2022 In Review

1. Introduction + Best Album Art
2. Song of the Year
3. Album of the Year
4. R&B and Soul
5. Rock and Alternative
6. Rap and Hip-hop
7. Dance and Electronic
8. Pop and Ballad
9. Folk and Country
10. Jazz and Blues
11. Crossover and World
12. Best Collaborative Work
13. Rookie Artist of the Year
14. Artist of the Year
15. Other Recognition
16. Concluding Remarks

It was an extremely top-heavy year for R&B, with no fewer than five albums that seriously contended for the top spot. Meanwhile, the alt-R&B scene’s maturation has been a great boon to the diversity of this category, and works by Steven, Hunjiya, Sion, and more continued to push the envelope of what we expect to see out of this ecosystem. We also had a crop stronger than any in recent memory (even better than 2020) from idol artists, with Billie, Ten, The Boyz, StayC, and more putting forth meaningful contributions.

Be advised that A.Train – Private Pink was named our Album of the Year on Day 3, and it will not reappear in the R&B-specific list of albums below.

Notes:

• The “Next 10” and honorable mention lists are sorted by artist name.
• The 2022 R&B and Soul Spotify playlist is here and also embedded below:

Albums

Best R&B and Soul Album 2022

Rad Museum – Rad

Rad is a chatty, lively album. With a massive set of instruments and an arrangement style that never turns down opportunities to add another ad-lib or effect, there’s always something interesting going on – a cornucopia of subtle and unexpected details. This buzzing activity serves Rad‘s slice-of-life urbanity well. It ends up serving as the soundtrack to everything from hitting it off with someone like an AirDrop, to wandering nameless streets, to whiskey with strictly-a-friend, to the trial-and-error of connecting with a very different personality.

Even the slower chunks of the album, like that between “U” and “Hanryang”, are dense as a result, though Rad‘s best moments come when Rad Museum puts his mind to the dazzle. The singalong chorus of “Off-Line”, the frothing guitar loops and touch-go tempo of “Exit”, and the underwater interplay of “Two Bourbon Rock” make for one of the strongest passages in any album this year. And the guy may have been an even better vocalist than producer here. It’s a joy to pore over these inventive concepts and immaculate polish, and it’s hard to argue against Rad as the new standard in this stream of alternative R&B.

The Runner-up

Bibi – Lowlife Princess: Noir

Some albums just don’t need that much verbal dressing to taste good. Lowlife Princess: Noir is just good in an instantly gratifying way, its nocturnal compositions scratching some visceral itch and the melodies resolving just the way you’d want. There may not be another flash of genius like “Kazino” or “Life Is a Bi…” in here, but moments like the gargantuan drop of “Blade” and the intoxicating coyness of “Witch Hunt” carry their spirit. The album’s grim penchant means Bibi’s vocal acting gets the spotlight – she really has no equal in this area – and the frigid, suspended “Loveholic’s Hangover” even hints at future directions. It’s an album that delivers 100% of what it promised, perhaps closing out an era of this fascinating artist’s career.

The Next 10

Babylon – Ego 90’s

Bronze – Skyline

Grace Shin – Galerie

Hunjiya – Khamai

Moon Sujin – Lucky Charms!

Saay – S:inema

Slom – Weather Report

Sole – Imagine Club

Soul Delivery – Foodcourt

Steven – 1969년의 청년 (A Youth in 1969)

Songs

Best R&B and Soul Song 2022

Sole – 오래오래 (Ore Ore)
Written by Sole
Composed by Sole, Jaw
Arranged by Jaw

Even in an album as sparkling with aesthetic compositions as Imagine Club, “Ore Ore” stood out for its beauty. The arrangement makes lovely use of the string track, having it serve as both a rolling backdrop for Sole’s voice and a punchy beacon for her chorus. Sole navigates this beat with riverine deftness; the titular “ore-ore” – “for a long time” – becomes more of an instrument than a word, seeping into the dense instrumentation. The song may be about the freedom of love, but when Sole sings “For a long long time / I’m just gonna do what I want / For a long long time / I’m gonna love what I love”, I also hear the delight of an artist relishing in a newfound style.

The Runner-up

A.Train – 커야 돼 (Paintree) (Feat. ChoiLB)
Written by A.Train, ChoiLB
Composed by A.Train
Arranged by A.Train, E Hyeji

“Paintree” is one of the tracks foundational to that story of inner grace in Private Pink, our Album of the Year. Where the album opener “Scarberry” peered inside a soul and saw an ingrown fruit of suffering, “Paintree” sees an outgrown tree that’s still trying to get taller and stronger. The chorus of “I gotta grow” – a vow to oneself – soon grows into a choir and forest. ChoiLB’s tightly wound verse finds a clearing, but like canopies shuffling over underbrush, A.Train’s ginger melodies layer on top of each other until it’s one lush mass of voice and echo. If music could paint a picture.

The Next 10

Bibi – 철학보다 무서운건 비비의 총알 (Blade)

Billie – B’rave ~ A Song for Matilda

Jhnovr – 토요일 밤에 (Saturday Night) (We Want!)

Kwon Jin-ah – Pink!

Moon Sujin – 눈동자 (Nundongja)

Paulkyte – Who Knows?

