2021 in Review: Berklee Artists Who Made Best-of-the-Year Lists

2021 in Review: Berklee Artists Who Made Best-of-the-Year Lists From indie to progressive pop, minimalist jazz to retro rock, listen to songs by Berklee artists that media outlets from around the world cited as the years best.

By

Bryan Parys

December 21, 2021

Well, 2021 didn't wind up being the full comeback the world had hoped for, but around here, students were able to return to campus, and they brought live music back, cautiously, to many stages. Berklee took an opportunity to take stock of our past, and we moved forward into new educational territory. We were immortalized on the big screen and made Emmy nomination history.

Meanwhile, Berklee artists continue to create music that brings comfort and pushes boundaries. While a complete list would be beyond the scope of one page on the internet, many artists in the Berklee community were namechecked as the best of 2021-some of them numerous times-on lists from major media outlets around the globe. In the following playlist, you can listen to a portion of these musicians. Read on below the playlist to find more information on the artists and the lists on which they appeared.

Credits Arooj Aftab B.M. 10

Pitchfork: Best Albums, no. 12, Vulture Prince

Pitchfork: Best Songs, no. 9, Mohabbat

Pitchfork: Best Jazz and Experimental Music, Vulture Prince

NPR: Best Albums, no. 7, Vulture Prince

The Guardian: Best Albums, no. 20, Vulture Prince

Adrianne Lenker B.M. 12, Buck Meek B.M. 10, James Krivchenia B.M. 14 (Big Thief)

Pitchfork: Best Songs, no. 15, Best Songs, Little Things

Sarah Tudzin B.M. 14 (Illuminati Hotties)

Consequence of Sound: Best Albums, no. 10, Let Me Do One More

Pitchfork: Best Albums, no. 35, Best Albums, Let Me Do One More

Pitchfork: Best Songs, no. 40, MMMOOOAAAAAYAYA

NPR: Best Albums, no. 19, Let Me Do One More

Rolling Stone: Best Albums, no. 42, Best Albums, Let Me Do One More

The New York Times: Best Albums (Lindsay Zoladz's list), no. 5, Let Me Do One More

Jess Wolfe B.M. 07, Holly Laessig B.M. 07 (Lucius)

Pitchfork: Best Songs, no. 50, I Don't Live Here Anymore, (The War on Drugs featuring Lucius)

Annie Clark 04 (St. Vincent)

USA Today: Best Albums, no. 2, Daddy's Home

Rolling Stone: Best Albums, no. 50, Daddy's Home

The Guardian: Best Albums, no. 27, Daddy's Home

Spin: Best Albums, no. 21, Daddy's Home

Consequence of Sound: Best Albums, no. 50, Daddy's Home

Xenia Rubinos B.M. 06

Pitchfork: Best Albums, no. 33, Una Rosa

Stereogum: Best Albums, no. 33, Una Rosa

NPR: Best Songs, no. 55, Sacude

Spin: Best Albums, no. 28, Una Rosa

Jilian Medford B.M. 15 (IAN SWEET)

Consequence of Sound: Highest-Rated Albums, no. 27, Show Me How You Disappear

Jeff Parker 90

The Quietus: Best Albums, no. 69, Forfolks

Linda May Han Oh, Bass Department

Pitchfork: Best Albums, no. 42, Best Albums, Uneasy (with Vijay Iyer and Tyshawn Sorey)

Pitchfork: Best Jazz and Experimental Music, Uneasy (with Vijay Iyer and Tyshawn Sorey)

Shubh Saran B.M. 14

Pitchfork: Best Jazz and Experimental Music, inglish

Julian Lage 09

Slate: Best Jazz Albums, no. 6, Squint

Esperanza Spalding B.M. 05

NPR: Best Songs, no. 36, Formwela 10

The New York Times: Best Jazz Albums, no. 10, Songwrights Apothecary Lab

The New York Times: Best Albums (John Pareles's list), no. 9, Songwrights Apothecary Lab

Jihye Lee '14 (Jihye Lee Orchestra)

The Guardian: Best Jazz Albums, no. 6, Best Jazz Albums, Daring Mind

JazzTimes: Best Albums, no. 35, Daring Mind

Miguel Zen n B.M. 98

Slate: Best Jazz Albums, no. 7, El Arte del Bolero (with Luis Perdomo)

Joe Lovano '72 '98H (Joe Lovano and Dave Douglas Soundprints)

Slate: Best Jazz Albums, no. 10, Other Worlds

JazzTimes: Best Albums, no. 39, Other Worlds

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2021 in Review: Berklee Artists Who Made Best-of-the-Year Lists From indie to progressive pop, minimalist jazz to retro rock, listen to songs by Berklee artists that media outlets from around the world cited as the years best.

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