My Favorite Music of 2025

in no particular order

published 2025-12-31 by christopher cooper

osquinn, FearDorian - Before You Press Play

I’ll admit that this project put FearDorian on the map for me. But as a long-time quinn listener, it’s hard to imagine a better collaborator for her sound. The Atlanta-based duo has delivered a reliably vibey project with some fun lyrics - “I was in the spot, hella fried like chicken,” quinn raps in “L Train Vintage”.

Coincidentally, “L Train Vintage” dropped right before I spent a weekend in NY, so it was fun to pass by its namesake on the way to a rooftop party where I got to spin that track. The track stuck with me, and when the album was released it did a great job of delivering on the core feeling of this track without being too repetitive or too scattered.

kimj, underscores, umru - “1-800-FUCKOFF”

underscores’ singles this year have been standout as she develops the slightly clubbier sound of the “U” era. This track in particular, off kimj’s at times brilliant Korean American, adds an interesting twist. The supporting production from umru gives a punchy and extremely well-executed hit from three powerhouses of the genre. The lyrics are straightforward but unfortunately personally relatable in a chaotic year.

underscores at The Regency Ballroom on Nov 25.

I was glad to get a chance to see all three of these artists (separately) in San Francisco this year. kimj and umru both bore the burden of the Club Six basement well (iykyk). However, underscores’ set shone in a stacked lineup on Danny Brown’s tour date at the Regency Ballroom. femtanyl had the crowd screaming for every frenetic drop. Danny Brown’s tour set felt like a huge upgrade from his one-off show at Public Works in February. For me, the underscores set had the highest production value and was a joy to experience. I’ll admit I jumped and screamed when 1-800-FUCKOFF flashed across the screen.

Ninajirachi - I Love My Computer

Nina is another artist that was not on my radar until this year. umru’s remix of her track with MGNA Crrrta - “Angel Music” - was really the first I had heard of this Australian phenom. At that time, she was already releasing singles off ILMC - “All I Am” in February, then “Fuck My Computer” in May, two days after the umru remix. Still, it wasn’t until the full album was released in August that the vision finally clicked for me.

It’s an artful kaleidoscope reflecting on our relationship with technology that has come to define early Gen Z. And except for track 1, I genuinely love every track on this album. Highlights: “iPod Touch”, “Delete”, “All I Am”

Unfortunately I was so late to the game on this one that Ninajirachi’s headline show at Monarch was already sold out, which made me very sad. Hopefully another time!

Jane Remover - “Dreamflasher”

PLEASE GOD SAVE ME, I’M SO TURNT RIGHT NOW. For me, this is the best of JR on Revengeseekerz - I remember listening in my bed on release night and jumping up to scream when the second drop hit.

As always, Jane delivered a great show in San Francisco this year without having to do anything special, just off the back of the music being excellent. Lucy Bedroque was the perfect opener. I had forgotten Dazegxd was also playing a set, so that was a very happy surprise.

Effie - E

I first found Effie after “MY UNNIES” (kimj, SEBii, The Deep, Effie). But after exploring her catalog, it was E that stood out. This EP is a brief 16 minutes, but packs in a variety of fun tracks from the extended kimj universe. I love that Effie strikes a balance between a poppy but distorted sound, without veering fully into kimj’s dubstep dungeon.

Shout out to the DJ KELSEY and yx2 remix of “put my hoodie on”, which was also one of the first places I came across music from E.

Operelly - Handwriting Practice No. 1

Though Operelly first broke out with singles in 2022, deadAir released her debut EP this year. I was entranced by the songwriting of songs like “It Must Be Bad”, which is the standout track for me. I’m very excited to see what Operelly does next. I was sad to miss her tour date in October opening for quinnie. Hopefully it will work out in the future!

yx2 - memories forever

yx2 b2b Capturelight during VERTIGO at Temple on Sept 27.

Bay Area local yx2 has created his perfect niche. He executes amazing high energy mixes, straddling anime music, Jersey club, Dariacore, hip-hop, K-pop, and everything in between. This mix from August has it all and feels like a perfect encapsulation of his in-person DJ sets. The setlist for this one includes “latch tool” (yx2, nijikon), which seems to be a crazy rework of “BUBBLE TEA” (dark cat, juu, cinders), which samples “Latch” (Disclosure, Sam Smith). It’s crazy.

Tennyson - aka

This one is easily my favorite of the year. This is my most listened-to album of the year by a significant margin, and it came out in November!

