAO

9. Selfless – Kiana Lede

10. Oxnard – Anderson.Paak

Hip-Hop & R&B came into the year the defending MVP genre and is poised to re-claim the honors for 2018. 2019 is officially here and doesn’t seem the genre is going to let up anytime soon with more music dated to drop this year. The newcomers are taking the industry by storm with the new sound and the veterans that can stay relevant creates a good mixture to have no chance but to consider 2018 a memorable year for the culture. The Culture it continues to evolve, and we grow to adapt to the environment of it all loving, trolling, and being heartbroken by its unpredictable nature.

Written by – Tasean Motley