Drake - Drake has been one of my favorite artists for the past five years or so, but I have not been able to support him in 2016. While "Take Care" and "Nothing Was The Same" are two of my favorite albums of this decade, Drake’s "Views" received more attention and sold more copies than either of these albums, but it was far weaker. While it succeeded off of the strength of its terrific singles, such as “One Dance” and “Controlla,” the album was altogether unexciting and overblown. Many websites have noted the fact that the 82-minute album was so long because Drake wanted to get more album sales, and the more songs there are to stream, the better your album will perform now that song streams are being counted as sales. But, it seemed as if Drake was more focused on creating quantity rather than quality. It upsets me to see that he’s more focused on numbers than his actual product, but by the way everyone supported it, it seemed like nothing changed. Yet, I’m hoping that with his next album he’ll go back to creating more great songs and a great album.
Meghan Trainor - Winner of the Grammy Award for Best New Artist at this past year’s Grammy Awards, Meghan Trainor is someone who does not deserve to share this honor with the likes of Bon Iver, Adele, and Amy Winehouse, a few winners of the award from the past ten years (then again, I don’t think Macklemore does either). Granted, I appreciate much of what Meghan Trainor is trying to do with her career. Trainor’s push for body positivity and representation of all body types is quite admirable. But, besides the positive message she used in her 2014 hit “All About That Bass,” it feels like Meghan Trainor hasn’t had much else to say, and her latest album "Thank You" included the god-awful “No” and some even more appalling tracks (check out the deluxe track “Mom”).
The Weeknd - The Weeknd has disappointed me in the past year. I have been a fan of his ever since 2011 when I discovered the three mixtapes that he had released for free on his website, and which would ultimately become the "Trilogy" album that was released commercially. Songs such as “Wicked Games” drew me in and I was captured by his intriguing sound and soothing vocals. When he announced his shift towards pop with Beauty "Behind the Madness", I was worried that he would lose his touch, but that album ended up producing some major smashes, such as “The Hills.” Due to his breakout success last year, his latest album "Starboy" was extremely hyped up, but it did not deliver. As much as fans may try to defend it, the songs are musically uniform and his lyrics are not as tantalizing as they once were. I’m hoping he can still bounce back, but as of now, things are not looking good.
Twenty One Pilots - One of the two most overrated duos of the year, Twenty One Pilots dominated the charts with songs that just felt awkward and uncomfortable. In a mixture of attempting to sound like Eminem and Asher Roth, these two sluggishly “rapped” in fruitless attempts to create music they declare is alternative, but that just comes off as boring and annoying. Twenty One Pilots just need to ride off into the sunset with their heathens for a while so real artists can work their magic.
The Chainsmokers - The Chainsmokers felt ubiquitous in the year 2016. It seemed impossible to ride in the car, dance at a party, or even enter a store without hearing one of their three Top 10 songs playing. However, it was the song “Closer” that dominated the charts and would end up becoming the longest-running number one song of 2016, while also becoming one of the longest-leading Hot 100 No. 1’s in the history of the Billboard chart. Yet, it seems almost laughable that a song from a band that was, up until this year, practically unknown besides the 2014 atrocity that was the song “#SELFIE,” managed to create a song that remained at Number 1 for only two weeks less than such classics as “I Will Always Love You” and “Candle in the Wind 1997.” Sure, I went to frat parties and sang along to “Closer” just like everybody else did. I even went to parties where they played it multiple times, and the crowd got more and more excited with each new spin of the song. But, once all the alcohol wears off and you actually pay attention, you realize that it’s really not that great. The lyrics don’t make total sense (why would someone ever steal a mattress?) and the production is lazy, with a simple beat that the lyrics thump along to as Halsey provides vocals to add some sort of life to the abysmal song. The Chainsmokers added nothing new to the musical world, and during a time when so many artists are testing the limits of what music can do with their progressive lyrics and experimental production, it seems almost backward to be supporting such a bland duo. As we look back at the year where we elected Donald Trump as president, we can also be embarrassed that the Chainsmokers were what we were playing throughout the whole experience. Let’s hope they disappear in 2017.
*If you’re looking for some great music from 2016 that deserves lots of attention, check out a few of my favorite albums:
"A Seat at the Table" by Solange
"Puberty 2" by Mitski
"Freetown Sound" by Blood Orange
"Nightride" by Tinashe
"Lemonade" by Beyonce
"Blonde" by Frank Ocean
"Dangerous Woman" by Ariana Grande
"Anti" by Rihanna
"We Got it from Here... Thank You 4 Your Service" by A Tribe Called Quest
"I Like It When You Sleep, for You Are So Beautiful yet So Unaware of It" by the 1975
