Following the excellent soundtrack which defined the music of 2021, casual listeners and music enthusiasts alike at Camas High School (CHS) have enjoyed this year’s releases just as much.

Similar to 2021, the year started out slowly, with January releases like DS4Ever by Gunna, and Dawn FM by The Weeknd, both of which were divisive among fans upon their release, but still garnered praise.

“A lot of the songs on there are still my favorites of the year, I could never get tired of listening to that album,” said sophomore Mason Lai.

February was also relatively quiet, seeing the cryptic release of Ye’s Donda 2, which was released exclusively on the Stem Player, Ye’s own streaming device. February also saw the release of the second album, 2 Alivë by the divisive Portland-area artist, Yeat, whose popularity has skyrocketed in the past year due to his notoriety on Tiktok.

“I like Yeat,” said sophomore Sophia Wade.

March saw notable hip-hop releases like the star-studded I Know Nigo! by Japanese producer and fashion designer Nigo, and the soulful Melt My Eyez See Your Future by South Florida artist Denzel Curry. On the same day, Mainstream Sellout by controversial genre-blending artist Machine Gun Kelly, was released to subpar critical review and even more negative perception among fans.

April also saw fantastic hip-hop albums like the heartbreaking Ramona Park Broke My Heart from Vince Staples and It’s Almost Dry by the legendary Pusha T, which, on the track “Rock n Roll”, possibly marks the last collaboration between long-time peers Ye and Kid Cudi, due to a falling-out they’ve experienced over the latter’s friendship with actor Pete Davidson, with whom Ye has engaged a barrage of attacks on social media.

The month ended with albums like Kehlani’s Blue Water Road and Future’s I Never Liked You, which was popular among Camas students..

“I don’t know, I’ve just always liked Future,” said junior Marcellis Brizuela.

By May, things began to heat up, opening the month with No Fear Of Time by hip-hop legends Yasiin Bey and Talib Kweli, under their Black Star moniker, produced by the luminary underground producer Madlib, and released solely on the podcast platform Luminary.

May 6 saw the release of the divisive Come Home The Kids Miss You by Jack Harlow, but also Un Verano Sin Ti by Puerto Rican artist Bad Bunny, who was the most streamed artist on Spotify in 2021.

“I’m not a diehard Bad Bunny fan but I’m Latino, and throughout the years, he’s been very diverse. He started with trap, now he’s doing reggaeton, salsa, and merengue, all types of Latin music, it’s pretty cool,” said sophomore José Cuadros.

At the end of May, Harry’s House by Harry Styles earned the most first-day streams on Apple Music for any pop album in 2022, placing among the favorites for students like freshman Mia Lewis.

The middle of May, however, saw likely the most notable release of the year thus far in Mr. Morale And The Big Steppers by Kendrick Lamar. The album was a long-awaited successor to Lamar’s Pulitzer-prize winning Damn. released five years prior.

“I know it’s a hit or miss for most people but I really liked it,” said junior Ariana Lopez.

After five years of build-up, many fans were originally let down by what seemed like a more humble and personal venture, though upon more listens, began to understand and appreciate the album more. The album was among favorites for Lopez, Brizuela, freshman Noah Adcock, and sophomores Garrett Maul and Sophia Wright.

Mr. Morale has definitely defined the year for most listeners thus far, but with so much time left in the year, there is much potential for a fantastic musical year.