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Music

Noisey’s Best and Worst of 2013 - Lauren Nostro

Yes, Yeezus is on this list.

Beyonce dropped a self-titled album at midnight last night. It has essentially fucked my whole game up with my year-end list. But since I only listened to it in a daze, I can't really include it. I will say she—without a doubt—had the best album rollout, because she didn't have one at all. This year has been exhausting; essentially every artist I've ever cared about since I was younger dropped an album this year. I basically just ran down my most played on Spotify—and since Pink Friday was released in 2010, I had to go with the more recent music. Here's everything I couldn't stop playing in 2013.

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TOP 10 ALBUMS

10. Lil Wayne - I Am Not A Human Being II

There's not one song on Wayne's new album I don't like. Even "Hello" which is essentially Rebirth wrapped into one song featuring a skater. A lot of people argued with me over whether or not Wayne could rap over the TNGHT beat. I can't listen to "Easy Easy" without hearing Wayne so the answer is: yes, he can. He'll never be as great as he was but I don't care. "Grab the owl out the tree/Ask that bitch, 'Who but me?'' is also my favorite lyric of the year.

Listen to: I Am Not a Human Being II

9. M.I.A. - Matangi

I saw M.I.A. at a warehouse in Brooklyn the week Matangi was out. Every time I've seen her live, there's so much energy in the crowd, and her live set is incredible. Matangi packs a punch; the whole project is inventive and she still doesn't sound like anything else out right now.

[ Listen to: Matangi](http://open.spotify.com/album/3dAxXNscIj0p53lBMEziYR)

8. Justin Timberlake - The 20/20 Experience

Justin Timberlake didn’t need two albums, he’s just been working with Timbaland so fucking long that he won’t say NO to him and he ends up with two basically mediocre albums that, with some snipping, could be one phenomenal project. That didn’t happen, and “Suit & Tie” wasn’t the absolute best comeback. But “Mirrors” is really perfect.

_[ Listen to: The 20/20 Experience](http://open.spotify.com/album/41br7lBSZOr9RjJAjk0om6)_

7. Danny Brown - Old

Because of the fact that Danny Brown—more than most—is truly a student of rap, there's so many facets of Old that draw from what he loves that it makes it an adventure to listen to any of his projects. This has to be on my list, I studied this album for weeks, and then I wrote my first digital cover story on him for Complex. Plus, the sequencing on Old is incredible—it's the best of both worlds—and "Dope Song" is fucking incredible.

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Listen to: Old

6. James Blake - Overgrown

I drink a lot of red wine, usually Carlo Rossi and sometimes very dry, cheap Yellowtail. I know nothing about wine, but I listened to this album a lot while drinking wine at home when it was cold out. There’s a part of James Blake that reminds me a bit of Damien Rice—obviously, I mean some of his songs are fucking depressing and highly intimate, and so dense that it all sounds like a less sociopathic version of “Accidental Babies.” And we all had the “Retrograde” hum in our heads for a few hours at least.

Overgrown

5. Charli XCX - True Romance

While all of our pop stars were out appropriating different cultures of their choices this year, Charli XCX was out fucking raving and making some of the best bubble-gum, straightforward pop with a bit of a postmodern electro influence. I interviewed her right after Icona Pop’s “I Love It” took off, about a month before the album came out. I remember talking to her about Britney Spears and the Spice Girls, and Uffie and Justice, and if you combined all of those artists and added some more electro-house, and a ton of glitter, that’s a good representation for everything her debut was.
Listen to: True Romance

4. Pusha T - My Name Is My Name

I don't know what to write about Pusha T. I like this album; I like every track. I think it could have started with "40 Acres" but "King Push" is definitely a more brash start. I remember being disappointed when I watched a video of Pusha screaming and pounding on a wall, telling Kanye to release "Numbers on the Boards." In the end, it all worked out.

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Listen to: My Name Is My Name

3. Drake - Nothing Was The Same

The only way to describe why Drake's album is important to me is what I wrote about "Tuscan Leather" below.

Listen to: Nothing Was The Same

2. Ariana Grande - Yours Truly

To be honest, pop was pretty boring this year. Miley’s “Wrecking Ball” was cool but of course, there was shock value to the video. Then there was little Ariana Grande belting her ass off with some frilly dress on and no backing vocals. I saw her at Best Buy Theatre. Even though I was really old, I sang word for word to “Piano.” Sure, she may not be that interesting, and her cutesy style is a little cliche, but this girl can sing—and besides the vocal whistles, she's really not that similar to Mariah.

Listen to: Yours Truly

1. Kanye West - Yeezus

I saw "New Slaves" when it was first projected on N. 7 & Bedford. Then I went to Columbus Circle. Then I watched SNL for the first time in years. Then I saw him at Governors Ball. Then I snuck into his listening party. And then I went to the Yeezus tour. At first, Yeezus disappointed me. But today, it's the only album I haven't gotten sick of listening to in full. If I didn't admit that this defined the last few months of my life—and job—I'd be lying.

