Urban music prospered in 2005. New stars were born, leading lights continued to dazzle, and dinosaurs came back from the dead to remind us why they once ruled the earth. In a year of truly wonderful music, here are the ten urban albums that made the most noise:
Mariah Carey - The Emancipation Of Mimi
Long before she was underdressed and overexposed, Mariah Carey was The Voice. In 2005, The Voice came back like Lazarus to show the young 'uns how it's done, laying it down with an album of classic new-school R&B. Mariah, still on fire. Who knew?
Mary J. Blige - The Breakthrough
Not every singer can successfully reinvent herself, but Mary J. Blige is no ordinary singer. On her latest, the Queen of Hip-Hop Soul leaves the darkness of previous efforts behind to smack down life's sorrows with an unshakeable attitude of gratitude. No more drama indeed.
Common - Be
With 13 years in the biz, Common's been waiting his turn for a long time, and his turn has finally come. On Be, the rapper drops verse that sparkles with a diamond's bright fury. Common's music is a multitasking wonder—it does triple duty managing to challenge, enlighten, and entertain.
Sean Paul - The Trinity
In places it walks "guilty pleasure" territory—there's no other way to describe the vapid yet addictive Britney-pop that rules the first half of this album. But elsewhere, Sean Paul's music is nothing short of a revelation. When he's dropping it ragga-style on tracks like "Temperature," Kingston's finest rocks and shocks you with toke after toke of party-grade dance hall.
Toni Braxton - Libra
Braxton's been absent from the charts for a couple of years, but 2005's Libra proves her hit parade is far from over. The album serves up wineglasses full of the kind of sophisticated, grown-up soul at which Braxton excels. Her rich, dusky alto has never sounded so good. Just goes to show you can't keep a good diva down.
Destiny's Child - Destiny Fulfilled
With this album, Beyonce, Kelly, and Michelle took some heat from critics for their metamorphosis from independent women to desperate housewives eager to cater 2 U. But those critics missed the point. This is a song cycle about the vulnerability that true love brings, and Destiny's Child travels the peaks and valleys of romance with the flawless grace of a modern-day Supremes.
Kanye West - Late Registration
The outspoken West has always known he's good. Now we know it too thanks to a stunning sophomore effort that proves his brilliant debut was no mere fluke. West's rhymes are as paranoid and urgent as ever, and his backing tracks gleam with new scope and sophistication (thank art-pop producer Jon Brion for that). It all adds up to a work of dark, genius majesty.
Keyshia Cole - The Way It Is
With her raw, naked vocals and gritty presence, Cole has earned comparisons to that other streetwise diva, Mary J. Blige. She's worthy of the compliment. In a year that saw its share of manufactured R&B starlets, Cole stood out for being the Real Deal, baring heart and soul on an album that chronicles a life of love, loss, and survival.
Sharon Jones And The Dap-Kings - Naturally
Lots of singers make music that borrows from old-school R&B. Sharon Jones goes one step further and actually does old-school R&B, traveling back to the days of blown-out 'fros and Pam Grier revenge flicks to sock it to us one mo' time. But her grooves aren't mere period pieces. Lusty and fervent, Naturally brims with a relevance that speaks to yesterday, today, and tomorrow.
Steve Spacek - Space Shift (Sound In Color)
Sometimes it takes an outsider to give a truly fresh take. Steve Spacek's influences are familiar: Marvin Gaye, Curtis Mayfield. But the singer hails from the U.K., and he drapes his music's old-school bones in garments cut from the thoroughly modern trip-hop cloth of his native land. No doubt about it, the future of R&B is here.
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