End of Year Mixes, 11th Edition

Welcome to year 11. For past editions, click here. For newcomers, here are the two basic rules that govern these mixes:

• The strongest rule: The song had to be released during the year in question. Exception - An international song, as songs aren't always/ever released internationally and domestically at the same time.
• The mostly strong rule: The Aboveground mix is picked from the Billboard Hot 100, and the Underground mix is quite the opposite. I usually cheat a couple of songs on the Aboveground mix, but with good reason.

Usually, it is harder to fill the Underground mix than it is the Aboveground mix. Not so this year. Here are those who just missed the cut for the Aboveground mix:

• Rihanna - She assists on Kanye's song, so she's not completely absent, but I didn't really like her album this year.
• Schoolboy Q - I try so hard to like him, but whenever there is a guest on his album - from Jadakiss to Vince Staples to Kanye - they completely outshine him. For someone who seemingly wants to be about lyrics, he has a hard time putting together an uninterrupted 16 bars.
• 21 Savage - I don't get why he is popular. Get off my lawn.
• YG - Close, but no cigar.
• Fat Joe & Remy Ma - Fat Joe gets on the Underground mix. Just couldn't swallow "All The Way Up." I had it in initially though.
• Jhene Aiko (and Big Sean) - Tweeners.

The Underground mix was a lot harder to cut. I could probably make a second mix just with the snubs. I ended up narrowing things down by picking just one song from a particular producer -- notably The Alchemist and Pete Rock. I made several cuts. Those who I listened to generally but didn't hone in on a particular song were: The Hamilton Mixtape (just can't include something Jimmy Fallon participated in), Kodie Shane, Nao, Joey Purps, King, Jamila Woods, Blood Orange and ASAP Mob. Then there were two more rounds of cuts with specific songs that I was considering. Round two:

• Talib Kweli: Every Ghetto, Pt. 2
• Vinnie Paz: The Ghost I Used To Be
• Termanology: We're Both Wrong
• Ras Beats: Wit No Pressure
• Flatbush Zombies: Bounce
• The Enforcers: The Enforcers

And then there was a third round of cuts, with songs I really wanted to squeeze onto the mix but ultimately couldn't do it within the 80-minute framework:

• Smoke DZA and Pete Rock: Black Superhero Car f/ Rick Ross
• Spitta Andretti (Curren$y) & The Alchemist: Smoking In The Rain
• Masta Ace: Young Black Intelligent (spoke word by Chuck D)
• Kamaiyah: I'm On
• Kaytranda: Got It Good
• Epidemic: From The Beginning (final song cut)

Let's get to those that actually made the cut.

ABOVEGROUND MIX

1. A Tribe Called Quest - We The People..... I waited 20 years for this. No other song could possibly go first.

2. Beyonce - Formation. Just a master class in meaningful pop music.

3. Childish Gambino - Redbone. This one just gets inside you. It's great that a song like this became popular.

4. Ariana Grande - Side To Side f/ Nicki Minaj. An obvious choice, need a Nicki verse and she didn't do a ton this year. 

5. Sia - Cheap Thrills. One good thing about this song is my son asked me what the world "thrills" means.

6. Chance The Rapper - No Problem f/ Lil' Wayne & 2 Chainz. Chance is so good he can coax a good verse out of 2 Chainz.

7. The Weeknd - Starboy f/ Daft Punk. This guy really seems unlikable, but he keeps making undeniable hits...

8. Justin Timberlake - Can't Stop The Feeling. Probably my kids' favorite song of the year.

9. Shakira - Try Everything. This song and JT's are probably having the same effect on parents my age that Phil Collins songs being featured in The Lion King had on our parents. "Wow, they got great talent to sing for this movie? Cool!" On the off chance you don't have a child, this song was from Zootopia.

10. Auli'i Cravalho - How Far I'll Go. Surprisingly, the Moana soundtrack - which my daughter demands to listen to constantly - had multiple songs chart on the Billboard 100. This one was my favorite, as it is the kind of inspiring song I want my daughter to grow up listening to. Thus ends the kid-friendly block of the mix. I figured I'd lump them together. They actually flow into each other pretty well.

11. Daya - Sit Still, Look Pretty. One of the last songs to make the cut, and in the same vein as "How Far I'll Go."

12. Kendrick Lamar - untitled 07 levitate. I actually like the final cut on the album best, but it didn't chart, and it also sounded very much like his previous material. So 07 it is.

