It’s been quite the year for music. We’ve seen Zara Larsson make the ultimate comeback with Midnight Sun and PinkPantheress show off with her Y2K pop nostalgia-infused mixtape, Fancy That. With brat summer (2.0), well and truly over – it’s time to look back on the albums that have shaped the last 12 months. With everything from Rosalia’s operatic pop to the melancholy musings of Hayley Williams, 2025, no doubt, has stacked up as an unforgettable year of music. So, get your playlists ready, here’s Glamour‘s best albums of 2025…

15. Nxdia – I Promise No One’s Watching

Newcomer Nxdia has stepped up as Gen Z’s latest internet rockstar. The singer’s effervescent presence has won over major names like Yungblud, marking her as a must-listen alt act. Now, with over 1.5 million followers on TikTok, her punchy, brash album – I Promise No One’s Watching – has thrashed out internet anthems, including “She Likes A Boy” and “Feel Anything.” Nxdia’s fresh-faced, early-era Charli XCX-tinged rock proves not all online crooners are dropping soulless hits. Instead, Nxdia’s revving open-hearted debut offers something for fans of Olivia Rodrigo and Billie Eilish.

14. Ethel Cain – Willoughby Tucker, I’ll Always Love You

American artist Ethel Cain offered us two albums this year, Perverts and Willoughby Tucker, I’ll Always Love You – the latter, an album pieced together from a world of Bandcamp and SoundCloud demos, unreleased tidbits and new tracks. While Cain faced a polemic against posts from her younger, ignorant self, her long awaited album, Willoughby Tucker, buzzed on. Long-awaited snippets of songs were ethereally fleshed out. ‘Fuck You Eyes’ makes its heavenly descent – glimmering synths and Cain’s soft cadence leads you through tragic, tormented storytelling lyrics. While album closer “Waco, Texas” – a grand epic of its own – unspools, acoustic strings twanging, for over 15 minutes. Willoughby Tucker, I’ll Always Love You, is a memento – of love, trauma and loss – that doubles down on Cain’s talent as a believable, gut-wrenching world-builder.

13. Little Simz – Lotus

A Mercury Prize-winning rapper, Little Simz keeps her private life behind closed doors. But, on Lotus, the North London rapper quietly, and stylishly, brings stinging fallouts to the forefront. She airs out grievances with long-time friends and collaborators, unafraid of getting messy. The album wrangles conflict into a creative flow, the musician hitting out at where things went awry – after producer Inflo allegedly failed to pay back a loan of £1.7 million, which left the rapper unable to pay her 2024 taxes. Simz’s lyrics pinch and prod as she spits out her side of the story: “That’s what abusers do / Make you think you’re crazy and second-guess your every move.” An album sticky with vengeance and vented thoughts, Lotus is a reminder of Simz’s smart lines and even slicker legacy.

12. Sabrina Carpenter – Man’s Best Friend

Sabrina Carpenter’s known for playing along to the bit. She wears the glittery garments, deep red lipstick and grins before letting out pitch-perfect, smart-mouthed, provocative pop. If you thought Short n Sweet was a masterclass in lyrics, well, double-duo Jack Antonoff and Carpenter cause synth-sweet mayhem on Man’s Best Friend. Lead single “Manchild” is saucy sorcery, with Carpenter’s stretched out lines of “fuck my l-i-f-e” twirling in your brain against a faint memory of plucky banjo strings. On Man’s Best Friend, Sabrina crafts her wit, proving her sexy tunes are glam and layered, not just easy online-ready innuendos. While “Nobody’s Son” feels like a lesson learned from Swiftpop class, it sure sticks. As Carpenters’ played up (and over the top) schtick comes full circle, with her pulling off an album that pegs her as a top songwriter.

11. Lady Gaga – Mayhem

Mother Monster is back, and no list of the best albums of 2025 is complete without her. If Joker: Folie à Deux left you with any doubts. Let Mayhem assuage them. On her seventh studio album, Lady Gaga returns to her all-mighty, freaky, mega-maximalist podium of pop. More than a reminder of her place on the stage, Mayhem is a blowout, sizzling off with a killer single “Abracadabra,” a track that harks back to her beloved ‘08 era of club pop (Yes, I’m thinking Just Dance-core). The album rings like a shake down, a fierce nod to her eras, with songs unravelling the demands of stardom. On ‘Perfect Celebrity’, she toys with the real, the fantasy, and the cost of fame. Whether “The Beast” or the catchy “Zombieboy” with its fake-it clapping rhythm that almost sounds like Gwen Stefani’s “Hollerback Girl,” you can feel the camp presence of Art Pop running through Mayhem. As she sings of the vulnerability of what it cost to earn her throne, you’re met with a loud, crashing vision of Gaga’s past and present. It’s a kaleidoscope of what she does best – a peek into her inner world(s) of insecurities, identities and image, all coated with an extra thick layer of sublime chart pop.

