The conversation around music has never been as expansive and exciting as it has been in 2019. Pop resembled R&B and rap resembled pop, while Latin music became much, much bigger than Latin America: Artists weren’t dismantling conventions and boundaries this year so much as they were completely ignoring them, conjuring vital new sounds in the process. Billie Eilish made us simultaneously reconsider the definitions of pop and alternative, and Lil Nas X rode his horse down “Old Town Road” all the way to the top of the charts. Daddy Yankee and Snow staged a surprise comeback on “Con Calma," while Ed Sheeran pitched an enormous tent for No.6 Collaborations Project, inviting everyone from Cardi B to Chris Stapleton, H.E.R. to Eminem to Travis Scott and Justin Bieber. Canadians were deeply involved in the dialogue—whether with the sustained impact of Drake, Shawn Mendes, and Alessia Cara on the pop world or as acts like Jessie Reyez and Ali Gatie began asserting their dominance. And if you couldn’t get enough of fashion-forward cowboys, the masked Orville Peck helped redefine what constitutes indie rock with his aching country croon. Hip-hop’s limits were pushed as well as Toronto’s Haviah Mighty took home the Polaris Music Prize and Francophone artists Loud, Koriass, and FouKi cemented Quebec’s status as a rap hotbed. Relive all of these moments and movements—across all genres and with artists from around the world—through this exclusive playlist of our picks for best of the year. Spot your favourites, and discover your future favourites—if you hear something you like, add it to your library.