The albums and songs of 2026 that we love the most (so far)
When it comes to music, the concept of "best" might be a lie, but our love stays true.The 24 albums and songs on you'll find on this page are our most fervent answers to the question we probably get asked most often, by friends and family and new acquaintances alike: What should I listen to? In celebration of the mid-point of the year and in an effort to spread the love, a dozen members of NPR Music's team — podcast hosts, critics and editors — each distilled their affections down to one song and one album from the first half of 2026.
These are our highest recommendations.Want more stories like this? Get the NPR Music newsletter, sent weekly.Nate Chinen recommends: Kacey Musgraves, Middle of NowhereEverybody knows this is Kacey Musgraves' return to country form, after seasons of surveying the skies and searching within.Thing is, she never stopped being a Texas troubadour at heart, and now sees no reason to check her therapeutic, psychedelic or cosmic insights at the swinging saloon door.
Singing with feeling while determined not to make a fuss about it, Musgraves sounds more compass-centered than she has since Golden Hour.And she sounds like she's having fun again — flirting with norteño and Western swing, sparking collaborations that can feel benedictory (patron saint Willie Nelson), conciliatory (former rival Miranda Lambert), crafty (longtime songwriting partners Luke Laird and Shane McAnally) or just plain smart (pedal steel ace Paul Franklin).
In songs like "Dry Spell" and "Everybody Wants to Be a Cowboy," Kacey pulls off a familiar yet still impressive feat: finding wisdom in the wisecracks, giving the heartbreak plenty of heart.Hazel Cills recommends: underscores, U"It's everything to me," is how underscores, the moniker of artist April Harper Grey, describes her relationship to music.Listening to what she's created, you can absolutely tell.
The 26-year-old electronic artist grew up making songs, posting her tracks online as a tween, and she has ca...