We’re almost at the end! In Part 7.2 of my albums by decade series, I tackle the second half of the 2010s. The continued fracturing in and out of the music world was creating more diversity than ever. But the industry in general was shrinking. Far fewer albums were being released by record labels, and far more music was being posted everywhere online, making self-releases like mixtapes more influential than ever before.

While the power to create and share was more than ever in the hands of artists, the power to succeed and make any kind of profit or living was diminishing rapidly. Things were great. Things were horrible. No one knew what the hell was going on.

All those outer pressures of industry and format changes, and the inner pressures of artists having to rethink what it meant to release music people would actually hear and to somehow make any money on it, meant that the concept of “album” was being deconstructed and somewhat reformed.

What were your favorite albums of the second half of the 2010s? Were you still listening to full albums at that point? Did you have any idea how chaotic things were becoming? Discuss dammit!

BONUS MxTRA VIDEO: How businesses, artists and fans can help musicians earn more

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*intro music credit: REC - "Wake Up High"

*mid roll music credit: The Drop - "Outerloper"

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