Top 10 Albums of 2018: Elevated Rhymestate

Elevated Rhymestate

On this list are a few longtime favorites, a few surprises and a few new discoveries. With examples of both masterful musical production and poetically poignant lyrics, many of these albums stand out as obvious selections. Most of the artists are new to the Elevated Rhymestate year-end lists. But Akua Naru makes her third appearance in seven years after notably being named my Album of the Year in 2015 for ‘The Miner’s Canary.’ 

Abhi the Nomad / ‘Marbled’ / Tommy Boy

August Greene / ‘August Greene’ / August Greene

Avantdale Bowling Club / ‘Avantdale Bowling Club’ / Years Gone By

LowDown Brass Band / ‘LowDown Breaks’ / LowDown Brass Band

Masta Ace & Marco Polo / ‘A Breukelen Story’ / Fat Beats Records

Akua Naru / ‘The Blackest Joy’ / The Urban Era

Shad / ‘A Short Story About a War’ / Secret City

Raz Simone / ‘Drive Theory’ / Black Umbrella

Sly5thAve / ‘The Invisible Man: An Orchestral Tribute to Dr. Dre’ / Tru Thoughts

STS x Khari Mateen / ‘Better on a Sunday’ / Steel Wool / Empire

Tune into Elevated Rhymestate with Wil Wander, a journey through the diversity of hip hop, on Saturdays from 11 pm - 1 am.