2022
101 top tracks
discovery
When Lo-Fi Grooves Met Funk and Soul
This year opened a new vein: soul. Lo-fi beats (10.7%) rose to dominance, jazz funk surged to 9.3%, and new genres—classic soul, northern soul, soul blues, jazz rap—replaced nu jazz, downtempo, and lounge. Emapea anchored the year with 25 tracks of understated groove, Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio supplied Hammond fusion (12 tracks), and Syl Johnson brought vocal warmth (8 tracks). The fading of cool abstraction for tangible warmth marked genuine discovery—the listener found soul.
▶︎ Open “Your Top Songs 2022” ↗︎
Top tracks101
your top songs 2022
Distinct genres69
across the list
Sound of the yearlo-fi beats
most-weighted genre
Most-played artistEmapea
by track count
Top genres · what the year sounded like
lo-fi beats10.7%
The production grammar, now the dominant sound rather than supporting framework.
jazz funk9.3%
Groove and swing indivisible; the year's beating heart where rhythm becomes palpable.
jazz rap8.6%
A new arrival bringing rhythmic urgency and storytelling clarity to jazz breaks.
jazz beats8.3%
Hypnotic and minimal, the sonic vessel containing everything above.
funk7.7%
Pure groove essence; where all listening paths converge.
Most-played artists · by tracks in the list
Emapea25 tracks
The year's custodian of understated groove; the lo-fi architect who shaped the sound with 25 tracks.
Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio12 tracks
Hammond funk-soul fusion made palpable; where lo-fi beats find their living, breathing ensemble.
Syl Johnson8 tracks
Deep soul and R&B classicist whose vocal warmth anchored the turn inward with 8 tracks.
Paul Desmond2 tracks
Cool-toned saxophonist, a lingering echo of the era before the warmth with 2 essential tracks.
The Neville Brothers2 tracks
All Day Breakfast Cafe1 track
What changed · vs 2021
Newjazz rapfunkclassic soulnorthern soulsoul blues
Climbingnorthern soul 89→9classic soul 36→7jazz rap 25→3funk 16→5jazz beats 11→4soul 12→6
Fadednu jazzdowntemporetro soulindie jazzlounge
From 2021's cool nu-jazz into soul and funk: northern soul, classic soul, jazz rap surged while nu jazz, downtempo, lounge faded—a turn from abstraction toward felt groove.
The arc · 2014 → 2025
2014neoclassical·2015soundtrack·2016ambient·2017downtempo·2018trip hop·2019trip-hop·2020nu jazz·2021nu jazz·2022lo-fi beats·2023soundtrack·2024soundtrack·2025retro soul
The hinge between nine years of cool electronica (2014–21) and the soul warmth that will dominate by 2025; 2022 discovered the grooviest, funkiest room in the house.