10. Joy Crookes – Juniper

South Londoner Joy Crookes’ name has often been mentioned among some of the best, from Harry Styles to being nominated for the Brits Rising Star in 2020. On her entrancing new album, Crookes leans into vulnerability: she confesses to feeling desperately miserable on “Mathematics” and is subsumed by the heartbreak of a long goodbye on “First Last Dance.” Crookes voice takes you in, her tone perfect for a late-night crowded wine bar. She leaves you woozy as you flow through Juniper, a title taken from the resilience of conifer plants. Whether ruminating on generational trauma (“hurt in the bloodline”) or beauty standards in “Carman,” Crookes continually proves Juniper was worth the wait. As the album falls away to the twinkling piano of ‘Paris’, Crookes leaves you, crooning, on a love that left her with more hurt.

9. Olivia Dean – The Art of Loving

Nobody quite wins us over like Olivia Dean. With her signature windswept hair and gloriously sparkly pop, she’s quickly become Britain’s newest starlet. Her 2023 album Messy gave us the commonly beloved hit single “Dive.” But, with The Art of Loving, Dean shrugs off calls of being an easy-going palatable pop act and is finding her feet. “Man I Need” harked up the charts, scoring its spot at no. 2. After winning over crowds supporting Sabrina Carpenter at BST Hyde Park in July, The Art of Loving couldn’t have come at a better time. As the winter blues set in, Dean’s warm vocals and classic pop stylings are the perfect antidote to any bad day.

8. CMAT – EURO-COUNTRY

CMAT is well and truly a showgirl. EURO-COUNTRY is no filter; CMAT calls up a Celtic pop-meets-country album that grapples with everything from her complex relationship with Ireland identity to personal inner turmoil. It’s an album choc full of references, from Corrie to Kerry Katona. On “The Jamie Oliver Petrol Station,” she self-flagellates, reprimanding herself to “not be a bitch”. While on the (slightly) mellower “Lord, Let That Tesla Crash,” she airily sings of death and trees, charmingly calling them “the saddest cunts of plants”. There’s no one-track direction with EURO-COUNTRY; it’s a messy, freewheeling inside look at CMAT’s slightly off-beat view. It’s comedic, with a precision level of juggling heritage and humanity in a way that feels reminiscent of Self-Esteem. On the title track “EURO-COUNTRY,” she unravels the throes of economic downturn that consumed Ireland and its haunting knock-on effect – “I was 12 when the das started killing themselves / all around me”. EURO-COUNTRY is a phenomenal listen, and if you’ve heard it already, here’s your sign to play it back.

7. Rochelle Jordan – Through the Wall

British Canadian Rochelle Jordan’s party-ready record is fantastic – it spins in soulful, before amping up, trading harmonious vocal runs to frenetic, tip-tapping instruments. She whips out self-sampled vocals on “Ladida” before reeling out flowing lyrics: “Got my dreams and got these dollar bills / Get more lethal always come to kill / Love these haters they’re your ticket meal.” Through the Wall is for the all-nighters, the partiers. “Sum” leaves a lingering buzz that leads you on, as you bop along to the backtrack calls of “one more time”. Jordan’s flair is sleek; she blurs dance music with disco and deep house on “On 2 Something” and pushes the rhythm and sensuality further with “Crave.” Later, where subtle trumpets swing in, hi-hats hit off, and the groove of Through the Wall never leaves. Rochelle Jordan’s Through the Wall is rich. Its energy hums throughout, like you’re livewired – and, at no point do you want to stop dancing.

6. Addison Rae – Addison

From TikTok star to getting a Best New Artist Grammy nomination, Addison Rae’s ascent is one for the internet books. A dose of throwback pop (specifically the 2010s), Rae’s breakthrough hits have seen her surpass the Hype House craze and, instead, become one of pop’s best new contemporaries. The sultry “Diet Pepsi” hears the singer breeze through the seamlessly produced (Elvira Anderfjärd and Luka Kloser) viral hit, with its syrupy-sweet chorus and key change. R&B-tinged ‘Headphones On’ carries Addison’s confident, clean vocals, doubling down on her atmospheric, simple-stated pop sound. The Madonna references are there, but it’s on “Fame is a Gun” where Rae comes into her own. As if addressing critics, her lyrics tie into her soft electronica tone. “Don’t ask too many questions / that is my one suggestion,” she sings, as if forewarning listeners searching for double meanings. Her art, then, is as it comes – emotion as she says, sees it and sings it. After all, she does let us in on the secret: “There’s no mystery / I’m gonna make it / Gonna go down in history.”