Tennyson shines when he focuses on tasteful musical complexity, and here he excellently applies this approach to EDM, somehow delivering a collection of tracks that are simultaneously at home on a CDJ and such a fun listen on their own. It’s like IDM that isn’t a chore to get through. I need more music like this in my life.

I’m a lifelong Tennyson fan, and I really hope Tennyson does a tour for this album. He typically does live shows, and I’m not sure if that would fit here, but I know I’d love it either way.

username - pair III

username put himself at the forefront of the footwork resurgence this year. Elxnce put out a Twerknation28 footwork remix of a tiktok audio (which was a remix of a BADBADNOTGOOD song btw), and username put out an album whose cover was a painting of a classic 2008 footwork video.

The best way to experience this music is with a DJ on speakers bigger than you. username delivered on that this November at F8 in SF. He played a great set and at one point cut both faders to shout “R.I.P. Rashad”.

username at F8 on Nov 28.

But whenever you wanna get that juke fix but you’re not at the club, this 17 minute mixtape will get you close. Don’t be put off by the fact that pair III only has two tracks - it weaves in and out of dozens of musical ideas in that time. And username isn’t afraid to meme a bit - “I CANNOT GET STUCK NOW” reminds us that “right now, you can save fifty pounds per person” which as we all know is two hundred pounds off for a family of four.

Swimful - Diecast

I honestly know very little about Swimful or this EP, but the sound design here is inspiring. It’s not necessarily one to listen to while you do dishes, but it works wonders in a mix.

kmoe - K1

After carving out a name for himself as one of the young pioneers of hyperpop, kmoe has floundered. As he sings in “Do I keep you up”: “Got one more chance left to get out / … / One hit song from a TikTok / Six, seven, eight months since the last drop.” But K1 is a huge swing that connects, catapulting kmoe into a new, more mature era. Though it’s melancholic and at times angsty, it comes across as soul-searching rather than overbearing. The production is consistently top-notch. The result is a cohesive album with an innovative sound that makes for a great listen.

Oklou - choke enough

choke enough was another project that I was slow to warm up to. Though Oklou’s work had been bouncing around my head for a while (e.g. “Highest Building” by Flume feat. Oklou), I’d never connected with her solo work. And indeed when choke enough was released, my feeling was closer to that of Fantano’s infamously harsh review. But, surprisingly, with time, I grew very fond of this album. The spare instrumentation sets up some unexpectedly satisfying payoffs, like when the snare finally comes in on “choke enough”. And so somewhere in the listens this transformed into something more than just nice vibes.

Shout out to the umru, DJ CARLOZS & DJ LUKINHAS remix of “obvious”, which is very fun :)

Cusp - What I Want Doesn’t Want Me Back

I don’t listen to a lot of music that has slide guitar, but maybe I should. I don’t know much about Cusp or this album, but it’s good.

Jane Remover - ♡

A few weeks ago I was listening to “Magic I Want U” when I realized it sounded different than normal. The mix felt different - more sparse, more clear. And I could swear some of the instrumentation was slightly different.

Sure enough, Jane had quietly updated the mix of “Magic I Want U” on streaming. And I immediately guessed that this signaled an upcoming release.

After the release of Revengeseekerz, Jane claimed in interviews that the poppier singles released in 2024 were intended for an entirely different scrapped album. And while I loved the album we got in 2025, I was still extremely excited for more JR pop music. After all, “Magic I Want U” was one of the best songs of 2024.

Shortly after, ♡ was announced. Although I wish it was longer, this project delivers with “Music Baby”, an extremely late contender for song of the year. It hits all the notes you could hope for - immersive and meticulous JR production, super catchy hook, and a touch of Jersey, all perfectly on theme.

Mechatok - Wide Awake

I’ve never been a drainer, so I was quite surprised to find Mechatok’s 2025 LP on my list for this year. Mechatok hits clubbier notes and still delivers a fun album with a Bladee feature. Didn’t know that was possible. Actually, the Tohji feature on the single “200” tipped me off to pay attention to this one, and I was surprised to find super fresh production throughout. I listened to this a lot. It also makes for great mixing.

camoufly - “llamando”

camoufly’s production has been top tier for a while - “Garden” (Jedwill, camoufly) was released way back in 2020 - but after a long string of fun singles he’s finally released his debut LP. It was “llamando” that hit hardest for me.

SOPHIE - “GET HIGHER”

It is crazy that we are still getting new SOPHIE music in 2025. But this was certainly a delightful one to get. What more can I say?

Feel free to email me with recs! christopher@cg505.com