This 2021 sure was an excellent year for music. We saw a fantastic display of talent, with different artists exploring different sounds and genres that they’ve never done before. As a result, we put together a list of some of the incredible albums we think are the best of the year.

1. Revelación – Selena Gomez

After dropping her album Rare, which was more bubblegum pop and dancey than fans expected after singles like Fetish and Bad Liar, fans understood that Selena was trying to close a chapter in her life. With tracks like Lose You To Love Me or Vulnerable, letting everyone know that she was now in A sweeter place before moving into this new project that many of her fans were anxiously expecting.

Back in the day, Selena made a Spanish version of her singles, like Un Año Sin Ver Llover, o Díces, when she was still working with Disney Channel, but she never fully jumped to do a whole project in Spanish, until Revelación.

Technically an EP, but it feels more than enough, with seven tracks that explore a lot of Latin sounds that are easy to listen to, great lyrics, enjoyable, and might give you an energy boost when you go through it.

2. KG0516 – Karol G

Karol G announced her newest album with that eclectic cover by David LaChapelle and an album trailer voiced by Kali Uchis, leaving people wondering what KG0516 would sound like. And saying it was a surprise would be an understatement.

Everyone would agree that this is the best album from Karol G; without a doubt, it has everything to be an incredible experience. You have some bangers like El Makinón and Bichota, and love songs like Contigo Voy a Muerte, even a corrido with more Mexican sounds in 200 Copas. She really checked every box with this one, and of course, she earned a Grammy nomination and a well-deserved one!

3. Sueños de Dalí – Paloma Mami

After releasing her hit singles Not Steady and Fingías, Paloma gained a fanbase, which was incredibly excited for a debut album from this promising young artist with this unique voice and a presence that’s so magnetic.

This 2021, Sueños de Dalí came around, in which Paloma showcases her beautiful and hypnotizing voice and rather simple trap beats to sign over, making some mesmerizing R&B tracks.

It’s not every day that we see Latin artists making R&B in Spanish, and Paloma Mami does it incredibly well, with only 22 years.

4. Vice Versa – Rauw Alejandro

Rauw Alejandro has been working nonstop on his career, and there’s no point in denying his talent when it comes to making the catchiest songs and some of the most interesting when it comes to the standard for urban artists.

And until Afrodisiaco, everything from Rauw Alejandro was expected to be reggaeton. Still, Vice Versa was a welcomed surprise, seeing him go to a more Latin pop sound mixing it with his reggaeton roots and execute it flawlessly, too, with tracks like Todo de ti, Cúrame, Aquel Nap ZzZz, and ¿Cuándo Fue? Tracks add a little plot twist to the genre and leave you craving more.

Overall, the album is a 10/10, just the right length, and I’m sure you’ll want to add some of the songs to your playlist after the first listen!

5. Besitos, cuidate – Princesa Alba

Another talented Chilean artist appearing on our list tonight is Princesa Alba, who you might not know yet, but it sure is an incredible discovery. At the beginning of her career, she had more of a trap vibe, maybe falling under the spectrum of what people call “neoperreo.” Since then, she’s been exploring different genres and growing as an artist, and now I can thoroughly say she has found her voice, and it’s a fantastic one.

This 2021 she released ‘besitos, cuidate’ an incredible Electropop record about female empowerment, going through a breakup, and getting over it, with tracks like nasty, acelero, and amor sin amor, that are so catchy and energetic that you want to get you on your feet and dance.

If for any reason, you decided to ignore any of these albums earlier in the year, we encourage you to check them out. We know you’ll be pleased.

Music is art, and like every expression of art, some people will be uncomfortable looking at it, but some people will love it and understand it. Because, of course, art is supposed to evoke emotions, and the message will resonate with some but not with everyone.

And for many people, that’s Arca. The Grammy-nominated artist has been climbing her way to where she is right now, working with the Venezuelan group La Vida Boheme, on their Grammy-nominated album, to producing for Kanye West, FKA Twigs, and Björk.

Last year, the Venezuelan artist dropped the first installment of her newest era: KiCk i, where she worked with artists like Rosalía, SOPHIE, and Björk.

The album received a general acclamation from critics and fans and a Grammy nomination for Best Electronic Album, being her most streamed and ‘mainstream’ album, gaining her a collaboration in the Euphoria HBO soundtrack, with her original song called ‘Mother.’ She recently worked with Lady Gaga in Ariana Grande on the Rain on Me Remix.