13. D.R.A.M. - Broccoli f/ Lil' Yachty. This one grew on me. Initially, I didn't much care for it, but I came around.

14. Frank Ocean - Pink + White. I really didn't care for the way Frank Ocean dropped his albums this year, and still haven't bothered with the "visual" album. But this song is a great ballad.

15. Solange - Cranes in the Sky. It's not a typical pop song, but it is a beautiful song.

16. Rae Sremmurd - Black Beatles f/ Gucci Mane. I'm as surprised as you are, because previously I couldn't stand these guys. But I like the concept here a lot, and the Gucci verse helps. I wonder if "Black Beatles" will become this generation's version of the "fifth Beatle."

17. Young Thug & Travis Scott - pick up the phone f/ Quavo. I still don't quite know what to make out of Young Thug, but he is a lot of fun. I like fun. This and "Black Beatles" are two of my favorite songs on this mix, and it's a real treat to have them this far down in the mix, because it rewards you (me) for getting to the back end of the mix.

18. Alicia Keys - In Common. One of the two songs (Tribe being the other) that hadn't charted on the Hot 100 when I picked the songs. This one got close enough. Love Alicia. She's criminally underrated.

19. Kanye West - Famous f/ Rihanna & Swizz Beatz. I didn't much care for Life of Pablo, and the optimistic first couple of cuts didn't feel right to me, because that just isn't who Kanye is. "Famous" however, is classic Kanye. When the beat flips halfway through, you can't help but vigorously nod your head.

20. Kehlani - Distraction. Love her. Looking forward to the whole album when it drops.

21. Bruno Mars - Versace On The Floor. Closing out the mix with a great ballad is always great, and this one certainly qualifies. I liked this song far more than "24K Magic," which seemed like a song that fit better in 1996 than it did in 2016.

You'll notice I haven't mentioned Drake yet. That's because I didn't even bother with him this year. I was a staunch Drake supporter for years, but I've had enough.

UNDERGROUND MIX

1. Noname - Reality Check f/ Akenya & Eryn Allen Kane. It's hard to believe that this girl is just getting started in the music business. This song is so amazing. And the hook is so uplifting. Just let your light glow!

2. Open Mike Eagle & Paul White - Admitting the Endorphin Addiction. This beat is so weird, this guy is so weird. I love it. There were three or four cuts I could have included from this album.

3. Kyle Dixon & Michael Stein - Stranger Things. Yup, the theme song of a TV show. When the mix came in at 78 minutes, and I didn't have enough room to fit on another full song, I decided to add this in. It's rare that a TV show's music is so captivating. The whole soundtrack is awesome.

4. Cormega - Guns And Butter f/ Gunplay. The concept of this one is sort of silly, but the beat is so damn theatrical, and 'Mega kills it, as always.

5. Anderson .Paak - Come Down. I'll be honest, I was surprised this song didn't chart in the Hot 100. Next album for sure.

6. Isaiah Rashad - Free Lunch. I love this dude, more people should know about him.

7. De La Soul - Memory Of... f/ Estelle & Pete Rock. There were a few big reunions this year, and De La was chief among them. I had a hard time narrowing down the song to pick for the mix, but this song, aided by the video, ultimately won out.

8. Apollo Brown & Skyzoo - Visionary Riches. There are few better producers out there than Apollo Brown.

9. Vince Staples - Pimp Hand. I feel like he should be charting as well, but he doesn't seem especially interested in making music tailor-made for the Hot 100. And that's OK with me.

10. Oddisee - Lifting Shadows. I have just recently been digging in on Oddisee, and he's been a revelation. He put out an instrumental LP and a regular EP this year. This song, which is a powerful one about how he is treated by people based on his skin and religion, comes from the latter. "I think my TV's clothes in wool" might be the best lyric of the year.

11. D.I.T.C. - Make 'Em Proud. I generally try to just keep up with current music rather than dig back in the crates for older stuff, but I might have to make an exception for D.I.T.C. Their reunion reminded me just how awesome they were, especially before Big L passed. If you don't know, Fat Joe got his start with D.I.T.C. "I'm like Vince with his arm in the rim" is the perfect description of Fat Joe, btw. At his peak, an absolute showman who captivated his audience, and in the grand scheme of things, not recognized for having as good a career as he has.

