A lot of music lists try to list the “best” or “favorite” albums in a particular genre or era. Why? Nobody gives a fuck about your disguised opinion in the form of some kind of fabricated expert consensus. Now this shit here is different. It’s not my opinion, it’s a factual list of the most influential albums in my life. In other words, this was the shit playing in the background when I made the best and worst decisions of my life.
I’ll try to say something interesting or racially demeaning for each album so it’s entertaining reading.
1. Red Hot Chili Peppers – Californication
This album, while not as critically/personally acclaimed as their other shit, was so unbelievably huge it was almost rediculous. For me, it combined rock and rap. What that really means is you could listen to it when on the drugs associated with rock or the drugs associated with rap. Let me just state the obvious here in a rhetorical question: How can you understand music that was made by people on drugs if you don’t know what it’s like to be on those drugs? You know that Hendrix album Are You Experienced? What do you think that means?
- Most Memorable Track: Californication
2. Dr Dre – 2001 
A lot of rappers talk about “changing the game” and “reinventing rap”. As far as I know, Dr Dre was the only one to ever do this, and he did it twice. Also, I’m listening to songs from this right now and I’m getting vivid flashbacks of events that happened in the past. I saw this thing once where if you study listening to a song, you’ll remember that information if you play that same song when you need to remember it. It’s true. I think it’s the main and possibly only reason why people like music from their formative years. It brings back those memorable “firsts”. Good times, good times.
- Most Memorable Track: Xxplosive
3. Jay-Z – Black Album
While Dr Dre reinvented rap, this album defined it. The only things bigger than this album were:
- The hype surrounding it’s release
- The post-hype praise from people who listened to the Grey Album first
Like, everybody says how his first album was the biggest “hustler” album he did but that’s bullshit. He took a page from Michael Jordan and “retired” to build the hype and legend surrounding himself, then he “came back, wearing the 4-5” just like he said he would. That’s hustling last I checked. Anyway, I saw more bad things being done/chopped on this album than on any other album. This was likely due to this album’s all-black case, top-surface, and bottom-surface. It probably set a forever-unofficial record in that respect.
- Most Memorable Track: Public Service Announcement
4. Third Eye Blind – Self-Titled/Blue
First of all, both albums are pretty much the same. It might as well be a double CD. Second of all, they’ve been touring for 12 years (continuously I think) performing the same songs from these 2 albums. And they still sell out. And Stephen Jenkins still bangs college girls. I’m not sure what all of that means, but it is a rarely unique pop sound they have. If you don’t know what to play when you bring a girl back to your place, you should probably play this.
- Most Memorable Track: Losing a Whole Year
5. UGK – Underground Kingz .jpg "ugk")
I thought I knew everything about music until I heard this album. All I have to say is Pimp-C’s death was so far under the radar it was kind of outrageous. Where would Jay-Z be without Big Pimpin or 99 Problems?
- Most Memorable Track: Two Types of Bitches
DC Hero To The Rescue 