Low End Derrick
Veteran
In the 21st century, music became more universal, immediate, and accessible than ever before. On Jan. 1, 2000, the average cost of a CD was about $18, which meant if you wanted to legally own 250 albums, it would set you back about $4,500. Napster existed and it was pretty obvious even back then that the $18 CD era was over, but even the most optimistic pro-downloading zealot couldn’t have imagined a world where every album ever recorded could go on a little computer in your pocket.
A change in cultural consumption that sweeping is bound to be an enormous mixed bag. Yet, amid all the technological shifts we’ve seen in the past 25 years (CD burning, the iPod, file sharing, streaming), the album-centric long-form listening experience has stayed at the center of music. Early in this century, the album was alleged to be dying at the hands of single-track downloading. Today, a new LP by a beloved artist needs to be meaningful and good enough to inaugurate a new Era, lest it be deemed a flop, album release dates are awaited with countdown clocks, and people willingly pay $40 for a new “vinyls” of records they already have for free.
The biggest artists have often been the most radical innovators. Consider the journeys of two superstars with four albums on this list: Beyoncé and Taylor Swift. In the mid-2000s, they existed in the hit-driven, radio-dominated worlds of mainstream R&B and country, respectively. By the 2010s, Swift was renovating the Top 40 with the feelings-forward synth-pop of 1989, and Beyoncé had invented her own musical, personal, and political world of experience with Lemonade. By the 2020s, they’d moved on to even more idiosyncratic statements like Swift’s woodsy-folk pandemic classic Folklore and Bey’s genre-studies masterstrokes Renaissance and Cowboy Carter.
You see similar stories of genius ambition throughout our list — from Radiohead dissolving alt rock with Kid A to SZA reimagining chill R&B as her own confessional playground with CTRL and SOS to Lady Gaga turning mega-pop into a Warholian gallery space with The Fame Monster to Bad Bunny taking reggaeton from the club to the astral plane on YHLQMDLG and Un Verano Sin Ti and to Kendrick Lamar coming out of Compton with good kid, m.A.A.d city, a rap record as rich as any novel. Those are just a few of the biggest big-name examples.
In compiling our top 250 albums of the quarter-century, we wanted to show as much of the scope of this story as possible. So when given the choice between including multiple albums by an artist and finding room for a record that added something important or interesting to the list, we almost always took the second option. Still, this is a list of albums, not artists, and certain heavy hitters just put out too many amazing LPs to deny. We’re lucky to have all this music to keep us motivated and challenged and sane. There might not be too much to be optimistic about in 2025, but the mountain of good records will always keep growing.
The 250 Greatest Albums of the 21st Century So Far
The best albums of 21st century so far, including Beyonce, Taylor Swift, Bad Bunny, Radiohead, Lady Gaga, and more
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246 Saba, ‘Care for Me’
244 21 Savage and Metro Boomin, ‘Savage Mode’
