Time to share my favorite music and top five YouTube channels, T.V. shows and movies from the last year! The ones with the asterisk* have come out this year, all the rest I’ve only just discovered this year.
I made a separate post for my 2021 in books since I read more than I consume other media.
Here are my past “best of” posts…
Best of 2020 || Best of 2019 || Best of 2018 || Best of 2017
Now, are this year’s winners…
SPOTIFY WRAPPED
Minutes listened: 31,963
Top artist: Tame Impala (top 1% of listeners)
Top artists: Death from Above 1979, Marina, Glass Animals, Billy Talent
Discovered 688 new artists this year
Here is a playlist of my top played songs!
FAVORITE ALBUMS
Ancient Dreams in a Modern Land by Marina*: In the words of Gia Gunn: Yes, bitch, WORK. Love & Fear didn’t entirely do it for me but in this album she found her groove again and I love the vintage aesthetic of this album. I can’t wait to see her live again in February! Favorite tracks: Venus Fly Trap, Ancient Dreams in a Modern Land, Purge the Poison
The Physical World by Death From Above 1979: I know I’m late to the party. I only got into them this year and this album has zero skips, I can’t wait to see them live in March! Favorite tracks: Crystal Ball, Right On Frankenstein, Nothin’ Left
How To Be a Human Being by Glass Animals: Like many people, I really got into Glass Animals this year. All their albums are good, but this is the one I find myself liking the most songs off and have the most pleasurable experience listening all the way through. It was also cool to see them perform Heat Waves in the Brighton i360 for GMA! Favorite tracks: The Other Side of Paradise, Life Itself, Cane Shuga
another eternity by Purity Ring: This my new trippy favorite, I can’t believe I haven’t gotten into this band before. This music is a listening experience on a different level. Favorite tracks: sea castle, dust hymn, bodyache
Planet Her by Doja Cat*: So many utter bangers. Everyone was itching for this album since Doja Cat really blew up last year and it exceeded all my expectations. Favorite tracks: Need to Know, You Right, Woman
Saccharine by Pinkshift*: Although this a short EP, it packs a punch. Every song is on repeat it’s so hard to pick a favorite. These guys will be one to watch, I can’t wait to see them live with Pup. Favorite tracks: i’m gunna tell my therapist on you, On Thin Ice
Troubled Paradise by Slayyyter*: The ultimate album of hoe/bad bitch jams, she’s an amazing songwriter and her slower ballads are also touching. Favorite tracks: Self-Destruct, Venom, Clouds
MONTERO by Lil Nas X*: After Old Town Road blew up, everyone was anticipating Lil Nas X’s new album. Not only is he a great musician, he’s an artist. I love what he’s doing for black gay men and he’s someone I’ll continue to follow closely even though rap isn’t my favorite genre. Favorite tracks: Montero (Call Me by Your Name), Industry Baby, That’s What I Want, Don’t Want It
Transmute by Press to MECO*: A lesser known band (with less than 4,000 Twitter followers) my friend introduced me to, I listen to them super regularly and their new album was incredible. They’re keeping up with their amazing first two albums and I hope to see them live sometime next year. They’re always on the British festival circuit so check them out if you get the chance. Favorite tracks: Another Day, Sabotage, Rusty Nails
Eternal Blue by Spiritbox*: The biggest metal breakout band of 2021 I’d say! Ever since the release of Holy Roller halfway through 2020 and with each single after that, they’ve just been getting more hype for this album release and they did not disappoint. Instant classic. Favorite tracks: Holy Roller, Circle with Me, Halcyon
Honorable mentions: Now, Not Yet by half•alive, Touch by July Talk, Everything Now by Arcade Fire, Best of Luck Club by Alex Lahey, Don’t You Feel Amazing? by Trashboat*
FAVORITE YOUTUBE CHANNELS
I spend most of my streaming time on YouTube and these are the creators I will watch first from my subscription uploads…
Cody Ko: The love of my life. He has been my favorite YouTuber since I started watching. No matter what he does he’s always innovating, hilarious and genuine.
GeoWizard (Tom): This is definitely my 2021 obsession: GeoGuessr (a game where you’re dropped anywhere in the world on Google Street view and you have to toggle around to guess where you are) and watching Tom play.
Nick DiRamio: My new favorite movie commentary channel. I can’t remember the last time a creator consistently made me laugh out loud. I don’t care if I’ve never seen what he’s commenting on, I just watch for his personality.
Scott Cramer: His videos are so creative and interactive. Despite living in North Dakota, he’s a super interesting dude and his content is criminally underrated.
Jack Edwards: One of my favorite book vloggers and I’m loving his series about living in Paris.
Honorable mentions: Tiffany Ferg, Ask a Mortician (Caitlin), Shanspeare, Dylan is in Trouble
FAVORITE T.V. SHOWS
RuPaul’s Drag Race*: My all-time favorite show. I’m starting to have trouble keeping up with the RPCU (RuPaul cinematic universe) but I’m especially loving Canada’s Drag Race/Pythia this year! Her two head look is my new all-time favorite runway.
The Birthday Boys: I can’t believe I didn’t as much as hear of this before this year. It reminds me a lot of The Eric Andre Show with non-sensical sketches.
Workaholics: I also can’t believe I haven’t watched this show until recently. So funny and has the stoner representation I need.
You (season 3)*: While I don’t think it’s going to win any awards, but this is a pretty consistently entertaining show.
Squid Game*: This isn’t exactly an unpopular opinion. This was so incredible and very much deserves the crown of most streamed Netflix show.
FAVORITE DOCUMENTARIES
Paris is Burning: An iconic documentary about the LGBTQIA+ community in the 70’s at the beginning of ballroom culture. It’s free on YouTube.
WeWork: Or the Making and Breaking of a $47 Billion Unicorn: Everybody, run to watch this on Hulu. This is the “new” Social Network and wouldn’t be surprised if it is turned into a movie before too long.
Wild Wild Country: A wild story that I didn’t know a lot about: the Rajneeshi cult in Oregon and their many scams.
Behind the Curve: A great documentary 50% about flat-earthers and what they believe and the other 50% focusing on the psychology of conspiracy theorists.
Three Identical Strangers: A bananas story about triples separated at birth and other stories like theirs… all with a dark origin.
LuLaRich*: A documentary about the MLM and how they hurt their workers and community with fraud.
FAVORITE MOVIES
Movies are probably my least consumed form of media, but here are some I saw for the first time this year and loved:
Se7en: After this, I was shouting “WHAT’S IN THE BOX?!” for the next week at work.
Promising Young Woman: I’ve been meaning to watch this for a while and watched it on the plane back from the UK and kept getting announcements during the climax which was frustrating. This was even better than I thought it would be!
Office Space: Obviously a lot of iconic moments that I’ve been missing out on. By the way, did you finish those TPS reports?
What were your favorite shows, movies and music this year?
