After a year defined by emergence and creative combination, our critics zoom in on their own listening to choose one inescapable album and song each.

Each week, the guests and hosts on NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour share what's bringing them joy. This week: Making Shazam playlists, Chris Klimek's annual mixtape, NPR Best Music of 2022 and more.

We ranked a list of 100 songs that reflects the sprawling, energetic messiness of 2022. Start listening.

We ranked a list of 100 songs that reflects the sprawling, energetic messiness of 2022. Start listening.

It was a heart-pounding, dance-inducing, head-spinning year in Latin music, from Bad Bunny's exponential rise to a relentless commitment from up and coming artists to play between genre lines.

We ranked our 50 favorite records of the year, from hip-hop to classical and everything in between.

Her album-as-Sistine Chapel: awe-inspiring from a distance and glittering with detail, a star-filled imaginary sky and an origin myth that comes to life through its brilliant brush strokes.

In 2022, the greatest difficult-to-classify sounds encompassed microtonal rock jams, tender ambient, Egyptian ghosts and an epic synth symphony.

NPR's pop critic and correspondent shares her favorite albums of this year.

This has been a year packed with great albums, some highly anticipated and some out of the blue. Share your favorites with us and we'll reveal the results on an episode of All Songs Considered.

The leaves are changing colors, miniature candies are lining the walls of drug stores and tías y tíos are warning about the demonic roots of Halloween. Finally, Espooky season has arrived.

When you write a song, you want people to hear it. But for some artists, that's not enough.

Say it ain't so, but summer's almost over. Keep Lady Gaga's party mantra — bus, club, another club, another club, plane, next place, no sleep — in your heart with this recklessly fun mix.

It's a summer of macro at Planet Money. Celebrate hot econ summer with our playlist.

Your eyes meet and you know it's too late. The French-speaking Montréalais call it un coup de foudre — love strikes like a sudden thunderstorm. She makes you a playlist of her Canadian faves.