12. General Steele & Es-K - Just Live f/ Buckshot. An old-school meets new-school team-up that was beautifully done, and Buckshot capably rides shotgun on this track.

13. Kodak Black - Everything 1K. This kid is going to be a fixture and a southern rap titan.

14. Beneficence - The Heart. I had never heard of this guy before, but he's been around for some time, and is pretty damn legit.

15. Danny Brown - Hell For It. I wasn't as enamored by Brown's album this year as I have been with his work in the past, but this track - the last on the album - redeemed it for me.

16. Run The Jewels - Don't Get Captured. Released just in time for this year's mix, RTJ3 isn't quite as good as RTJ1 or RTJ2 - at least not on the first few listens - but it's still pretty epic. This song in particular shows off what the duo do so well, inhabiting different stereotypical perspectives to create a powerful song. And it leads beautifully into the next song.

17. Journalist 103 - Good Die Young Pt. 2. This song is haunting.

18. Ka - That Cold and Lonely. This was the one I wavered on most, but ultimately it just beat the song from Epidemic.

19. Havoc & Alchemist - Buck 50's and Bullet Wounds f/ Method Man. Some of that old old. Meth is always best on other people's tracks.

20. Common - Pyramids. I initially was going to include Common's song with Stevie Wonder, "Black America Again," but it is six minutes long, and the final two minutes are basically Stevie just repeating the same phrase over and over, which didn't feel like the best use of space. The politically-motivated song is undoubtedly more important this year, but given the length I went with "Pyramids," which is more of a selfish choice, but it is refreshing to know that after all this time, Common can still spit as hard as he used to. And the ODB sample in the hook puts it over the top.

21. Mr. Lif - Don't Look Down. Speaking of comebacks, Lif really came out swinging in 2016. It was nice to have him back.

22. The LOX - Move Forward. "Hey yo Preem we had to do it again, right?" Yes, yes you did. Filthy America was a classic LOX album in the best and worst ways - they were always so close to putting it all together but never quite got there. But at their best, they are, as Jadakiss is fond of saying, top five dead or alive. This song, assisted by the legendary DJ Premier, is the LOX at their best.

23. Czarface - Two In The Chest. They'll never get as much respect as RTJ, but the parallels are there. Two guys who were well established veterans in the game came together and have been making beautiful music together well beyond the time when the gimmick of a team-up should have worn off.

24. Bonus Christmas Track. Chance The Rapper and Jeremih - Snowed In. There has been a general lack of Christmas rap in recent years, but that changed this year. Dej Loaf and Gucci Mane dropped Christmas tunes, and just before Christmas, Chance and Jeremih dropped a whole Christmas EP. The pick here was a toss-up between "Snowed In," "Stranger at the Table" and "The Tragedy," but "Stranger" is a remade cover of a Jackson 5 song, and "Tragedy" isn't as uplifting, so "Snowed In" it is.

If you want, you can listen to these mixes on Mixcloud. Embeds are below.

This is always a long post. If you made it this far, thanks for indulging me!

MCU Rankings, Ver. 4080

So, pretty much after I see a Marvel MCU movie (ie, not the first five Spider-Man's, or the Fantastic Four's or X-Men's) I end up ranking them. It's what we do, we like ranking things. Sometimes, I do it even in between movies. But usually I forget my order because I have a terrible memory, among other things. So, I figured I'd put it down on the blog. That's what a blog is for, yes?

These are both ranked and organized into three tiers. Think of the tiers like this - I would be willing to re-organize the rankings of these movies within their tiers, but not outside of them.

May 18, 2017 update: Slotting in GoTG 2 & Dr. Strange.

Tier 3
Not Ranked. Ant Man - Still haven't seen it yet. I have a hard time believing it would escape the third tier.
Not Ranked. Dr. Strange - Maybe was good, but the trailer looked just like Inception, and I didn't care for the whitewashing. Also, I don't really like Dr. Strange as a character. Pass.
13. Thor: The Dark World - Marvel has a rep for bad villains, and none was worse than the dude in this one. I don't even remember his name, and don't feel compelled to look it up.
12. Iron Man 2 - Another sequel that landed with a thud, and while I'm finally getting used to Don Cheadle as Iron Patriot, I still hated the decision in this movie.
11. The Incredible Hulk - This movie was pretty good until the final third, which got a little cartoonish, and not in a good way.

