My goodness, what a fun challenge it was to look back on 25 years and narrow it down to 25 albums. I’m a firm believer that music gets better every year, and its hard to fit a quarter century into a list of only 25. With that said, my selections are chosen in chronological order rather than the added challenge on myself to rank them in any order. I’m certain that if I was left on a deserted island with any one (two-three) of these records, I’d be just fine. Thanks to the respective artists for making timeless albums, and you the KGNU listener for browsing. Here’s to the next half of a millennium!
| Rank | Artist | Album | Label | Release Year |
| 1 | Beanie Sigel | The Truth | Roc-A-Fella | 2000 |
| 2 | Deltron 3030 | self-titled | 75 Ark | 2000 |
| 3 | Jay-Z | The Blueprint | Roc-A-Fella | 2001 |
| 4 | Scarface | The Fix | Def Jam South | 2002 |
| 5 | Norah Jones | Come Away With Me | Blue Note | 2002 |
| 6 | Madlib | Shades Of Blue: Madlib Invades Blue Note | Blue Note | 2003 |
| 7 | DJ Muggs & GZA | Grandmasters | Angeles Records | 2005 |
| 8 | Red Hot Chili Peppers | Stadium Arcadium | Warner Bros. | 2006 |
| 9 | Various Artists | Black Snake Moan Original Soundtrack | New West | 2006 |
| 10 | Dr. Dog | Fate | Park The Van Records | 2008 |
| 11 | Blackroc | self-titled | Nonesuch | 2009 |
| 12 | El Michels Affair | Enter the 37th Chamber | Fat Beats | 2009 |
| 13 | John Legend & The Roots | Wake Up! | GOOD | 2010 |
| 14 | The Roots | undun | Def Jam | 2011 |
| 15 | Alabama Shakes | Boys & Girls | ATO Records | 2012 |
| 16 | Kendrick Lamar | good kid, M.A.A.D. City | TDE/Aftermath | 2012 |
| 17 | Portugal. The Man | Evil Friends | Atlantic | 2013 |
| 18 | D’Angelo and the Vanguard | Black Messiah | RCA | 2014 |
| 19 | The Arcs | Yours, Dreamily | Nonesuch | 2015 |
| 20 | Leon Bridges | Coming Home | Columbia | 2015 |
| 21 | Janelle Monáe | Dirty Computer | Bad Boy | 2018 |
| 22 | Karen O & Danger Mouse | Lux Prima | Lux Prima LLC | 2019 |
| 23 | Jamila Woods | LEGACY! LEGACY! | Jagjaguwar | 2019 |
| 24 | Lianne La Havas | self-titled | Warner Records | 2020 |
| 25 | Arlo Parks | Collapsed In Sunbeams | Transgressive Records | 2021 |





