For the most part, I've really only followed Shakira's singles. One day, I decided to listen to this album, and I fell in love. I was surprised at how much I loved an album that, save for a few English bits, I could not understand at all. This made me realize that music really has no language, so bravo to Shaki for that. I also realized that she actually has a pretty nice voice - she sounds like an angel on every track, whether she's doing merengue ("Loca"), new wave-ish pop ("Mariposas"), or arena-rock-inspired anthems ("Tu Boca"). I have made it my New Year resolution for me to check out more of Shakira's music, and after listening to this great album, it will likely be one I fulfill.
9. Robyn - Body Talk, Pt. 3
The final installment in Robyn's Body Talk trilogy is actually a collection of the five new songs included on the full-length Body Talk, a compilation of songs from the first two EPs. Out of the three, this had the most bubblegum and Europop influences, which served as a flashback for me into the '90s. Although I was young, I still remember that cheesy goodness that Backstreet Boys, Britney, and others delivered to produce my pre-elementary school soundtrack... but now I'm getting off track. Although I'm disappointed this was shorter than the first two EPs, this really has great songs on it. My personal favs are the beautifully-produced "Indestructible", and "Time Machine", a Max Martin written-and-produced track with a killer chorus.
8. Drake - Thank Me Later
Like much of the world, I started paying attention to Drake when he dropped his excellent So Far Gone mixtape, which spawned the hit single "Best I Ever Had". Since then, I've been eager to hear his debut album. And, for sure, it delivered. He killed it on tracks such as "Over" and "Show Me a Good Time", and got stars like Alicia Keys, T.I., and Young Money pal Nicki Minaj to deliver great guest spots. Drake is a great singer, though the few R&B songs on here ("Karaoke", "Shut It Down", "Find Your Love") slow the party down a little too much. He's at his best when he's spitting rhymes, and hopefully he does more of that on his next album, which I'm ready to hear.
7. Katy Perry - Teenage Dream
Music fans will be criticizing the NARAS' decision to nominate Katy Perry's second mainstream album for Album of the Year at the Grammys for years upon years to come. But, in truth, this really was not a bad album. It's certainly not a life-changing album, by any means. But as a pop singer, Katy's main goal is to make catchy songs that get stuck in people's heads. And she did just the perfect job of that. Her 2010 radio domination has kept lines such as "Put your hands on me in my skin tight jeans" and "Own the night like the 4th of July" stuck in our heads even to this day. And even some of the songs that will likely not be released as singles (the new wavey "Hummingbird Heartbeat" and the ballad "Pearl", for example) are still uncontrollably shooting from my lungs in the shower. This is great pop music, and this album - and Katy herself - are extremely underrated.
6. Eminem - Recovery
After 2009's mediocre Relapse outing, Eminem officially came back with the improved Recovery - originally intended to be a sequel to the 2009 album - in 2010. After a nasty battle with drugs, Eminem has mostly (entirely?) wiped them out of his system, and it shows through the music. In "Not Afraid", probably the best song on the album, Eminem reaches for the rap crown and rightly puts it atop his head, promising listeners, "I'll never let you down again, I'm back". He reminisces about his past history with domestic abuse on "Love the Way You Lie" (which may very well be the only song about violence against a lover to become a summer party favorite), whose enlistment of victim Rihanna makes the song ten times more heartfelt. And, of course, he delivers a sweet farewell to his deceased D12 buddy Proof on the closer, "You're Never Over". I think it goes without saying that Eminem is officially back.
Sorry, I forgot to do the albums yesterday! Let me do those right now, then the #1 track and album this evening.
ALBUMS #5-2
5. Janelle Monáe - The ArchAndroid
This year, I heard a lot of buzz around Janelle Monáe's album, so I did a little research on it and found out she was with Bad Boy, and thus I was expecting this album to be generic, mainstream R&B. But I gave it a chance anyway, and I was pleasantly surprised with the results. This album explores everything from pop to rock to funk to soul, and everything inbetween, and it's all strung together flawlessly in this 18-track concept album. Yes, this is a little pretentious for a debut effort, but it works.
4. Robyn - Body Talk, Pt. 2
The second of the three EPs Robyn released in 2010 was, without a doubt, my favorite. While Pt. 1 had more electronica influences and Pt. 3 was more Euro and bubblegum, this synthpop set bridged the gap. Pt. 2 features some of my favorite songs she released last year, such as "Hang With Me" and "Love Kills". All of the songs are flawlessly produced, including the acoustic version of Pt. 3 track "Indestructible", which rivals the final studio version.
3. Nicki Minaj - Pink Friday
I found out about Nicki Minaj right as 2009 came to a close, when I heard Young Money's "BedRock" on the radio for the first time. Initially mistaking her for Lil Mama (), I found out about her later when radio stations shoved her down everyone's throats in 2010, as she featured on songs by everyone from Trey Songz to Mariah Carey. Eventually, I gave in to the Minaj craze and downloaded all of her mixtapes, which were amazing and got me really excited for this album. And Nicki did not disappoint. She manages to hold her own against big names such as Eminem and Kanye, continues to deliver the most amazingly-inane pop culture references, and officially lets the lessors know that she is the new reigning queen of rap. This is largely a pop album, but the hip hop tracks such as "Roman's Revenge" and "Did It On 'Em" are the standouts of the set, and I hope to hear more of that style with future albums.
2. Taylor Swift - Speak Now
For much of 2009, I didn't have much of an opinion about Taylor Swift. I thought some of her songs were catchy, and I didn't think much of her beyond that. Even after the infamous Kanyegate which made everyone learn her name, I still just didn't really care about her. In early 2010, she got me to care about her - but not in a good way. From the moment she won Album of the Year over my queen Gaga, I hated her with a passion. Every song of hers became garbage in my eyes. I couldn't stop talking about how much I wanted her to die. On the day Speak Now came out, I skipped school and was extremely bored, so I bought the album on iTunes, because with all the platinum debut hype she had going, I figured it had to be at least decent. Wow, was I wrong. This album was perfection, from start to finish. I'm surprised this isn't on a lot of critics' best of 2010 lists, because it really was a great album. And there's nothing more I can say other than that it was ****ing amazing. My favorite tracks were the country ditty "Mean", the rocker "Better than Revenge", and the cutesy pop number "Sparks Fly", which still ranks as my most-played track from the album.
I was going to do this later tonight, but it's still fresh on my mind and I don't want to forget later. Soo... here's the grand finale! Best of 2010 was amazing and I can't wait for Best of 2011!!!
TRACK #1
1. Lady Gaga - "Bad Romance"
ALBUM #1
1. Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
Is there any need for me to explain this? It's topping critics' year-end lists for a reason. This album was a masterpiece. The defining album of 2010. Easily one of the best hip hop albums of all time. End of discussion.
Amazing set!!
Let me do those right now, then the #1 track and album this evening. 
), I found out about her later when radio stations shoved her down everyone's throats in 2010, as she featured on songs by everyone from Trey Songz to Mariah Carey. Eventually, I gave in to the Minaj craze and downloaded all of her mixtapes, which were amazing and got me really excited for this album. And Nicki did not disappoint. She manages to hold her own against big names such as Eminem and Kanye, continues to deliver the most amazingly-inane pop culture references, and officially lets the lessors know that she is the new reigning queen of rap. This is largely a pop album, but the hip hop tracks such as "Roman's Revenge" and "Did It On 'Em" are the standouts of the set, and I hope to hear more of that style with future albums.