Sogumm & Keumbee – 소금비 (Salt Rain)

Soul Delivery – 넋 (Nugs) (With Thama)

Sunburst Club – Stay with Me (With Noa)

Ten – Birthday

Honorable Mentions

Albums

Basecamp – Underground
DPR Ian – Moodswings in to Order
DeVita – American Gothic
ELO – Reality Check
Holieve – Ozone
Hyolyn – iCE
Jane B – Genuine Soul
Jhnovr – Human Nature
Jiwoo – Evergray
Kaiavant – Piece of Space
Kangta – Eyes on You
Kimda – For Better or Worse
Ma Hyun-kwon – 0
Nieah – Iamnieah
Saewoo in Yunhway – 2731
Soulbysel – Soulbysel Compilation 02
Suryeon – Imperfect
Van Siian – Tea and Rice
Yuseungmin – Homeworks

Songs

A.Train – 사실 나는 꽤나 괜찮은 사람일지도 (Pink Comedy) (Feat. Lang Lee, E Hyeji)
A.Train – 잘라도 내가 잘라야지 (How Dare You) (Feat. E Hyeji)
A.Train – 줘도 안 가질 보물 (500000km NF Sonata)
Babylon – 잘 어울려 (Beautiful) (Feat. Sam Kim)
Bamsem – Sweet Room (Feat. Blase)
Basecamp – 외계인 (Alien) (Feat. Kim Daniel of Wave to Earth)
Bibi – Loveholic’s Hangover (Feat. Sam Kim)
Bibi – 가면무도회 (Animal Farm)
Bibi – 마녀사냥 (Witch Hunt)
Billie – $un Palace (Stroop Effect)
Billie – A Sign ~ Anonymous
Bronze – Ondo (with Lee hi)
Chungha – Crazy Like You (Feat. Bibi)
Crush – Rush Hour (Feat. J-Hope)
DPR Ian – Miss Understood
Daul, Noair, Plan8, Channel 201 – What If (Feat. Hoody)
DeVita – Bonnie & Clyde
DeVita – Cheese in the Trap (Feat. Jay Park)
Dion Choi – Unbutton
Elaine – Walle
G.Soul – Need You (Outro)
G1nger – Lavender Sky
G1nger – You Found Me
Ga Eun – Dive
Grace Shin – Why Don’t You Tell Me You Love Me?
Grace Shin – You & Me (Feat. Kwon Eun-jin)
Hersh – Feel
Holieve – Black Out
Holieve – Good Afternoon
Hunjiya – Favorite
Hunjiya – Outgrown
Hunjiya – Talk2me! (Feat. pH-1)
Hyolyn – Ah Yeah
Hyolyn – Layin’ Low (Feat. Jooyoung)
Jamie – Bedtime Story (Feat. Gemini)
Jerd – CG
Jhnovr – 파도 (Waves) (Feat. Injae)
Jieon – Bill (Feat. Summer Soul)
Jiwoo – Evergray
Jue – Your Plan (Feat. Paloalto)
Kaiavant – Woo Hoo (Feat. Kid Milli)
Kang Daniel – Upside Down
Kangta – Eyes on You (야경)
Kim Ho-yeon – Airplane Mode
Kimda – Isolation (Prod. Noisemasterminsu)
Kimda – Paranoia
Ku One Chan – 유리잔 (Glass)
Kwon Jin-ah – 흘러가자 (Just Like This)
Lofibaby – Goodbye, 나 (Goodbye, Me)
Ma Hyun-kwon – Roller Coaster (Feat. Kim Jae-ho of Cadejo)
Mona – 궁금해 (Question)
Moon Sujin & Jiselle – Only U (Feat. Penomeco)
Moon Sujin – The Sweetest (Feat. Karencici)
Moonbyul – 머리에서 발끝까지 (Shutdown) (Feat. Seori)
Oceanfromtheblue & Hookuo – Why
Onew – Love Phobia
Panda Gomm – Kill Your Darlings (Feat. Jeebanoff, OBSN)
Rad Museum – Exit (Feat. Justhis)
Rad Museum – Forever (Feat. So!YoON!)
Rad Museum – Two Bourbon Rock (Feat. Moon Sujin)
Red Velvet – Good, Bad, Ugly
Saay – Rocky
Saay – Summer in Love (Feat. Colde)
Saay – Sweet as Hell
Samuel Seo – Hinoki
Sion – Cutlery Collector
Sole – Daydream
Sole – Good Time (Feat. Leellamarz)
Soullette – Oh My God !
StayC – I Want U Baby
Stella Jade – Ghosted
Steven – La La La (Feat. Mrshll)
Sumin & Soulbysel – Miracle (Prod. Devin Morrison)
Sunwoojunga – Octave (Feat. Sumin)
Suryeon – And It’s Over
Suryeon – This Is Not About
The Boyz – Survive the Night
Une X Daul – Timing
Van Siian – Sunrise, I Got to Go Back
Van Siian – While I’m Gone
Xin Seha – 어때 (How You Like?) (Feat. Sumin)
Youra – 어떤 우울이 우리를 흔들겠어요 (Best Regards)
Yu Yeon-woo – Meow
Yuseungmin – 나무 (Tree)

Lyric translations by the author. Artist profile and album cover images from Bugs Music.

Read our past series:

2021 In Review

2020 In Review

2019 In Review

2018 In Review

2017 In Review

2016 In Review

2015 In Review

2014 In Review

2013 In Review

2012 In Review