Putting it lightly, 2025 was a stressful year. It was a year where I found myself seeking escapism and comfort more often than usual, and for that reason, good music was sounding extra good. As my role at WUNC has evolved from music director to music reporter, I found that I had more time to sit down and focus on the music that I loved the most. In my past role, I was constantly listening to music as a programmer, keeping a bigger audience than myself in mind as I listened. This year I've enjoyed being able to focus on listening for myself and having the space to let certain records sink in. Anyways, here are twelve albums that I kept coming back to this year.
Ambrose Akinmusire, honey from a winter stone
Early into 2025, trumpeter and composer Ambrose Akinmusire released honey from a stone, a compelling odyssey of an album that he says is inspired by the experimental work of Julius Eastman. Akinmusire is known as one of the leading trumpeters of this era, but his music is so much more than that. Elements of hip-hop and chamber music work their way into this record, making it one of the most engaging listens of 2025.
Annahstasia, Tether
If you're unfamiliar with Annahstasia'a voice, you'll get it about three seconds into Tether's opening track "Be Kind." It's rustic and soulful. It's a voice that sounds like it's been an essential part of your life for as long as you can remember. This, her debut album, is one of the year's best folk records. It's an essential collection of poetry that smartly keeps the instrumentation minimal so that Annahstasia's voice can consume you.
Benjamin Booker, LOWER
LOWER sees singer-songwriter Benjamin Booker teaming up with one of modern hip hop's greatest producers Kenny Segal. On paper it sounds like an odd pairing, but the final product makes so much sense. Segal's well-controlled chaotic production meshes perfectly with Segal's autobiographical tales of isolation and self reflection.
billy woods, Golliwog
Brooklyn rapper billy woods is known for his horror-centric lyrics, and Golliwog is his most cinematic record yet. Like a good horror writer, woods doesn't rely on shock value. He focuses on the build up and come down that accompany paranoia and he knows how to cut the tension with a good joke. Golliwog features a guest list that serves as a who's who of underground hip hop's top stars, from wood's Armand Hammer partner ELUCID to super producer Conductor Williams.
Dijon, Baby
2025 felt like the year of Dijon. Coming four years after his breakthrough debut Absolutely, Baby finds the Baltimore-raised and LA-based musician with a new lease on life and a lot of new production tricks up his sleeve. Baby is a work of art that sounds like it's either ahead of its time, or something not from this planet at all.
Ichiko Aoba, Luminescent Creatures
Luminescent Creatures is a minimal and lush exploration of the natural world from Japanese singer-songwriter Ichiko Aoba. It's a record inspired by the vastness of the ocean, and the life that exists in its darkness. The record was released in Japan on Aoba's own Hermine label, and here in the states on Durham's own Psychic Hotline.
Los Pirañas, Una Oportunidad más de triunfar en la vida
Los Pirañas is a bit of a Columbian supergroup. It features members of Meridian Brothers, Frente Cumbiero, and Romperayo; three groups leading the way in the world of modern cumbia. All of the songs on 2025's Una Oportunidad más de triunfar en la vida came out of jam sessions held in band member Mario Galeano's studio. It's virtuosic and slightly avant-garde, and it's also some of the most infectious music that came out this year.
Mei Simones, Animaru
Mei Simones can absolutely shred the guitar. She makes it sound easy on Animaru, her debut album, but once you watch her perform with her band and learn about the time she spent at Berklee, you start to see that it's anything but. Her music doesn't fit into a single bucket, a single song can jump from bossanova to jazz to emo in under four minutes. There's really nothing else out there that sounds like this and it will be fun to watch Simones evolve into her career as an artist in the future.
Nourished By Time, The Passionate Ones
Nourished By Time is the project of one of today's most singular and exploratory artists, Marcus Brown. On The Passionate Ones, Brown refines the kitchen sink approach of his debut album into something a little more focused. It's still hard to put into words what this record sounds like, but what he's come up with on The Passionate Ones is a cohesive and exciting songs from an artist who is constantly innovating his sound.
Rochelle Jordan, Through The Wall
Through The Wall is a dance record that does what a dance record should do, has you moving from beginning to end. Rochelle Jordan is one of modern R&B's most unique voices, and on this record she carries the history of the genre across a bridge into the future. It's a celebration of pop music and house music in equal measure.
ROSALIA, Lux
Rosalia's 2025 record Lux is a complete swerve from her bass-heavy and dance-focused U.S. breakthrough, 2022's Motomami. While Motomami was mostly autobiographical, LUX is inspired by the lives of female saints like Hildegard of Bingen and Miriam. Sonically, it's also quite different from her last record. She worked with the London Symphony Orchestra on this record to create a modern operatic masterpiece that features lyrics in 14 different languages.
As a record that you won't be able to wrap your head around with just one, or even a few, listens, it's one of the most rewarding listens of 2025 and one that I think we'll be talking about for quite some time.
SML, How You Been
SML is another super group of sorts featuring a quintet of today's most interesting jazz musicians. Bassist Anna Butters, synthesist Jeremiah Chiu, saxophonist Josh Johnson, and guitarist Gregory Uhlmann all make incredible improvisational music on their own, but on the SML records they make something truly unique. All four members of the group shine in equal measure on 2025's How You Been, a record best listened to with a nice set of headphones.
