In our time, it's easy to shut your mind, driven by fear or misinformation. This year, NPR Music's pop critic found the antidote in music that encouraged exploring

If you're searching for music off the beaten path, here's the list for you. NPR Music's Tiny Desk editor and resident Viking scours the corners of the music world to find his favorite records of 2025.

The NPR Music critic and All Songs Considered contributor's favorite records of the year include the best of British rap, whimsical and melancholy electronic experiments and spellbinding dreampop.

NPR Music's classical critic shares his favorite records of the year, spanning a wide range of genres, from experimental folk to operatic pop to recordings featuring harp and pipe organ.

The All Songs Considered host had his mind blown by Rosalía's LUX and his heart broken by Patrick Watson's uh oh, and was taken for a wild ride by Geese.

In a year when hip-hop was frequently absent from the pop charts, NPR's music critic found that looking in darker corners revealed a genre that was flourishing.

The NPR Music editor and All Songs Considered contributor shares her favorite albums of the year, including one that feels like a survival guide to the apocalypse.

NPR Music critics, editors and Tiny Desk producers singled out one album they would recommend to anyone who came calling. The elite, no-skips albums of the year.

Malo revealed a Stage 4 cancer diagnosis in June of 2024, but he didn't stop touring the country with the band.