To be honest, in a lot of ways 2016 sucked. Fortunately, this year blessed us with tons of incredible music to discover and share. The majority of big name artists in the industry released an album this year, including Beyonce, Drake, and Rihanna. Due to how many great projects released this year it wasn't easy to pick my favorite albums, but I somehow managed to narrow the list down to ten. I would like to state before we begin the list that I do not hate Beyonce, I just didn't care too much for "Lemonade" besides a couple tracks; sue me. Also, this list is based on how much I enjoyed each particular album. Other factors such as review scores or album sales were not taken into account. Now, lets get on with the list!

10. "Views" - Drake

Drake didn't even come out with the best album on his own label... but more on that later. "Views" has been the most commercially successful album of the year and cemented Drake's status in the mainstream elite alongside the likes of Bieber and Swift. However, this album is Drake's weakest project since his debut album. Fortunately, even Drake's filler material is better than most other artists' singles. At 20 songs in length the album could certainly use some trimming, but the high points are among Drake's best. Songs such as Billboard topper "One Dance," "Controlla," and "Feel No Ways" show why Drake is so popular among multiple demographics and genres. Lets just hope that Drake's next project "More Life" is a little more focused and compact when it releases in early 2017.

My Top Tracks: "Feel No Ways," "Fire & Desire," "Controlla"

9. "Sept. 5th" - dvsn

dvsn came on the scene in a similar fashion to another Canadian R&B artist affiliated with Drake, The Weeknd. dvsn is a collaborative effort between vocalist Daniel Day and producer Nineteen85. They started gaining attention following the release of tracks such as "The Line" on SoundCloud leading up to the release of "Sept. 5th." This may be a debut album, but they managed to release the year's best pure R&B album while genre veterans like Frank Ocean and The Weeknd embraced more pop music sounds. All of this led to an opening slot on this summer's Summer Sixteen tour headlined by Drake and Future. And I have to say, I got to see dvsn live and the vocals are just as powerful and mesmerizing in person as they are through your headphones. It will be exciting to see what dvsn has in store for 2017.

My Top Tracks: "Hallucinations," "Try/Effortless," "The Line"

8. "Anti" - Rihanna

I have to admit that until "Anti" I had never listened to an entire Rihanna album. I usually enjoyed her singles and collaborations with rappers such as Drake and Kanye West, but I had never felt compelled to listen to an entire project. That changed with "Anti," which blew me away with how much I enjoyed it front to back. Everyone is familiar with the smash hits "Work" and "Needed Me," but even deep cuts like "Never Ending" and her Tame Impala cover "Same 'Ol Mistakes" stood out thanks to Rihanna's powerful, confident vocals. I'm excited to see what direction Rihanna goes with her next project because she seems more in the zone musically than ever before. This album just reinforced that Ri RI isn't going anywhere anytime soon. Also, if you like the song "Work" you should check out the original version by the song's writer PARTYNEXTDOOR, it's better in my opinion.

My Top Tracks: "Same 'Ol Mistakes," "Needed Me," "Never Ending"

7. "99.9%" - Kaytranada

Kaytranada's debut album is also the best electronic album released this year. "99.9%" is unique in the sense that a lot of the songs initially sound weird... but then you find yourself vibing along to all of the beautiful sounds that come together to give each track its own life. Tracks such as the intro, "TRACK UNO," show Kaytranada's ability to craft groovy, mesmerizing songs without the need for any vocals, which is not an easy task. This album also features what have to be two of the years most underrated dance songs with Syd collaboration "YOU'RE THE ONE" and "LITE SPOTS." Admittedly, this album will not be for everyone. People who exclusively enjoy Top 40 electronic music like The Chainsmokers may find this album too experimental. However, I highly recommend everyone reading this to at least gives this album a shot; you might be surprised.

My Top Tracks: "YOU'RE THE ONE," "LITE SPOTS," "DRIVE ME CRAZY"

6. "Starboy" - The Weeknd

While not everyone is going to be thrilled with The Weeknd's choice to largely leave behind the atmospheric ways of his mixtapes in favor of pop stardom, I won't complain if he can continue making high quality music. A definite improvement over last year's "Beauty Behind the Madness," "Starboy" finds The Weeknd more confident than ever. Standout tracks like "Reminder" and "Sidewalks" are among the best of his career. Unfortunately, the album is a few songs too long and this keeps it from being a true album of the year candidate for me. But at the end of the day, you likely won't care that the album is 18 tracks long because all of the albums highs largely cover up the few lows that are here.

