As 2017 winds down towards its close and we sit and reflect on Thanksgiving Day, one thing is abundantly clear: this year was exactly as challenging and crap-tastic as we thought it would be. Monuments both literal and figurative are crumbling around us, the threat of nuclear war is the most imminent its been in a generation, and we have a Cheeto-in-chief laughing at us all for being “ungrateful fools.”
And yet as hard as it may be, it never hurts to take stock of the things that didn’t make us feel like the end is nigh. In fact, there were quite a few things that happened this year in the world of music culture that reaffirmed our faith in humanity, got us excited and passionate, and generally relieved the stress of being a conscious human.
From Princess Nokia quashing racism with scalding soup to Travis Scott’s legendary tumble to Beyoncé’s Instagram post seen ‘round the world, these are the music moments we were most grateful for in 2017.
Gucci Mane’s wedding and general glo-up
Gucci Mane's well-deserved consecutive wins this past year have been a delight to witness, from his release from prison to his dimaond-filled wedding to Mrs. Guwop Keyshia Ka'oir, and we're thankful Wop has brought us along for the drop top ride.
SZA finally dropping her debut album
The music video for "Love Galore" with Travis Scott alone was worth the wait, but we are infinitely thankful that SZA finally dropped her debut album Ctrl, which has been on extremely high rotation at Highsnobiety Music HQ since it came out in June.
Travis Scott’s "most turnt and epic" stage fall
Massive shout outs to Travis Scott for his legendary clumsiness at Drake's concert back in February, which has been an instant morale booster ever since.
Frank Ocean’s drag ball birthday bash
We can't get enough of the fact that Frank Ocean through a glitter-filled, fabulous drag ball birthday party. Aside from all the glitz and glamour, we're thankful that Frank Ocean taught us yet another lesson about queerness.
Big Shaq doing his ting
What started off as a humble grime MC spoof turned into one of our favorite memes of the year and subsequently one of the biggest hits of 2017. We are thankful that mans not hot, never hot.
T-Pain schooling us in the proper use of Animoji
We were lucky enough to have T-Pain roll through Highsnobiety New York HQ to teach us how to unleash the right Animoji for major life events and we're eternally thankful - our next break up is about to be a breeze.
Nicki Minaj’s Paper Magazine cover
Move over Kim Kardashian, Nicki done broke the internet (#BreakTheInternet) with her Minaj à Trois on the cover of Paper Magazine's Winter 2017 issue. We're still shook.
Lil Uzi Vert's shoulders at the MTV VMAs
It's a given that we're thankful for the fact that Lil Uzi Vert exists, that he gave us "XO Tour LIif3" and Luv is Rage 2, but let's take this time to give a special shoutout to his shimmying shoulders at this year's MTV VMAs.
Sia posting her own naked photo before the paparazzi
What does one react when the paparazzi tries to release your nudes? If you happen to be Australia pop sensation Sia, you leak them yourself.
Princess Nokia taking down a racist on the subway with soup
Few social media moments this year were as cathartic as witnessing Princess Nokia schooling a pathetic racist man on the New York subway, who concluded the interaction by throwing hot soup in his face. We cannot thank Princess Nokia enough for continuing to put in the work educating bigots, and having the guts to burn them with soup when it's clear they aren't changing their minds about their dangerous beliefs.
Cardi B shaking up the mainstream rap game with “Bodak Yellow”
Where to begin with the heaven-sent goddess that is Cardi B? She has simply killed it in her red bottoms this year, climbing to the top of the Billboard Hot 100, all the while continuing to show us she's a humble girl from the Bronx who is never afraid of speaking her mind.
Beyoncé’s iconic twin announcement
Infinite thanks to Beyoncé for reminding us that any major life milestone deserves a creative director, stylist and grooming team. It's no wonder the photo announcing the birth of her twins Rumi and Sir Carter soon became the most-liked photo on Instagram.
Rihanna, always
Rihanna didn’t have any time to release solo tracks this year but we forgive her. She did manage to feature on DJ Khaled’s “Wild Thoughts,” Kendrick Lamar’s “LOYALTY.,”and most recently N.E.R.D’s “Lemon,” where she rapped up a storm.
She graced us with her presence in a major head-to-toe crystal Gucci look at Coachella this year, which was more memorable than any of the actual performers. Her Fenty empire continues its path of total world domination with Puma and her new Fenty Beauty endeavor. Oh, and she’s getting a street named after her in Barbados.
Now tune in to the mix 4th Pyramid, Jazz Cartier's official DJ, created for us to help your family find some chill this Turkey Day. Listen here.