5. Lily Allen – West End Girl

We all have our make-believe scenarios of how we’d respond to the rug being pulled from our feet. Lily Allen gave herself 16 days (and 14 tracks). West End Girl opens with a sense of whimsy – Allen bright-eyed hums along, singing of her life across the pond. Everything is picture perfect, the Architectural Digest house, an affordable mortgage and a lead role in the West End. But, soon enough, it all falls away. The album is like a full force flashback, a drama, an invitation to the breakdown of her marriage with American actor David Harbour. West End Girl is vivid – the beats sting as Allen smacks down details. On “Ruminating,” after a phone call, she dwells on what it means to be in an open marriage. As things go awry, Allen keeps the plucky sounding score to almost deny the pain. Guitar strings hum on “Madeline” – a song aptly named after the woman involved in their “arrangement.” On “Relapse,” her echoing vocals tumble over pained words: “The foundation is shattered, you’ve made such a fucking mess /I tried to be your modern wife”. West End Girl is brutal and holds no feelings back. Allen grieves her love on “Let You W/In,” but as album closeout “FruityLoop” rolls around, the lyrics release like a sigh – a sense of sensibility. Solo and dignified, she signs off, knowing she’s moving on.

4. Hayley Williams – Ego Death at a Bacherlotte Party

At only 14, Hayley Williams signed a 360 deal with Atlantic Records. After 20 years, Williams fulfilled the contract with numerous Paramore albums and a solo record. Now, entirely independent, the 36-year-old has earned some major wins this year: releasing her second record, Ego Death at a Bachelorette Party, opening for Taylor Swift at the Eras Tour and receiving four Grammy nominations for the upcoming awards. Ego is more experimental than her previous solo venture. Williams’ branches out as she reflects back on past decisions, whether about relationships or her own anxieties. On “Parachute,” she takes the plunge, the song building, until she belts, the big chorus: “You could really have anyone / And you had me / Why’d you let go? (Why’d you let go?)” On major hitter “Glum,” she attunes to a vocal edited angsty tone, ruminating, quizzical. “On my way to thirty-seven years / I do not know if I’ll ever know / What in the living fuck I’m doing here,” she ponders. Ego opens us up to Williams’ world – one outside of Paramore – as she searches for answers of her own. As the final song “Showbiz” wraps up, we’re left with a glimmer of hope, as Williams reminds us she’s still there.

3. FKA Twigs – Eusexua

Initially inspired by all-nighter raves and the liberation of euphoria and sex (hence EUSEXUA), FKA Twigs penned an album, one that pulled at the threads of herself, and earned her highest UK charting position. The album is a thrumming ode to the dance floor and finding yourself. Twigs has regularly been seen as part of the guard of left field pop; her style is vivacious and uncompromising. An ode to feeling good, she spells out the point with Madonna-coded “Girl Feels Good,” while “Drums of Death” sees her glitchy vocals, fried, as if remastered with digital wizardry. EUSEXUA is a hallmark of club culture, it’s hot, sweaty and the feeling of pure euphoria. And, if that doesn’t quite cut it, EUSEXUA Afterglow is also out now.

2. Rosalía – Lux

On Lux, Rosalía reaches for the divine. The singer’s operatic pop is studious, defiant and entirely remarkable. The singer unravels an album inspired by “movements,” inspired by the lives of various female saints. The album’s lead single, “Berghain” (featuring Björk and Yves Tumor) boldly popped online – its music video immediately sending the internet buzzing. Accompanied by the London Symphony Orchestra, Rosalía breaks out into mesmerising opera. Leagues away from her 2022 release, Motormami, Lux demands attention. The 28-year-old sings in 13 different languages. She draws on waltz music, pure classical with Verdi’s Dies Irae, rap and musical hand-clapping. In a world where we’re forced to plug in, Lux draws us out, if anything, into an analogue world. It inspires you to gaze over new language, train your ear on classical composers and to read tales of religion. Lux, in its own way, is entirely compelling.

1. OkLou – choke enough

French ambient electronic pop artist OkLou traded the rural village life for the hubbub of London’s clubbing scene. Here, she met (and won over) Caroline Polachek and A.G. Cook, both acts that featured on OkLou’s 2022 mixtape, Galore. Since then, OkLou has her an intimate, cosy tunes that have drawn in fans for hazy arpeggio sounds, fluttering beats and harmonious puffs of trumpets and saxophone. choke enough’s cinematic, slightly muted production is delicately crafted by A.G. Cook, Danny L Harle and Casey MQ. Whimsy and child-like joy ebb through choke enough, too. On “ict” (ice cream truck), bright, peppy-sounding synth-like keys spin against a distant trumpet. Lou sings, pitched up, about an ice cream truck, longing for a “vanilla summer.” While on “harvest sky”, trance beats create a dream-like feel, as if channelling bonfires and folklore traditions of Harvest. As album opener ‘endless’ unfurls, Oklou asks aloud: Is the endless still inbound? / Or am I just different now? / Is the endless still inbound?” As the soft textures and colour palette of choke enough loops on, OkLou gives us an album that flows full circle. In an economy attention, OkLou gives you somewhere to tap out, to find respite and silently recharge.