2011 Countdown: Top 10 Albums

There was so much great music to listen to this year, so let’s look back at some of my favorite albums!

Honorable Mention: Jennifer Lopez - Love?

This album deserves its own honorable mention for the simple fact that I have waited so long for this! Jenny from the block came back after years of being away from music. After a few stumbles, she emerged with the club-banger “On The Floor” and stole my heart again!

Favorite Song: “Good Hit”

10.) Kelly Clarkson – Stronger

Kelly Clarkson emerged more mature than ever with her latest album. She still had the angst from “Never Again” and the quiet storm of “Because Of You”, but it was directed towards the adult generation this time around and not so much for the teeny boppers.

Favorite Song: “Honestly”

9.) Britney Spears – Femme Fatale

Britney Spears came this year with such power and a driving force of hit singles ready for the club! This album was fierce and dance-ready in all the right places.

Favorite Song: “Up ‘N Down”

8.) Jessie J – Who You Are

Jessie J stole my heart with this eclectic collection of pop perfection! With that voice, that spunk, and that personality, she’s one of my favorites.

Favorite Song: “Mama Knows Best”

7.) Lady GaGa – Born This Way

Lady GaGa, the queen of extreme came into 2011 with an explosive album. It had a little bit of rock, a little bit of dance, a little bit of drama, it was just a little bit of glorious!

Favorite Song: “The Edge of Glory”

6.) Drake – Take Care

Drake surprised me with this somber yet very entertaining album this year. It was low-key, laid back, and certainly enjoyable and relaxing to listen to from start to finish.

Favorite Song: “Take Care”

5.) Demi Lovato – Unbroken

After her stint in rehab, Demi Lovato matured and became a lot more urban infused with more pop for one of my favorite albums of the year! With production from Timbaland and Ryan Tedder to guests from Dev, Missy Elliott, and Jason Derulo, this album had something for everyone!

Favorite Song: “Who’s That Boy”

4.) Jay-Z & Kanye West – Watch The Throne

Simply said, Jay-Z and Kanye together was genius and amazing. It definitely was long overdue, and I personally cannot wait until their sequel is released!

Favorite Song: “Lift Off”

3.) Rihanna – Talk That Talk

There is just no stopping Rihanna. After consecutively releasing an album every year, she came back with one more outstanding production with this album. She’s finally more upbeat and optimistic compared to the dark tones she’s been dealing with the past couple years. It’s nice to hear her happy at last!

Favorite Song: “Farewell”

2.) Beyoncé – 4

Beyoncé is ma homegirl, and she deserved so much more attention for this ground-breaking album than she actually got! So happy for the year she’s having with her pregnancy and all, but here’s to hoping that more people get into her most personal, truthful, and beautiful piece of work yet!

Favorite Song: “Love On Top”

1.) ADELE – 21

Is it any surprise that I would pick ADELE as my favorite album of the year? I’ve been a dedicated fan since the beginning, and my love and admiration has only been strengthened by this perfect sophomore album of hers. From start to finish, this album is honest and so poetic. Her voice is like honey, and I can’t wait to taste more!

Favorite Song: “One and Only”

2011 Countdown: Top 20 Songs (#10-1)

10.) “Bennie and the Jets”

Haley Reinhart

In a superb season for the judges on American Idol, the talent wasn’t anything special to listen to really. At least until Haley broke out with this song. From then on, she became the winner in my eyes, until the country teens sadly took over.

9.) “Super Bass”

Nicki Minaj

Here comes another song that no one could escape this summer! Again, thanks to Taylor Swift for helping to bring this iTunes-only bonus track known so that the rest of us who bought the actual CD itself in the store could hear! He got that super bass!

8.) “Moves Like Jagger”

Maroon 5 & Christina Aguilera

An outstanding collaboration, an up-tempo club banger, and one of the most memorable songs of the year!

7.) “Mamma Knows Best”

Jessie J

This wasn’t released as a single, but it certainly made a big impression on me! I had heard very little of Jessie J. I downloaded her video for “Price Tag” as a free download on iTunes, and I saw her perform it on SNL towards the beginning of the year. But man oh man! She blew me away with her second song of that night when she sang this gem! Since then, I’ve been obsessed with this Brit-import and her dynamite vocals and spunky musical abilities! She really does know best! Her musicality is ridiculous!

6.) “All of the Lights”

Kanye West, Rihanna, Kid Cudi, & Fergie (with Drake, Alvin Fields, Elly Jackson, Elton John, Alicia Keys, John Legend, Ryan Leslie, Ken Lewis, The-Dream, Charlie Wilson, & Tony Williams)

Who else other than Kanye can get this many people to sing backup for him!??? This song is genius from start to finish, and it certainly is creative in and of itself. As much as I can’t stand Kanye as soon as he opens his mouth and he’s NOT singing, you can’t help but listen in awe of this outstanding song.

5.) “Take Care”

Drake & Rihanna

Again, another song that hasn’t officially been released as a single yet, but it’s taken my breath away. Drake’s album Take Care is a lovely gem from this year, filled with so much emotional, relaxing songs to kick back to. It’s quite surprising, but Drake and Rihanna go well together (who would’ve guessed it?) From the slow pace in the beginning, to the build up towards the ends, I can’t wait to start hearing this on the radio, and I’m certainly excited for the video soon to come!