Arca has always talked about her experience as a trans person and everything about her queer experience, making music that might be disruptive and even noisy to some people, but this 2021, she proved to everyone her range when it comes to music.

She released four installments of the KiCk universe, finishing the era with really different albums between them. She dropped an album per day from November 30 to December 3, while everyone talked about her, thanks to her two vogue cover features. One for Vogue Latin America, and one for Vogue Mexico, sparking a conversation about transness, making music that’s not for everyone, and what she meant for her fans: a voice, liberation, representation, transgression.

With KiCk ii, she tapped more into her Latina side, making some reggaeton tracks a lot more danceable like the double single Prada/Rakata while keeping her experimental essence, with tracks like Muñecas, and even a ballad, featuring Sia. Transitioning into KiCk iii, she went back to the experimental sounds in her albums Mutant and Xen, a lot noisier and busier.

Closing with ‘Joya,’ it made a lot more sense when KiCk iiii came around the corner, with more distorted instruments like piano, bass, and electric guitars, running towards ‘ambient’ music, with equally beautiful lyrics to match the overall vibe.

Again, it served as an opening of the last installment: KiCk iiiii, where she jumped in full to the ambient vibe, making an album that feels like a warm hug, nostalgic but not necessarily sad, simply just moving and emotional.

With this project, she really went through it all, different genres and styles, different types of lyrics, and different feelings, proving to everyone that experimental music is not just “noises,” as some people like saying while making a statement.

Because as mentioned before, art is supposed to make people feel things, even if those feelings aren’t necessarily comfortable. It makes you reflect, even if you don’t want to think about it.

That’s why artists like Arca, with this transgressive point of view to her music and persona, deserve to have a spotlight—changing perceptions little by little.

Just like music, there are other forms of entertainment, and maybe the most common media are movies, so of course, we had to get together a small list of recommendations for you. If you’ve missed any of these titles because you’re living under the rocks or were in retirement far from society, you need to see them and live the experience while they’re still fresh.

1. In the Heights

Starting with a movie adaptation of a beloved Broadway musical, In the Heights premiered both on HBO max and theaters this year, receiving an overwhelmingly good critic for both the acting and the music made by Lin-Manuel Mirada. In this movie, we follow our main character, Usnavi, who tells a story about Washington Heights to four children, about love, fear, family, and the importance of following your dreams, no matter how far or weird or complicated they seem.

We met and fall in love with many different characters in Washington Heights, knowing their struggles, personal fears, and personal dreams. Everyone in this movie has something to offer, and every one of them gets to tell their side of the story so that you can relate.

2. Encanto

Encanto premiered recently, the newest animated film from

Walt Disney Pictures, this time being inspired in Colombian culture, with original music made by Lin-Manuel Miranda as well, following the story of Mirabel, a woman with no gift, in a family full of magical abilities. We follow her in her journey, learning to love herself with her self-perceived flaws, as she saves her family, that’s being threatened and can maybe lose it all at the end.

It is endearing, heartwarming, and full of representation for anyone who has lived the Latino experience, definitely worth watching it with your family or friends.

3. West Side Story

Another beloved Broadway musical that received a movie adaptation this year was West Side Story, directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Ansel Elgort and Rachel Zegler, who is said to star as Snow White in the future live-action from Disney

The movie follows Tony and Maria, that fall in love, and spark a fight between two gangs, to have power over the streets of Manhattan’s West Side. With a story worth a tear or two, maybe more, if you’re emotional. If you love musicals, West Side Story is a quality one, and you might love it too.

4. Eternals

After winning the Oscar for Best Director, Chloe Zhao went on to direct a new movie for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, this time, with a different approach to what we know as a superhero movie. Eternals is more about the hero’s journey and their stories than the action, explosions, and everything we know as a superhero movie to date.

With a renowned ensemble, with actors like Salma Hayek, Richard Madden, and Angelina Jolie, this is arguably one of the best movies in the MCU if you are looking for something fresh and out of the pattern from the last movies. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, that’s for sure, but if it is yours, it will become one of your favorite movies.

5. I Care A Lot

At the beginning of the year, back in February, Netflix announced a new movie starring Rosamund Pike and Eiza Gonzalez, with many other known actors, like Peter Dinklage, and people really didn’t have any expectations for this movie, but it turned out great.

The film received a lot of critical acclamation because of the movie’s weird charm: there’s not a hero to root for. Like in real life, people are not necessarily good every time. There are bad people in this world, and it was a strange reality check following Marla’s story, a scammer.  This movie makes you realize bad people can make great protagonists.