My Top Tracks: "Reminder," "Sidewalks," "I Feel It Coming"

5. "Coloring Book" - Chance the Rapper

If The Weeknd was 2015's true breakout star, then Chance is 2016's breakout success. The fact that "Coloring Book" was given away for free and is among the year's best albums is incredible. He even made the Grammys change their rules to allow streaming only albums to be nominated! Not every artist has that type of influence on the music industry, and especially not artists so early in their careers. Chance has the ability to carry songs where he isn't even the most notable name on the track, as shown on songs such as "All We Got" with Kanye West and "No Problem" with Lil Wayne and 2 Chainz. But in this post-"Coloring Book" world, don't be surprised to watch Chance's popularity surpass some of those artists. Also, Chance introduced Francis and the Lights to a much larger audience, myself included, and that is a true blessing.

My Top Tracks: "Smoke Break," "Summer Friends," "No Problem"

4. "Blond" - Frank Ocean

FOUR YEARS FRANK. We waited four years to get a new project from Frank Ocean and then we got two in one weekend; didn't see that coming. "Endless," Frank's visual album you can only stream on Apple Music, is a beautiful project in many ways, but it was really just an appetizer. "Blond" is the main course and thankfully it didn't disappoint. The album consistently challenges the boundary between pop and R&B music, yet it blends the two together masterfully. There's a wide variety of soundscapes for Ocean to showcase his talents over, and each track's production has its own beauty. Whether Frank is messing with vocal effects, "Nikes," or not, "Pink + White," his voice is equally mesmerizing. This album is perfect for sitting back, closing your eyes, and getting lost in the world Frank has curated for the listener. Now please Frank, don''t make us wait until 2020 for the next album.

My Top Tracks: "Nikes," "Nights," "Pink + White"

3. "Birds in the Trap Sing McKnight" - Travis Scott

As much as I enjoyed Travis' last album "Rodeo," I never could have imagined him improving so much in only a years time. Where last year's "Rodeo" had plenty of highlights, there were still plenty of weak points on the album that made it feel disjointed at times. The potential was there, it just wasn't properly executed. Well it is safe to say that Travis learned from his mistakes when putting together "Birds." Perhaps most impressively, Travis did so without as much help from his mentor Kanye West, who is absent from the tracklist. Instead, he used stellar features from his idol Kid Cudi, newcomer Nav, and even Andre 3000, who is notably difficult to get a verse from. "Birds" proves that Travis has clearly learned a lot from Kanye in the sense that he appears to have a second-to-none ability to create projects that perfectly blend together multiple artists, sounds, and ideas into one cohesive piece of art. This year Travis proved that he is here to stay and he may just be getting started. And hopefully the Grammys will recognize his artistry whenever he blesses us with his next album.

My Top Tracks: "Through the Late Night," "Way Back," "Pick Up the Phone"

2. "22, A Million" - Bon Iver

As rough as Frank Ocean fans have had it over the past four years, Bon Iver fans have had it even worse. 2016 finally brought with it the first album from Bon Iver since 2011's Grammy-winning "Bon Iver, Bon Iver." Remarkably, "22, A Million" somehow managed to sound nothing like any of the group's previous projects, yet it also felt welcoming and familiar to longtime fans. While this album has a heavy emphasis on glitchy, computer-like sounds it still manages to blend together a variety of sounds that give each track its own distinct feel. Some of the production on this album would seem closer to home on Kanye West's "Yeezus" than a Bon Iver record. But part of what makes Bon Iver great is how Justin Vernon is willing to experiment and expand the band's sound, as opposed to playing it safe and releasing a traditional album every year or two. While there are likely some Bon Iver fans who feel alienated by this album, most fans have a lot to enjoy here. The album still manages to bring together a variety of sounds to create grand moments within each track, and Vernon's vocals are still as powerful as ever before. This certainly won't be the easiest album to listen to on this list (and good luck trying to read the tracklist), but you might be surprised by the beauty that lies within.

My Top Tracks: "666 t," "33 'GOD'," "8 (circle)"

1. "The Life of Pablo" - Kanye West

After years of hype, multiple title changes, that infamous studio notepad, and a few delays Kanye West finally delivered "The Life of Pablo" to the public following a performance on SNL... well, sort of. In the weeks following the release, Kanye continued to tweak his album by updating certain tracks ("Famous," "Wolves") and even adding an additional song ("Saint Pablo"). After all of these changes, and even before, what Kanye left us with is the best album of 2016. You could argue that this album lacks the focus and cohesion of other albums on this list or in Kanye's discography, which it does. But what "The Life of Pablo" does offer is a collection of great ideas mashed together to create the most enjoyable album to come out this year. From Chance's standout feature on "Ultralight Beam" to the Metro Boomin producer tag to kick off "Father Stretch My Hands, Pt. 1" to the "I Love Kanye" interlude, many of this year's most memorable musical moments can be found on this album. While this album may not have the best lyrics of the year or tell the best story, it is by far the one I felt most compelled to come back and listen to. With so much music at our fingertips now it can be difficult for an album to seem relevant for more than a week or two a lot of times, but "The Life of Pablo" still has me coming back 10 months after its initial release, and that is why it is my top album of 2016.

My Top Tracks: "Famous," "Ultralight Beam," "30 Hours"