Jay-Z has once again shared his playlist on Tidal of his favorite songs of 2022. And while it might not be as downright expertly curated like Barack Obama’s always popular seasonal playlists, it’s nonetheless filled with heaters.
Let’s admire Jay-Z’s early sequencing for a moment: The playlist begins with Beyonce’s “Plastic Off The Sofa,” and then Drake and 21 Savage’s “Jimmy Cooks,” Lil Yachty’s “Poland” and then SZA’s “Shirt.” He really sets a chill vibe at the top of this playlist and it keeps going for a while. It isn’t until the playlist shifts over to Burna Boy’s “Last Last,” Bad Bunny’s “Tití Me Preguntó,” and Rosalia’s “Bizcochito” that the party turns up.
Jay-Z releases his annual year end @TIDAL playlist pic.twitter.com/BJDyQIYkdK
— JAY-Z Daily (@JAY_Z_Daily) December 14, 2022
But for the most part, Hov plays it safe. There’s a lot of certified hits from 2022 and not a lot of new discoveries. Not that that’s a bad thing, just know that you’re not coming to Jay-Z to find about who’s “next up” in hip-hop. Most every artist in his 40 tracks is well-established, including his wife, Beyoncé, who claims three spots in the mix off of Renaissance (also including “America Has A Problem” and “I’m That Girl.”) Save your nepotism claims though, because 2022 might very well go down as the year of our Queen Bey come Grammy time.
One gripe though. There’s no rock and roll. Like, not even a casual Phoebe Bridgers nod my dude? That’s cool though, you don’t get to become one of the most influential people in hip-hop, by bigging up rock music I suppose. Hov clearly did his thing on this one and it’s a solid collection of this year’s most ubiquitous hip-hop joints.
Check out Jay-Z’s 2022 playlist on Tidal here.