Tier 2
10. Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2 - It was good, but it was very slow to develop, had way too much Drax, and I didn't care for the gimmick of Baby Groot for an entire movie. We get it, he's cute. He also grew back limbs way too quickly in the original for me to believe he was a baby for so long in the second one. Furthermore, I wasn't a big fan of the sexual tension plotline, but I especially was not a fan of the way it ended. Will leave it at that for now since saying why not is still spoiler-ish. Also, the main reason for antagonism between the two leads is identical to Civil War. Marvel being a cohesive unit is supposed to prevent these sorts of things.
9. Iron Man 3 - Definitely better than Iron Man 2, but the villain was uninspired, and the after the fact revelation that they wouldn't let Rebecca Hall be the villain will forever color this one, as Rebecca Hall was nails in this (and every) movie.
8. Avengers: Age of Ultron - It's fine, but the end scene where they're like, "hey let's train new Avengers!" rubbed me the wrong way. I thought it was a pretty blatant sign that "hey sucker, this movie was a placeholder, thanks for burning $20 on seeing it." That feeling is the main reason why I didn't bother with Ant-Man later last summer.
7. Thor - I liked the plot of this one a great deal, and Natalie Portman is one of my favorite actresses. It's a shame they can't get her back for the smaller roles in the Avengers movies, but I get her not wanting to do them.
6. Guardians of the Galaxy - The team sparkles in this one, but again, they get demerits for the lack of inspired villain. Ronan was a stiff. You could again make the case for a lead female villain, as Nebula was way cooler, and had a legit beef with one of the heroes in Gamora. I suppose it's the same beef that Loki has with Thor, but that's OK.

Tier 1
5. Captain America: Civil War - I'm looking forward to watching this one a million times, but the revelation that Zemo had only been a villain for a year rang a little hollow. I feel like it takes villains more than a year to build up such a vast network of knowledge of evil. Which was a shame, because I loved him as the villain up to that point. And Black Panther and Spider-Man were awesome.
4. Captain America: The First Avenger - It's a war movie, and there is no shortage of those in the movie, but they just do such a great job with it, and Red Skull is the real deal. Also, if there is one movie that you need to understand the larger MCU at this point, it's this one, since the relationship between Cap and Bucky is arguably the most important relationship in the MCU right now.
3. Iron Man - I just watched this again last night, and it's amazing how good this movie is compared to the two that came after it. Also, Tony Stark's facial hair is jarring compared to what it is now.
2. Captain America: The Winter Soldier - So, so awesome. The Falcon is great, and Black Widow gets perhaps her most screen time in this one, which is great. Get her her own movie already! It has a legit case for number one, but I mark it down just because it isn't as fun.
1. The Avengers - The Avengers vs. Loki was the perfect match up, and this one is a fun thrill ride throughout. It's the gold standard for what a comic book movie can and should be.

End of Year Mixes, 10th Edition!

I have been making mix tapes as long as I can remember. Before I had anyone to make them for, I made them for myself, and I purchased them whenever I had the chance -- generally, whenever I was in Downtown Crossing (they used to call me the "white guy" at Hip Zepi) or in NYC (at Fat Beats or on the street). I have the picture to prove it:

One good thing about my parents saving everything is that my old mixtapes are still around. Ah, memories. pic.twitter.com/MrLc6ZFD3Y

— Paul Swydan (@Swydan) December 5, 2015

Eventually, I started making them for other people. My sister, my girlfriend (now wife), my friends. More or less anyone who I was close with that wasn't super annoyed by me forcing them to listen to "my" music.

One year, it occurred to me that even though I was broke and couldn't afford to buy presents for all of the people I was close to that I could make them a mixtape. Or, by then, it was CDs, but saying "Mix CDs" has always sounded wrong to me. Now, I just say "mixes," but I still think of them as mixtapes.

That was 10 years ago now. The idea was simple, to make two mixes -- Aboveground and Underground. Popular and not popular. The idea was that people always claim that pop music is garbage, and I think that viewpoint is garbage. Maybe the radio is clogged by some clunkers, but I think there are plenty of great songs each year that become popular. To be clear, I don't consider these "the best," just my favorites. Music can't really be defined as "best" as far as I'm concerned.

I haven't written about them every year -- at some point I should go back and write about the first few just for posterity -- but if you click here you can find links for each edition since 2009. I follow a couple of basic rules.