240 Tyla, ‘Tyla’
239 Doja Cat, ‘Hot Pink’
233 Mach-Hommy, ‘Pray for Haiti’
228 Wizkid, ‘Made in Lagos’
226 Earl Sweatshirt, ‘Some Rap Songs’
223 The Coup, ‘Party Music’
222 Tems, ‘For Broken Ears’
219 Mac Miller, ‘Swimming’
218 A$AP Rocky, ‘Long. Live. A$AP’
208 Vince Staples, ‘Summertime ’06’
204 Jazmine Sullivan, ‘Heaux Tales’
203 50 Cent, ‘Get Rich or Die Tryin’ ‘
201 Pusha T, ‘Daytona’
199 Cam’ron, ‘Come Home With Me’
197 Popcaan, ‘Where We Come From’
194 Travis Scott, ‘Astroworld’
189 Sean Paul, ‘Dutty Rock’
186 Janelle Monáe, ‘Dirty Computer’
183 Rapsody, ‘Laila’s Wisdom’
180 Killer Mike, ‘R.A.P. Music
177 Dizzee Rascal, ‘Boy in Da Corner’
174 Aaliyah, ‘Aaliyah’
172 Common, ‘Like Water for Chocolate’
168 Tierra Whack, ‘Whack World’
166 Danny Brown, ‘XXX’
164 Missy Elliott, ‘Miss E … So Addictive’
157 D’Angelo and the Vanguard, ‘Black Messiah’
156 Koffee, ‘Gifted’
152 Rich Gang, ‘Tha Tour Part 1’
150 Destiny’s Child, ‘Survivor’
147 Kanye West, ‘Yeezus’
145 J. Cole, ‘The Off-Season’
144 Playboi Carti, ‘Die Lit’
142 Asake, ‘Mr. Money With the Vibe’
141 Mariah Carey, ‘The Emancipation of Mimi’
136 Migos, ‘Culture’
128 Solange, ‘A Seat at the Table’
126 Beyoncé, ‘Cowboy Carter’
124 Chief Keef, ‘Finally Rich’
122 Maxwell, ‘Blacksummers’night’
120 Burna Boy, ‘African Giant’
118 Drake, ‘If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late’
115 Miguel, ‘Kaleidoscope Dream’
111 Erykah Badu, ‘Mama’s Gun’
110 Lil Uzi Vert, ‘Eternal Atake’
101 Lil Wayne, ‘Da Drought 3’
99 The Weeknd, ‘House of Balloons’
97 Young Thug, ‘So Much Fun’
95 Noname, ‘Telefone’
94 Victoria Monét, ‘Jaguar II’
92 Tyler, the Creator, ‘Call Me If You Get Lost’
91 Alicia Keys, ‘Songs in A Minor’
89 Future, ‘DS2’
87 Chance the Rapper, ‘Acid Rap’
84 Cardi B, ‘Invasion of Privacy’
83 Kanye West, ‘808s & Heartbreak’
73 Nicki Minaj, ‘Pink Friday’
66 Kendrick Lamar, ‘Damn.’
63 Daft Punk, ‘Discovery’
58 J Dilla, ‘Donuts’
56 Clipse, ‘Hell Hath No Fury’
54 Jay-Z, ‘The Black Album’
52 Usher, ‘Confessions’
50 Ghostface Killah, ‘Supreme Clientele’
47 Kanye West, ‘The College Dropout’
44 Eminem, ‘The Marshall Mathers LP’
38 Frank Ocean, ‘Channel Orange’
37 Beyoncé, ‘Renaissance’
33 Kendrick Lamar, ‘To Pimp a Butterfly’
32 Madvillan, ‘Madvillany’
29 SZA, ‘Ctrl’
28 Lil Wayne, ‘Tha Carter III’
23 Drake, ‘Take Care’
21 Rihanna, ‘Anti’
18 Missy Elliott, ‘Under Construction’
16 Beyoncé, ‘Beyoncé’
12 Jay-Z, ‘The Blueprint’
11 D’Angelo, ‘Voodoo’
8 Kanye West, ‘My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy’
7 SZA, ‘SOS’
6 Kendrick Lamar, ‘good kid, m.A.A.d city’
4 OutKast, ‘Stankonia’
3 Frank Ocean, ‘Blonde’
1 Beyoncé, ‘Lemonade’
244 21 Savage and Metro Boomin, ‘Savage Mode’
240 Tyla, ‘Tyla’
239 Doja Cat, ‘Hot Pink’
233 Mach-Hommy, ‘Pray for Haiti’
228 Wizkid, ‘Made in Lagos’
226 Earl Sweatshirt, ‘Some Rap Songs’
223 The Coup, ‘Party Music’
222 Tems, ‘For Broken Ears’
219 Mac Miller, ‘Swimming’
218 A$AP Rocky, ‘Long. Live. A$AP’
208 Vince Staples, ‘Summertime ’06’
204 Jazmine Sullivan, ‘Heaux Tales’
203 50 Cent, ‘Get Rich or Die Tryin’ ‘
201 Pusha T, ‘Daytona’
199 Cam’ron, ‘Come Home With Me’
197 Popcaan, ‘Where We Come From’
194 Travis Scott, ‘Astroworld’
189 Sean Paul, ‘Dutty Rock’
186 Janelle Monáe, ‘Dirty Computer’
183 Rapsody, ‘Laila’s Wisdom’
180 Killer Mike, ‘R.A.P. Music
177 Dizzee Rascal, ‘Boy in Da Corner’
174 Aaliyah, ‘Aaliyah’
172 Common, ‘Like Water for Chocolate’
168 Tierra Whack, ‘Whack World’
166 Danny Brown, ‘XXX’
164 Missy Elliott, ‘Miss E … So Addictive’
157 D’Angelo and the Vanguard, ‘Black Messiah’
156 Koffee, ‘Gifted’
152 Rich Gang, ‘Tha Tour Part 1’
150 Destiny’s Child, ‘Survivor’
147 Kanye West, ‘Yeezus’
145 J. Cole, ‘The Off-Season’
144 Playboi Carti, ‘Die Lit’
142 Asake, ‘Mr. Money With the Vibe’
141 Mariah Carey, ‘The Emancipation of Mimi’
136 Migos, ‘Culture’
128 Solange, ‘A Seat at the Table’
126 Beyoncé, ‘Cowboy Carter’
124 Chief Keef, ‘Finally Rich’
122 Maxwell, ‘Blacksummers’night’
120 Burna Boy, ‘African Giant’
118 Drake, ‘If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late’
115 Miguel, ‘Kaleidoscope Dream’
111 Erykah Badu, ‘Mama’s Gun’
110 Lil Uzi Vert, ‘Eternal Atake’
101 Lil Wayne, ‘Da Drought 3’
99 The Weeknd, ‘House of Balloons’
97 Young Thug, ‘So Much Fun’
95 Noname, ‘Telefone’
94 Victoria Monét, ‘Jaguar II’
92 Tyler, the Creator, ‘Call Me If You Get Lost’
91 Alicia Keys, ‘Songs in A Minor’
89 Future, ‘DS2’
87 Chance the Rapper, ‘Acid Rap’
84 Cardi B, ‘Invasion of Privacy’
83 Kanye West, ‘808s & Heartbreak’
73 Nicki Minaj, ‘Pink Friday’
66 Kendrick Lamar, ‘Damn.’
63 Daft Punk, ‘Discovery’
58 J Dilla, ‘Donuts’
56 Clipse, ‘Hell Hath No Fury’
54 Jay-Z, ‘The Black Album’
52 Usher, ‘Confessions’
50 Ghostface Killah, ‘Supreme Clientele’
47 Kanye West, ‘The College Dropout’
44 Eminem, ‘The Marshall Mathers LP’
38 Frank Ocean, ‘Channel Orange’
37 Beyoncé, ‘Renaissance’
33 Kendrick Lamar, ‘To Pimp a Butterfly’
32 Madvillan, ‘Madvillany’
29 SZA, ‘Ctrl’
28 Lil Wayne, ‘Tha Carter III’
23 Drake, ‘Take Care’
21 Rihanna, ‘Anti’
18 Missy Elliott, ‘Under Construction’
16 Beyoncé, ‘Beyoncé’
12 Jay-Z, ‘The Blueprint’
11 D’Angelo, ‘Voodoo’
8 Kanye West, ‘My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy’
7 SZA, ‘SOS’
6 Kendrick Lamar, ‘good kid, m.A.A.d city’
4 OutKast, ‘Stankonia’
3 Frank Ocean, ‘Blonde’
1 Beyoncé, ‘Lemonade’