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Critics Crown Rosalía's 'Lux' as 2025's Best Album
A comprehensive poll of polls by BBC News, aggregating over 30 year-end lists from global music publications, has named Rosalía's Lux the standout album of 2025. The ranking, which assigned points based on list positions, revealed a tightly contested race, with just 52 points separating the top two albums.
How the Rankings Were Compiled
BBC News analyzed lists from outlets including Rolling Stone, NME, The Guardian, and Pitchfork, awarding 20 points to the top-ranked album on each list, 19 to the second, and so on. The process highlighted a year where commercial success diverged sharply from critical acclaim-Taylor Swift's The Life Of A Showgirl and Alex Warren's chart-topping single Ordinary barely registered among critics.
The Top Albums of 2025
10. Addison Rae - Addison
After a rocky debut in 2021, Rae's sophomore album emerged as a collection of hypnotic, trance-infused pop anthems. Collaborating with Elvira Anderfjärd and Luka Kloser, she crafted a sound both retro and futuristic, with standout tracks like Diet Pepsi and Headphones On blending sensuality and introspection.
9. Lily Allen - West End Girl
Allen's raw, scathing portrait of marital collapse dominated headlines upon release. While she admitted some details were exaggerated, the album's emotional rawness-set against polished pop production-cemented her reputation for razor-sharp songwriting. Madeline, a confrontation with her partner's mistress, became a fan favorite.
8. Pulp - More
Pulp's first album in 24 years sounded like a lost relic from their 1990s peak, with Jarvis Cocker's lyrics grappling with aging, divorce, and mortality. Yet tracks like Spike Island proved the band's enduring ability to merge melancholy with danceable hooks, culminating in a triumphant Glastonbury performance.
7. Dijon - Baby
Dijon Duenas's Grammy-nominated sophomore album celebrated fatherhood with genre-defying R&B, channeling Prince and D'Angelo. From the title track's lullaby to Another Baby!-a playful plea for a larger family-the album balanced chaos and tenderness.
6. FKA Twigs - Eusexua
Twigs described Eusexua as capturing the "tingling clarity" of new love or ideas. The album's abstract, futuristic soundscapes-echoing Madonna's Ray of Light-delivered addictive hooks, with Girl Feels Good becoming a standout.
5. CMAT - Euro-Country
Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson's irreverent romp tackled grief, capitalism, and Jamie Oliver with equal gusto. Jamie Oliver Petrol Station, a critique of societal tolerance through fast food, became an unlikely anthem.
4. Oklou - Choke Enough
Oklou's debut explored digital alienation through gauzy, drumless pop. Produced with AG Cook and Danny L Harle, tracks like Blade Bird-inspired by a Basque poem-blurred intimacy and detachment.
3. Bad Bunny - Debí Tirar Más Fotos
Bad Bunny's sixth album fused Puerto Rican genres-plena, salsa, bomba-with reggaeton, lamenting gentrification and lost love. DtMF, a heartfelt tribute to departed loved ones, translated to "I should have taken more photos."
2. Geese - Getting Killed
Recorded in 10 days, this Brooklyn band's chaotic collage of Radiohead, the Strokes, and Captain Beefheart defied predictability. Frontman Cameron Winter's lyrics oscillated between irreverence and depth, with Taxes-a defiant anthem about fiscal resistance-becoming a cult favorite.
1. Rosalía - Lux
Rosalía's fourth album, a year in the making, merged flamenco, classical, and avant-pop across 14 languages. Tracks like Reliquia layered staccato strings with electronic distortion, arguing for grace in an era of instant gratification. "The more we're in the dopamine era, the more I want the opposite," she told The New York Times.
The Top Singles of 2025
The singles ranking was equally competitive, with PinkPantheress's Illegal-a fresh take on love's intoxicating highs-claiming the top spot. Other highlights included:
- Wednesday - Elderberry Wine: A metaphor-laden indie track about toxic relationships.
- Kehlani - Folded: A Top 10 US hit blending heartbreak with modern R&B.
- Huntr/x - Golden: A Netflix K-Pop Demon Hunters soundtrack song that transcended its origins, earning an Oscar nomination.
- Lady Gaga - Abracadabra: A return to her debut's gothic pop sound, dialed up to maximalist extremes.
A Year of Fragmented Hits
The poll underscored 2025's lack of universally dominant songs, with critics favoring niche, boundary-pushing works over mainstream chart-toppers. As BBC News noted, the results reflected a music landscape where "the tectonic plates of pop" shifted beneath the surface.