• The strongest rule: The song had to be released during the year in question. Exception - An international song, as songs aren't always/ever released internationally and domestically at the same time.
• The mostly strong rule: The Aboveground mix is picked from the Billboard Hot 100, and the Underground mix is quite the opposite. I usually cheat a couple of songs on the Aboveground mix, but with good reason.

Because this was the 10th edition, I tried to listen to more songs than I usually do -- especially for the Underground mix.

For the Aboveground, artists considered that didn't make the cut include Ty Dolla $ign, Rae Sremmund (I don't get why they're popular), Jessie J, Future, Demi Lovato, Jeremih, Dej Loaf (next year I think), and the last song cut was Lana Del Rey's "High By The Beach." Also, no Nicki Minaj - her album came out last December.

One artist I DIDN'T listen to was Kanye. I think of Kanye albums as one of the true events in music, and I wanted to wait. When he released a few singles, I figured he was close to releasing "Swish." As summer crept in, and news leaked that he had played the whole album for people, I figured it was coming any day. Never happened. Oh well.

ABOVEGROUND MIX

1. Adele - Hello. I mean, do I need to say anything about this? It's phenomenal. You know that already.

2. Drake - Hotline Bling. I've said it before, and the video for this song really kind of rammed the point home -- Drake is A-Rod. They're both generational talents that are just so smart but yet so goofy and awkward, and easy to mock. Try to divorce the song and the video. Once you do, you'll realize this is a classic.
3. Rihanna - B*tch Better Have My Money. Somewhere, ODB is smiling.
4. Natalie La Rose - Somebody f/ Jeremih. I loved this homage to Whitney. It hasn't felt stale all year.
5. Major Lazer - Lean On f/ MO & DJ Snake. Diplo the person is somewhat of a blight on society, but Diplo the artist makes good music. It's a hard thing to separate, but unlike R. Kelly, Diplo doesn't actually sing or rap, so it's a little easier to like his work product.
6. Missy Elliott - WTF f/ Pharrell Williams. Missy is back!!!! And she was smart enough to hit up Pharrell for her return instead of Timbaland, whose recently released mixtape didn't exactly get universal praise, let's say.
7. Fetty Wap - 679 f/ Monty. If I wasn't so stubborn, this would be "Trap Queen," but Trap Queen came out in 2014. And not in December, like Minaj, but in April 2014. "679" is a worthy alternative though. Fetty is the type of artist that Drake has wrought - someone who is good at rapping and singing but isn't really great at either. It goes to show just how good Drake is. Having said that, this is a pretty good song, and it definitely stays stuck in your head.
8. A$AP Rocky - Everyday f/ Rod Stewart, Miguel & Mark Ronson. When I saw this on the album's track listing, I was curious. Rod Stewart? A$AP has been pushing his boundaries, and none moreso than with this. I wonder if he showed Rod the "Purple Swag" video.
9. Jidenna - Classic Man f/ Roman GianArthur. Janelle Monae hit hard with her Wondaland crew this year, and I was overjoyed by it all. This one was bit bigger of a hit than her "Yoga," but I almost included both because they're two of my favorite songs, but I try not to put two songs from the same album on a mix.
