2023 is coming to an end. Here are my favorite albums that came out this year.

Miley Cyrus Endless Summer Vacation

Endless Summer Vacation was a huge hit for Miley and one of her best albums. Miley Cyrus has had different eras, and some have been hit or miss. Endless Summer Vacation took her to the next level proving that Miley Cyrus is a star. Flowers was Miley’s second number one since Wrecking Ball topped the chart ten years ago. Flowers dominated radio and the charts. Endless Summer Vacation as a whole is a great album and has tons of great songs from start to finish including Jaded which was another single, Rose Colored Lenses, You, and so many others. Used To Be Young was released in August and was tacked on to the digital album. This is one of Miley Cyrus’ best albums and this will surely be a classic album for many years to come.

Barbie The Album

The Barbie Soundtrack had it all. The movie was a smash hit, but the soundtrack was equally successful. Dua Lipa’s song Dance the Night captures the essence of the movie perfectly. It is also a classic dance song from Dua Lipa. The other tracks all fit well. Ryan Gosling’s I’m Just Ken is epic and fun. Nicki Minaj and Ice Spice do a great rendition of Barbie World which samples from the classic song by Aqua. It was very appropriate to get Nicki Minaj to do a track for the soundtrack. Billie Eilish’s What Was I Made For? is a beautiful track that fits within Bilie Eilish’s wheelhouse as well as the movie. The soundtrack does a great job getting an eclectic group of artists including Lizzo, Charlie XCX, Ava Max, Dominick Fike, Sam Smith, Khalid, Gayle, and many more. 

Metro Boomin Presents Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse Soundtrack

Metro Boomin produced the Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse Soundtrack and did a fantastic job. This soundtrack is different than the soundtrack for Into the Spider-Verse which had the smash hit Sunflower by Post Malone and Swae Lee. The soundtrack for Across the Spider-Verse is much more cohesive and each song really captures the scenes they are featured in throughout the movie. Every track is great but two stand outs for me are Am I Dreaming with ASAP Rocky and Roisee and Self Love with Coi Leray. All the tracks are great, and they all fit the movie very well. It is probably one of the best soundtracks of all time.

Kesha Gag Order

Gag Order is a unique album. When listening to it, it is obvious it is not a commercial album. Some tracks could have been radio singles, but it is not surprising that wasn’t the case. However, this is one of Kesha’s best albums. After everything Kesha has been through, this album seemed to embody where she is at this point in her life. The tracks still fit what Kesha has been known for but there is a maturity with this album that the others did not necessarily have. Every album had some party songs similar to Tik Tok. This album does not have any party songs. Rainbow was probably the only other album that did not have a lot of party songs. Every track is great and there is some variety on the album. Something to Believe In is dark and epic, Eat the Acid is haunting, Living in My Head captures the title well, Only Love Can Save Us Now is probably the only song that comes closest to past tracks. There is a singing talking style that was heavily on prior albums but the song itself is different than others. All of the songs fit the theme for what Kesha is going for. It is a shame Gag Order did not find the same success as previous albums, but Kesha is now free to do what she wants as this album seems to have fulfilled her contract with her original label.