That’s right, our next installment of Required Listening comes from one of my favorite mixtapes, The God Complex. Lyrically, Goldlink is well above his contemporaries. The album is reflective , grim, and commanding. It’s personal and deeply emotional. Sonically, he brings together various influences ranging from post-bop, electropop, and house music.

Like the required reading in school, Required Listening is a few select albums everyone should have in their music library. This first installment of Required Listening comes from one of my favorite artists, Jill Scott.

I had come to know Louis Cole for his 2018 project, Time. His songs ‘More Love Less Hate”, “Tunnels in the Air” and “Night” initially caught my attention. Cole recently released his latest project, Quality Over Opinion, and it exceeded all of my expectations. It’s both engaging and reflective, beginning to end.

Cole is transparent in tracks “True Love” and “Forgetting”, while playful and confident in “Failing In A Cool Way” and “Park Your Car Right On My Face”. According to Louis Cole, “This album is a representation of me trying to make the best, most powerful and listenable music I can. For myself and also others” — and I believe Cole achieved that with this project.