The Best Albums Of 2024: Beyoncé’s ‘Cowboy Carter,’ Charli XCX’s ‘Brat’ And More

In a lot of ways, 2024 became the year that music changed everything.

From genre-bending masterstrokes to unexpected cultural disruptors to an explosive rap war that kept everyone on their toes, this year in music was a whirlwind for listeners everywhere to follow. It also restored the excitement many have been anxiously missing from their favorite artists.

Kendrick Lamar came out of hiding and flipped the rap game upside down when he turned a ruthless diss track (“Not Like Us”) into a No. 1 bop — not to mention, dropping a chart-topping surprise album at the tail-end of the year. Charli XCX, meanwhile, had everyone in a “Brat” chokehold this summer with her out-of-the-blue cultural phenomenon. Beyoncé, of course, remained on top with a sprawling countrified offering that reminded the nation that she — and Black people — are the rightful heirs of country music. And who could forget the way Sabrina Carpenter launched to the top of the pop charts and mega-superstardom with not one, but two summer smash hits.

There were plenty of other remarkable music moments to revel in 2024 — from the reigning power of Southern women in rap (GloRilla, Megan Thee Stallion, Latto, Doechii) and tentpole releases of pop’s finest (Billie Eilish) to the mainstream rise of Amapiano fueled by a South African superstar in the making (Tyla).

2024 was full of deliciously crafted albums listeners happily consumed again, again and again. There were tons of possibilities that could’ve made HuffPost’s best of 2024 list — honorable mentions include (yes) Taylor Swift’s “The Tortured Poets Department,” Usher’s “Coming Home,” LL COOL J’s “The Force,” Normani’s “Dopamine,” Cash Cobain’s “Play Cash Cobain,” Future and Metro Boomin’s “We Don’t Trust You,” all defining projects. But below are 24 albums across genres — pop, hip-hop, R&B, country, jazz-fusion — that we simply couldn’t get off our minds this year. Happy listening.

Beyoncé continued her trilogy of albums with the Grammy-nominated “Cowboy Carter” in April. The 27-track album features legends like Dolly Parton and Willie Nelson, and introduced much of the world to a legend in her own right, country music icon Linda Martell. It’s a multigenerational affair, too, with features from country newcomers Shaboozey, Willie Jones,…