In the past winners have included:
2000 - Radiohead - Kid A
2001 - The Strokes - Is This It?
2002 - NERD - In Search of...
2003 - The White Stripes - Elephant
2004 - The Killers - Hot Fuss
2005 - The Mars Volta - Francis the Mute
2006 - TV On The Radio - Return to Cookie Mountain
2007 - Kanye West - Graduation
2008 - Santogold / Santigold
2009 - Mastodon - Crack the Skye
2010 - Gorillaz - Plastic Beach
2011 - Bjork - Biophilia
2012 - Flying Lotus - Until The Quiet Comes
2013 - Arcade Fire - Reflektor
2014 - Run the Jewels - Run the Jewels 2
2015 - Kamasi Washington - The Epic
2016 - David Bowie - Blackstar
...and now to add to this growing list is someone who has taken the music world by storm for the last five years and proves to be the most important living musician today and the voice of a generation. His music is more than just hip-hop, it is a verbal documentary about life in hard times, life as a black man, life as a young person under 30, and someone searching for more than just a higher power but understanding. Ladies and Gentlemen, the 2017 League of Their Own winner is...
Kendrick Lamar - DAMN.
"I'm willin' to die for this shit
I done cried for this shit, might take a life for this shit
Put the Bible down and go eye for an eye for this shit," Lamar sings as he opens the single "ELEMENT." and four songs into DAMN., he makes the declaration that this isn't a job, this isn't for fame, this isn't for money, this is his life and these are the themes that made this record so spellbinding.
DAMN. is Kendrick Lamar solidifying himself as the best rapper alive and a top five emcee. As he uses the words thrown against him, the headlines that are flashed around the news, DAMN. is a record that is just as much in the ethos of punk rock as it is in hip-hop. If Johnny Rotten fronted The Clash it would have that attitude and political / social rawness and awareness. Yet, Lamar, who is a fan of jazz, Afropunk, rock, and clearly 90s rap and R&B, he mixes his influences together with a record that is not just the best to come out in 2017 but an album that has the Compton rapper touching the arch of music history.
With appearances by Rihanna, Kid Capri, U2, and Zacari, Lamar left his comfort zone but oddly remained in it while telling his story and observations. If anything, the closing track, "DUCKWORTH." is the proof in the pudding that whatever this young artist was born to do was destiny.
Stay Tuned Next Week For Our Top 10 Albums of the Year!