4.) “The Edge of Glory”

Lady GaGa

GaGa came back from her amazing world tour from her first two albums and brought us a variety of tunes from her second album Born This Way. With that variety came some unexpected gems, including this 80’s homage. Thank the Lord for the saxophone!

3.) “We Found Love”

Rihanna

There just seems to be no stopping Rihanna (take a look at the fact that she's in 3 of the Top 10 songs!) She’s releasing new music every year! And she’s taken it one step further with a new signature song to compete with “Umbrella”. The exploding music that elevates to the point of sounding like a bomb is about to go off really does get your heartbeat going!

2.) “Love On Top”

Beyoncé

No one else had a year quite like Beyoncé! She came back after her brief hiatus with one of the best albums of the year, 4. Then she surprised us all with her breathtaking announcement on the VMA’s as only Beyoncé can do! She danced and performed just to tell us that she and Jay-Z were having a baby! From then on, she released a music video for almost every song on the album, and we couldn’t get enough! Congratulations soon on the birth of what is to be the most loved, the most expensive, and the luckiest baby in the business!

1.) “Rolling in the Deep”

ADELE

Much like Beyoncé, no one had a year quite like ADELE! Again, allow me to reiterate that I have loved ADELE since summer of 2008 when I first saw “Chasing Pavements” on VH1’s You Oughta Know special! Since then, I’ve been enamored with her voice, her talent, and her fantastic personality! After a while though, I was waiting in anticipation for her to release her next album. Hoping she wouldn’t disappoint, I bought “Rolling In The Deep” the day it came out, and I was blown away. Then the album 21 came out, and I completely lost control! This woman is outstanding, she’s a genius, and she deserves every ounce of success that she has had this year! Congratulations to just being you my friend, and I look forward to more of what is already quite a remarkable career!

2011 Countdown: Top 20 Songs (#20-11)

Not all of these songs on this Top 20 countdown were released as singles necessarily, but they certainly had a big impact on music in 2011. Here is #20-11!

20.) “Give Me Everything”

Pitbull, Ne-Yo, Afrojack, & Nayer

You couldn’t go anywhere without hearing this song. It’s upbeat, uplifting, and certainly a lot of fun. Again, I’m glad to hear that Ne-Yo is still alive!

19.) “Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)”

Katy Perry

Between this song and “E.T”, I feel as though this one has a bit more of a lasting impact, especially when it comes to the video alone! Katy Perry is hilarious, and the cameos and homage to the 80’s was genius!

18.) “Pumped Up Kicks”

Foster the People

Here comes another song that you just could not escape. It certainly was different than anything else out there, but it was catchy, it was fun, and it was infectious! It’s hard NOT to hum (or even whistle) along.

17.) “Titanium”

David Guetta & Sia

This wasn’t considered an official single, just a promotional one (although it should be official definitely!) Sia’s haunting vocals make the clubs shake, rattle, and roll on this uplifting and inspirational fist-pumping song for the clubs!

16.) “On The Floor”

Jennifer Lopez & Pitbull

Props to my homegirl who came back bigger and better with this explosive first single! Pitbull continues his lucky guest appearance streak, and they had all of us wanting to get down on the floor.

15.) “Skyscraper”

Demi Lovato

Emotional, heart-wrenching, haunting, and brutally honest, it was the perfect platform for Demi Lovato to come back from her stint in rehab. She is so wise beyond her years, and has one of the most mature voice, far and above any others her age!

14.) “Till the World Ends [The Femme Fatale Remix]”

Britney Spears, Nicki Minaj, & Ke$ha    

Some are going to love the original version, but this remix is what caught my attention more. Ke$ha I can probably do without though, even though some credit has to go to her for helping to write the actual song for Ms. Britney Spears. But Nicki Minaj’s presence took this song to a whole other level! And Britney Spears was back on her A-game, keeping up with all of the other youngin’s out there.

13.) “Look At Me Now”

Chris Brown, Lil’ Wayne, & Busta Rhymes

I think it’s about time that Chris Breezy got it back, and he gained our respect along the way. It’s this song where all three Breezy, Weezy, and Busta went hard and definitely didn’t go home. They all brought their A-game, but it’s certainly Busta Rhymes’ crazy flow that stole the whole damn thing! But good effort Weezy and Breezy, you both tried your best to keep up with him!

12.) “Otis”

Jay-Z & Kanye West

It’s about time that two powerhouses like Jay-Z and Kanye got together for an entire album. The genius between them created one of the best albums of the year in my opinion. They both go hard everytime they come out with something, but there was something that seemed so effortless and so calm about this song. You can’t help but take another listen to see if there’s something you missed. There has to be more behind the genius of this song, right?!

11.) “Shake It Out”

Florence + the Machine

Florence + the Machine continue their reign as the most haunting voices in the business. The song is uplifting and awe-inspiring. Florence Welch’s vocals are breathtaking, and this is such a grand step up from last year’s “Dog Days Are Over”.