10. Carly Rae Jepsen - All That. Jepsen had a lot of hits this year, but this song -- which was the first single off of E-Mo-Tion -- wasn't one of them. I made an exception for it though, because a) it was my favorite cut off her album, and b) it damn well should have hit the Hot 100. Shoutout to my former colleague Summer Anne Burton for never shutting up about Carly Rae Jepsen. It forced me to give her a listen. I had assumed she would end up being a one-hit wonder. NOPE!
11. Taylor Swift - Bad Blood Remix f/ Kendrick Lamar. There aren't enough event remixes these days. This was all that and more -- I think every woman singer under the age of 30 was in the video, as well as a bunch of actresses and Cindy Crawford. (After they show Crawford, Swift kind of looks at the camera as if to say "yeah that's right, I got Cindy Crawford in my video, WHAT" - it's great.) It's why we have music videos. This also doubled as the moment when your mom learned the name Kendrick Lamar, which is a good thing.
12. Ellie Goulding - On My Mind. The last song that made it over Lana Del Rey's "High By The Beach." I liked Ellie's video better. She rode a horse in hers.
13. Alessia Cara - Here. We all went to a party like this in college. Or perhaps after college.
14. Selena Gomez - Same Old Love. I think I might be the only one who liked this track best on Gomez's new album. It feels like a Justin Bieber diss, and I like that.
15. Ciara - I Bet. Speaking of diss songs, man, Future has to be some kind of moron to break up with Ciara. She has always been one of my faves. #TeamCiara over here for sure.
16. Jamie xx - I Know There's Gonna Be Good Times f/ Young Thug & Popcaan. Young Thug put out a lot of material this year, but my favorite track of his wasn't his own, but rather this DJ from across the pond. This one didn't make the Hot 100 either, presumably because Jamie xx is not an American artist? That's about the only reason I can think of.
17. The Weeknd - Can't Feel My Face. This is the song that my wife demanded be included this year -- she usually demands at least one. Not that it was a problem. The Weeknd finally let the Emo go for a song, and the results were fantastic.
18. Miguel - Coffee (F*cking) f/ Wale. I was disappointingly underwhelmed by Miguel's album, but this track was a standout. And Wale finally makes it back to the Aboveground mix -- his first time since 2010.
19. Janet Jackson - No Sleeep. Speaking of long waits, Miss Janet hasn't made the mixes since the first edition back in 2006. That's a long time. When I first saw that she recorded "No Sleeep" with and without J. Cole, I was curious. Then I listened to J. Cole's verse. It is possibly the worst guest shot I have ever heard. So Janet stands alone.
20. Dr. Dre - Animals f/ Anderson .Paak. This was the third track that wasn't a Billboard Hot 100 song. But there are a few good reasons why. One, the album debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 (the chart for album sales), so I think plenty of people heard about it. Two, the cuts on the song are from DJ Premier. If you know anything about hip-hop, you know just how monumental having Dre and Primo on the same track is. Third, this album -- and this song in particular -- announced Anderson .Paak to the world. He may just be Dre's latest great find. But fourth, and most importantly, is the subject matter. After all his success, Dre is still angry, and it's hard to blame him. The emotion is raw here, and it's an eye opener.
21. Kendrick Lamar - Alright. Nevertheless, I wanted to end on a positive note. I'm fucked up, you fucked up, but if God got us then we gon' be alright. Kendrick the best.

