New Amerykah, Part One (4th World War)

After a five-year break from releasing music, neo-soul icon Erykah Badu returned in 2008 with this masterpiece of avant-garde R&B and forward-thinking hip-hop. Building on the sociopolitical vision of Marvin Gaye and Sly Stone, Badu establishes a transcendental mood in “The Healer”—a Madlib-assisted rumination on the power of hip-hop—while voicing the struggles of single black mothers in the beautifully woozy “That Hump”. Her voice is especially powerful on “Soldier”, while “Twinkle” culminates in a furious call to action.