The extended rollout for For All The Dogs might've dominated the music conversation at times in 2023, but there were plenty of great albums dropped by Canadian artists throughout the year worthy of your time. For whatever reason, artists from here respect the album format as an artistic medium in a way that sometimes runs counter to the quick and dirty singles world we're living in, and it's a good thing for music fans. Some Canadian artists took major steps forward, while others continued to deliver the level of quality fans expect.
Here are Complex Canada's 10 Best Canadian albums of 2023.
10. Planet Giza, ‘Ready When You Are’
Label: Quiet Note
Released: April 7
The Montreal trio of Rami B, DoomX, and Tony Stone has been making hip-hop music with a timeless sound for quite a while now. Ready When You Are doesn’t change up the classic formula, even though it feels like a major leap artistically. The beats are crisp and soulful. Tony Stone keeps elevating as an MC and frontman. The pieces have been there for years, and now they’re locked in place.
9. Night Lovell, 'I Hope You're Happy'
Label: G59
Released: December 8
Ottawa's goth prince brightens things up a little on I Hope You're Happy, without really sacrificing the consuming darkness that makes his music so grabbing. Lovell remains really attuned to creating an enveloping atmosphere to his music, and his latest album pushes those immaculate vibes in even more directions. He's well-versed in the sounds people want to consume now, but there are nods to the old school and impressive bars to appeal to those seeking something fuller.
8. Jev., 'Lonerwrld, Vol. 1'
Label: Loner
Released: September 22
The Ottawa rapper made noise on TikTok last year with “Where’s the Confetti?” but he’s since followed it up with two promising releases, including 2023’s Lonerwrld Vol. 1. Jev already has a distinctive, evocative style that takes cues from lo-fi but in album form ends up being way more expansive, in an artful, navel gazing sort of way. The nation’s Capital has a burgeoning hip-hop scene, and Jev. is one of many talented artists pushing things forward there.
7. Haviah Mighty, ‘Crying Crystals'
Label: Mighty Gang
Released: July 14
After mixing the personal with the political on her last two releases, the former Polaris Music Prize winner looked inward even more on Crying Castles, an album cloaked in nocturnal vibes that talks about a relationship gone bad. Haviah digs deep into her psyche to block out the toxic elements bringing her down, and it makes for some of the most intimate, unflinching bars of her career. At times it feels like a way different look for Haviah, but she fully embraces the dark side, hopefully coming out stronger on the other side.
6. TOBi, ‘Panic'
Label: RCA
Released: October 12
After winning last year’s Juno Award for Best Rap Album, you knew TOBi was going to follow it up with something huge, and he did, even going down to Los Angeles to get it completely right. Panic took a while to finish, and it likely benefitted from TOBi’s attention to detail. It’s a meticulous, sonically rich album, and all the guest appearances really bring something to the table, from jazz legend Phil Ranelin to Atlanta rapper Kenny Mason, who helped TOBi get reach a new audience with “Flatline.”
5. DijahSB, ‘The Flower That Knew’
Label: Lowly
Released: November 17
DijahSB is a naturally funny and charismatic person–see their social feeds and resurrected X account—so it’s not surprising there was lots of humour, reflection, and self-deprecation to mine from their recent 30th birthday. Dijah even observed that the flower theme is one that’s oft-used in album concepts, but in their hands, this groovy release feels fresh and personable. It’s not hard to imagine Dijah’s grace under financial and mental health pressures resonating with Canadian rap fans feeling the inflation blues.
4. Charlotte Cardin, ‘99 Nights'
Label: Cult Nation
Released: August 25
It's sometimes hard to fully fathom just how big Charlotte Cardin is in her home province of Quebec. The follow-up to Phoenix was treated like an event, and the reaction had local fans once again calling the pop singer-songwriter a best-kept secret in the rest of Canada. But Cardin has been making moves internationally, and global dominance appears to be at hand. It helped having an earworm like "Confetti" take immediate hold of listeners, while her collabs with rappers continue to hit their mark. This time, "Enfer" with Skiifall sets the table on 99 Nights.
3. Drake, 'For All The Dogs'
Label: OVO/Republic
Released: October 6
Fans and critics are pretty divided by The Boy’s latest, and there were certainly times it felt like the rollout was more interesting than the music. Now that the dust has settled, For All The Dogs stands as an album with some bloat, but also some undeniable hits, including a collab with J. Cole that finally got him his first Billboard number one, and a surprisingly effective track with Yeat that does that neat trick of merging two audiences that might not necessarily fit together in other contexts. And as a response to the critics asking for bars, he even tacked on a new For All the Dogs Scary Hours Edition with more rapping to satisfy the skeptics.
2. Kaytraminé, ‘Kaytraminé’
Label: CLBN
Released: May 19
Montreal producer Kaytranada has long talked about wanting to produce for other artists even more than he's currently doing, and it's fair to say he's found a perfect partner in Portland rapper Aminé. They’ve got similar floaty, summery vibes, so it’s no surprise Kaytraminé found it way onto countless summer playlists. And neither had to give up their respective styles to do it—this is truly an equal partnership where both deliver some of their best work yet.
1. Daniel Caesar, 'Never Enough'
Label: Republic
Released: April 7
Caesar’s career appeared to be at a crossroads after Case Study 01. The tepid reaction to the release compared to his monster debut Freudian, along with controversial comments online, fractured his fan base and kept him off the grid for longer than expected. But Caesar built his way back up, first with well-received Bieber collab “Peaches,” and then this long-awaited follow-up album. Never Enough captures the spirit of what made Freudian such a knockout when it dropped, but with a little wisdom and weariness added in there. Caesar’s older, and benefitting from the experience, but he hasn’t lost his ability to connect with audiences with penetrating lyrics and gorgeous melodies.