UNDERGROUND MIX

1. Kehlani - You Should Be Here. I'm a little surprised this didn't pop onto the Aboveground mix. This album had a lot of great cuts, including "Jealous" and "The Way," but "Here" stuck with me the most because I spend so much time distracted on my phone, or just daydreaming. It's a good reminder to focus on the moment.
2. Vince Staples - Lift Me Up. A song -- and album -- rich in biting commentary. This is another that belongs on the Aboveground mix. Vince Staples is fast becoming one of my favorite artists, and is a must listen.
3. Blackalicious - The Sun f/ Imani Coppola. There was a ton of comebacks this year, and this was one of them. Blackalicious hadn't put out an album since 2005, but they didn't sound rusty on "Imani Vol. 1" at all. That's pretty impressive.
4. Scarface - Steer f/ Rush Davis. Scarface came back too. Remember Scarface? If you feel like you've been listening to him your whole life, that's probably because you have. Geto Boys popped off in 1988. "Deeply Rooted" was Scarface's first album since 2008.
5. Grimes - Fresh Without Blood. I admittedly don't know a ton about Grimes, but I love this song, as well as "California." I wanted to include it here, and break up the hip-hop a little. I think it flows in pretty seamlessly.
6. Fashawn - Higher. I feel like it's not a coincidence that an album executive produced by Nas has a song about daughters. This album, "The Ecology," was fantastic, and I hard time picking the one track to use. Ultimately, this one got me.
7. Sean Price - Magic f/ Foul Monday & Royal Flush. Rest in peace, Mr. Price.
8. Sadat X - I Know This Game. I always liked Grand Puba (and sometimes Lord Jamar) better than Sadat X, but I still do like him. And this song was great -- Sadat is an old man now and letting everyone know that you never should have doubted him. The A&R story is great, as is the Biggie sample in the hook.
9. Donnie Trumpet & The Social Experiment - Familiar f/ King Louie & Quavo. I not only had a tough time picking out a cut from "Surf," but I also could have chosen any number of solo Chance the Rapper songs to choose for this mix. Ultimately I picked this one because I liked the blending of the different rappers here, and because this was a nice tongue-in-cheek take on the old "It's All About You" vibe.
10. Anderson .Paak & Knxwledge as NxWorries - Link Up. This won't be the last time Anderson .Paak gets on here. And Kxwledge is great, if you like hip-hop instrumentals.
11. Apollo Brown - Detonate f/ M.O.P.. "I'm El Chapo with a crack flow, you get your sh*t pushed back slow. Simple as that." Simple as that, indeed. This was another album I had a hard time picking one track from, but you can't deny the simple beauty of the Mash Out Posse.
12. Tink - Ratchet Commandments. Timbaland's new protege -- he said Aaliyah appeared to him a dream and called Tink "the one" -- takes it back to a song that was released when she was two years old. I feel old typing that.
13. Edo G. - Last Man Standing (cuts by DJ Netik). Few have been around as long as Edo G., but he has consistently turned out work, so this album wasn't really a comeback for him. He remains one of Boston's finest -- if not its finest period. Sort of depends on whether you want to claim Guru as Boston or New York.
14. GZA - The Mexican f/ Tom Morello & K.I.D.. This was GZA's first song since 2008, and it's definitely not what you would expect from GZA. But it still rocks. It would had to have been pretty bad not to be included here, to be honest.
15. KRS-One - Drugs Won. Poignant and unflinching as always in his first album in four years.
16. Malik B. & Mr. Green - Dark Streets f/ R.A. The Rugged Man & Amalie Bruun. Perhaps my favorite track of the year. If this beat doesn't have you vigorously nodding your head within five seconds, you might want to re-evaluate your whole life.
17. DonMonique - Drown. The standout on a great debut EP (that included a Danny Brown guest shot) from a promising young rapper.
18. Freddie Gibbs - F*ckin' Up The Count. Laced with "The Wire" references, this was the standout cut on Gibbs' new album. I wanted to include "Detonate," which has a harrowing Black Thought guest verse, but the beat on "Detonate" is a little too grating for repeat listens.
19. Rapper Big Pooh - Augmentation. It's a shame we don't get more Little Brother these days, but I will happily settle for Pooh and Phonte recording separately, especially when the songs are this good.
20. Apathy - Fat Kids f/ Blacastan & Merkules. Another track from a New England rapper, this one hits home, as I have let my waistline expand far more than I should have. It's funny too.
21. Capone-N-Noreaga - U.M.A.R. f/ Tragedy. CNN has always had a knack for emotional songs, as well as unlikely acronyms, and this song combines both in a story about a person that the crew wanted to honor before he passed.
22. Awreeoh - It's My Turn Now. Produced by Pharrell Williams, this song is from the three leads in the movie Dope. They're not real musicians -- at least not yet -- but you'd never know it, and this beat is fire. And if you haven't seen Dope yet, you should definitely do that soon.
23. Bonus Christmas Track. Ghostface Killah - Ghostface X-Mas. Ghost put out a couple of albums this year, so I nearly included one of those songs here in addition to this track, but ultimately I felt that this was enough. Also I get kind of exhausted by the volume from certain artists, and Ghost was one of those this year. I somehow missed this song when he put it out a few years ago. That has now been rectified. I don't get why more rappers don't put out Christmas songs. The bar is set so low.

I listened to so much stuff that didn't make the cut here. Jadakiss, Logic, Isaiah Rashad, Large Professor and Czarface were among the last cuts from the mix. Earl Sweatshirt, Diddy (!), Kirk Knight, Joey Badass (really disappointing album from him), Jazmine Sullivan, D.R.A.M., Big Grams (Big Boi's new project), Statik Selektah, Guilty Simpson, Talib Kweli & 9th Wonder, Mad & Blu & Madlib, Cannibal Ox, Ray West & Kool Keith, L'Orange & Kool Keith, Little Simz, Tate Kobang, Cakes da Killa, Raekwon, YG and eMC (worst hooks ever) were also considered. All of the extra listens definitely led to me getting the mixes out a little later this year, but it was worth it, because I am extra happy with what I included as a result.

If you want, you can listen to these mixes on Mixcloud. Embeds are below.

This is always a long post. If you made it this far, thanks for indulging me!

Dj iMAGINE - 2015 Hits: Aboveground by Paul Swydan on Mixcloud

Dj iMAGINE - 2015 Hits: Underground by Paul Swydan on Mixcloud