10 Best Pop Albums Of 2018
7. Janelle Monae - Dirty Computer
Every second of Janelle Monae's "Dirty Computer" is triumphant. Though it could have very easily taken the political and cultural climate of 2018 and used it as the basis for anxious tracks or venomous refrains, Monae's latest record instead acts as a confident, empowering statement on everything from individuality and authenticity, to race and femininity.
Even better, this is all accomplished through one of the most varied pop records of the year. From the Prince-like funk of Make Me Feel through to the harder Hip-Hop leanings of Django Jane, there's nary a musical influence which doesn't make it onto the album. However, although Monae is very clearly the driving force of each song, and it's her singular vision which makes the album work as a cohesive piece of art, the singer's openness to collaboration doesn't go unnoticed. If anything, it only adds to the album's celebratory intent, championing a collective sense of belonging which includes the listener.
It's perhaps the spoken-word bridge on I Like That which sums up the album's message as a whole, though. Here, Monae rattles through a high-school memory: "I remember when you laughed when I cut my perm off and you rated me a six/I was like, “Damn”/But even back then with the tears in my eyes I always knew I was the s**t". It's the self-confidence of that final lyric which remains infectious upon each listen, and spreading such a strong sense of assuredness, even if it's only in yourself, is exactly the kind of message everyone needed in 2018.