Listen to: "Yeezus"

TOP 10 SINGLES

10. Kelela “Go All Night (Let Me Roll)” Kelela performed at 285 Kent during CMJ; I lost everyone I was with and was standing in the middle of the venue watching her amidst the clouds of cigarette smoke. She was absolutely breathtaking. 9. Mapei “Don’t Wait” My friend Jacob Moore likes Swedish singers a lot, and that's how I heard Mapei. I looked her up the next day, and turns out she used to do some type of electronic rap—a bit similiar to the breakdown on this song—but the snaps, acoustic guitar notes, and snare are all really catchy. This is like, sad girls wanting love music that’s bright enough to feel okay listening to it all day. I like Swedish singers, too. 8. Daft Punk f/ Panda Bear “Doin’ it Right” I didn’t care about Daft Punk’s album. “Get Lucky” got just as annoying as “Blurred Lines” to me—definitely less rapey, but you know, equally overplayed and nauseating at a point—but! “Doin’ It Right” is Panda Bear and the robots making everyone want to go do acid and visit some dive bar dancefloor and fall in love. 7. James Blake f/ Chance the Rapper “Life Round Here (Remix)” James Blake’s album is very good. Chance the Rappers’ mixtape is very good. Their harmonies—even when Chance goes well beyond his range—are hypnotizing. Could do without that “chill pill addict” line though. 6. Young Thug “Dead Fo Real” I did a lot of drugs in February. 5. French Montana “Trap House” I lived in Queens earlier this year above a Wingstop. One night, some car rolled up to get wings, and proceeded to eat them on the hood while playing “Trap House” until the beat dropped, and then replaying it. Over, and over, and singing the chorus. Now I really like this song—and a lot of French’s album. 4. Kid Cudi f/ Haim "Red Eye" “Teleport 2 Me, Jamie” is my favorite Cudi song—even though it’s technically WZRD—but when I heard “Red Eye” off of Indicud, I immediately thought how much more realistic Cudi’s become. No teleporting this time, just a quick flight across the country. If you’ve ever been in a long distance thing, “Teleport 2 Me, Jamie” is for the desperate times, and “Red Eye” is actually for when you’re midway to the West Coast and you just spilled a plastic cup of red wine on the person sitting next to you and you’re in the middle and you can’t smoke a cigarette and they keep forgetting water and you just need one more Xanax but it will all be worth it or whatever. 3. Drake “Tuscan Leather” Earlier this year I quit my last job and I had just rented a studio apartment which was really great until you’re freelancing from home everyday alone and eating this frozen tupperware of homemade sauce your mom brought you from Buffalo. Anyway, Drake’s album had just come out and it didn’t sink with me the way it was supposed to, or at least, the way I anxiously anticipated. My boyfriend was in Los Angeles. My two best friends in Brooklyn moved to Detroit and Maryland, respectively. My family was in Buffalo. All of my work friends were, you know, at work. For two days, I sat on my couch with a jug of wine and didn’t talk to anyone and played “Tuscan Leather” over and over. It was at 134 replays on my iTunes by that second night. I guess that's what resonates with Drake—if you’re confident and happy, his music makes you happy, and if you’re lonely, you feel comforted. 2. Kanye West “Send It Up” At Kanye West’s listening party at MILK there was a really pretty model in a mesh top with high wasted pants with lots of glitter on her face—very disco, very MILK studios. When we all heard the beat on “Send It Up” for the first time, no one in the room could believe that’s what Kanye sounded like. But I remember looking over at that girl who hopped up on a speaker right behind Kanye and started dancing, and he was so happy, he ended up just watching her for a minute. 1. Rich Gang “Tapout” Million. Dollar. Pussy.

THINGS I LIKED BUT COULDN'T FIT ANYWHERE

Janelle Monae “What an Experience” The most stunning song on her album. Future Brown f/ Tink “Wanna Party” This sparked my obsession with Tink. She’s going to be next. Drake “5 AM in Toronto” First it sounded like Zelda: Majora’s Mask. Then it became the reason I couldn’t wait to hear Nothing Was The Same. Then there was no rapping like this on NWTS, which would technically mean we were overestimating greatly. ScHoolBoy Q f/ Kendrick Lamar “Collard Greens” Between this and “Man of the Year,” I’m excited for Oxymoron.

TOP VERSES OF THE YEAR

Nicki Minaj on Lil Wayne’s “Lay It Down”
Nicki Minaj on Rich Gang “Tapout”
Nicki Minaj on Carly Rae Jepsen’s “Tonight I’m Getting Over You”
Nicki Minaj on French Montana’s “Freaks”
Nicki Minaj on Mario’s “Somebody Else”
Nicki Minaj on Busta Rhymes’ “#Twerkit”
Nicki Minaj on Nelly f/ Pharrell’s “Get Like Me”
Nicki Minaj on DJ Khaled’s “I Wanna Be With You”
Nicki Minaj on Big Sean f/ Juicy J’s “MILF”
Nicki Minaj on Ciara’s “I’m Out”
Nicki Minaj on Chris Brown’s “Love More”
Nicki Minaj on Meek Mill’s “Dope Dealer”
Nicki Minaj on Wale’s “Clappers”
Nicki Minaj on Mavado’s “Give It All to Me”
[Exception: Nicki Minaj on “Lookin’ at Me” with Pearl Future. Pearl Future is not good.] Lauren only really cares about Beyoncé right now. She's on Twitter - @LAURENcynthia