Black Women Made the Most Liberating, Risky Music This Year
My favorite music (and articles I wrote) of 2022
(Graphic credit: my Spotify playlist)
Hey! wassup. hello. Hope y’all are doing well and enjoying the holidays. We’ve made it to the end of the year.
It’s been a minute. Actually, more than a minute. Actually, it’s been an entire year since the last time I’ve updated this newsletter and talked with you all. But, I’m back——at least for right now. In pure DeAsia fashion, I’m here with a last-minute list of the music that shaped my 2022.
I’m not big on farewells and reflections, but this year really challenged my conceptions of productivity and taught me the importance of saying “no” when I have too much on my plate. Somehow, I balanced making strides in my freelance work as a music and culture writer while working a demanding full-time job. And one day after a birthday trip to Vegas, I moved to a different state to start a new job in yet another city where I barely know anyone. During that time, I still somehow managed to do freelance work. Even as I’m typing this, I’m still not sure how I did any of that. I prioritized the temporary satisfaction of the possible success yielded from being busy instead of the permanent gratification of being well-rested.
I’m trying not to do that again.
In 2023, I’m looking forward to saying “no” more often than I ever have before. I’m interested to see where that takes me. I also plan to update this newsletter more frequently. But, in the meantime, I thought I’d share a list of the music that grounded me in the busiest year of my life. Last year, I ranked the best R&B and soul albums, which I planned to do this year. However, as I was making this year’s list, I noticed that Black women made the most emotionally daring, sonically audacious records this year——becoming not only my personal soundtrack but a source for inspiration to be as bold and risky in my own life. This year marked the return of artists like Beyoncé and SZA, who gave their best and most intimate offerings to date. Newcomers like Ravyn Lenae and Amber Mark released dynamic debut albums that set the tone for future of alternative R&B and tested the genre’s boundaries. And although this newsletter is named after R&B, this list includes artists who’ve defied genres, and I wanted to celebrate that because, well, they’ve provided the sounds to the rhythm and blues of my 2022. They are my R&B.
So, without further ado, here’s a brief ranking of my favorite albums/projects of 2022, which were all made my Black women (I’m also linking to my favorite articles I’ve written this year, most of which are also about Black women):
10. Ari Lennox: “age/sex/location”
Recommended track: “Mean Mug”
Read my Pitchfork review of the album
9. Dawn Richard, Spencer Zahn: “Pigments”
Recommended track: “Saffron”
Read Tarisai Ngangura’s NPR Music review of the album
8. Leikeli47: “Shape Up”
Recommended track: “Carry Anne”
Read Starr Rocque’s interview of Leikeli47 for Mic.
7. Junglepussy: “Jp5000”
Recommended track: “Critiqua”
Read Dylan Green’s Pitchfork review of the project
6. Yaya Bey: “Remember Your North Star”
Recommended track: “Pour Up”
Read Clover Hope’s interview of Yaya Bey for Pitchfork
5. Amber Mark: “Three Dimensions Deep”
Recommended track: “What It Is”
Read my blurb on the album, ranked at no. 44, for Pitchfork’s end-of-the-year list
4. Ravyn Lenae: “Hypnos”
Recommended track: “Wish”
Read Robyn Mowatt’s interview of Ravyn Lenae for Okayplayer
3. SZA: “SOS”
Recommended track: “Blind”
Read my review of the album for Elle.com
2. Sudan Archives: “Natural Brown Prom Queen”
Recommended track: “Freakalizer”
Read Tarisai Ngangura’s Pitchfork review of the album
1. Beyoncé: “Renaissance”
Recommended track: “Heated”
Read my review of the album for Elle.com
Now, here are some other articles that I was proud to write this year:
Fousheé: softCORE (Pitchfork review)
Takeoff’s death another blow for Atlanta’s hip-hop scene (AJC)
FLO is forging a future for Black girl groups (Harper’s Bazaar)
Kilo Kish is redefining what success means to her (Teen Vogue)
On 'flora + fana,' Fana Hues creates an ecosystem of self-sufficiency (NPR Music)
Flo Milli knows she’s that girl (Elle)
Apple Music review of Beyoncés ‘Lemonade’
Oh, and, as always, below is a playlist. Hope you all have a great 2023!