MY 2022 TOP 5 IN MUSIC

It was a pretty good year for contemporary music in 2022. We saw less COVID-related cancellations, more festivals came back and according to "Pollstar", 2022 ticket sales were up 37% over 2019 to a record-breaking $6.28 BILLION! Leading the way were artists Bad Bunny and Elton John who's "retirement" tour has proven one of the most successful farewells for an artist/group ever!

And 2023 looks like there's no slowdown in sight as Taylor Swift's Ticketmaster tour online fiasco briefly made us long for the days when we'd bring a sleeping bag and camp-out at the box office for our favorite artists before the internet (for good and bad) ushered in the virtual "ticket-window" assessable from anywhere.

For radio and even streaming services, there were certainly some great hits, we just need MORE of them in 2023.

As for my top 5, it was pretty easy for me:

1. Tems-Free Mind - I could start some arguments on this but Tems IS today's Lauryn Hill. The Nigerian singer has a swagger that stays with you. Her songs and the emotional way she handles them keeps your attention and has you quickly in "sing-along mode".

2. Future, Tems, Drake-Wait for You - Let's face it, Afrobeats has been a savior to Hip-Hop and Hip-Hop radio, providing a balance between the slow, material, sexual largesse of most of everything else you're hear in today's Hip-Hop. Future and Drake both took advantage of Tems, who along with Wizkid, Burna Boy, Tiwa Savage and others are changing the face of contemporary music in America.

3. Silk Sonic-Love's Train - Could anyone have even considered remaking the 80's Confunkshun classic other than "musicologists" Bruno Mars and Anderson Paak? The Silk-Sonic collaboration still amazes well over two years since joining forces. Will there be another album in 2023? Sure hope so.

4. Harry Styles-As it Was - Has the British invasion of 1983/1984 returned to American shores? Styles music feels simplistic, yet complex. Either way, it's immediately satisfying. And his concerts never disappoint.

5. The Weekend-Out of Time - "Dawn FM", themed around death, regret and redemption was my favorite overall new album this year. And radio played a very important central part, with a disembodied DJ (played by the Weekend's neighbor and friend Jim Carrey) guiding you through the steps from your last breath to reaching the light. An interlude from Quincy Jones seemed fitting as "Out of Time" and at least several other tracks reminded you a bit of Michael Jackson, who's influence certainly inspired an artist who continues to surprise us with every album.

I've love to see your top 5 along with any agreements/disagreements to what you read above!

Happy New Year and see you in 2023!

Skip Dillard