A Seat at the Table cover

A Seat at the Table

Released

Released in the final year of Obama in power and in the middle of a Trump-obsessed election season, A Seat at the Table couldn’t have come at a better time. Solange promotes an atmosphere of self-love directed straight at black folks all over the album. “Cranes in the Sky,” “Don’t Touch My Hair” and “F.U.B.U.” are all standouts; interludes of extra affirmative self-empowerment come courtesy of Master P. The mood is mostly smooth and mid-tempo—cool, calm and collected even on a track entitled “Mad.” Dedicated to the black condition, A Seat at the Table has all the trappings of a woke music classic.

Miles Marshall Lewis

Recommended by

Suggestions
Fur and Gold cover

Fur and Gold

Bat for Lashes
May, 19, 1992 cover

May, 19, 1992

Ingrid Chavez
The Powerful Now cover

The Powerful Now

Anthony David
Fearless cover

Fearless

Jazmine Sullivan
Island Life cover

Island Life

Grace Jones
Kin cover

Kin

iamamiwhoami
Sweetener cover

Sweetener

Ariana Grande
Flower Boy cover

Flower Boy

Tyler, The Creator
Making Time cover

Making Time

Jamie Woon