On the strength of staggering streaming numbers, hip-hop officially became the dominant genre in America for the first time ever this year. The metrics finally caught up to the zeitgeist, leading to a rap renaissance atop the charts. But there were more subtle reckonings within the year’s most rousing rap albums, which wrestled with form and function, introspection and interaction, self-awareness, legacy, and duty. Rappers deconstructed their old works, or capitalized on years of momentum, or reevaluated their place in rap and the wider world. Young rappers took command, and older rappers took stock. Some delved deeper inside themselves, while others expanded outward into melody and motion, changing the very idea of what a rap record can be.

Listen to selections from this list on our Spotify and Apple Music playlists.