Best of North Carolina Music 2020: A playlist of our favorite releases of the year

By CLTure

December 2, 2020

Usually around this time each year we compile a year-end list of our favorite songs and albums featuring bands and artists we had the pleasure of seeing live in concert. From Hopscotch to Dreamville Festival to MerleFest, North Carolina hosts wide-ranging sounds spanning from Asheville to the Outer Banks. 

Even though we haven’t been able to enjoy a raucous indie rock band at a local venue or an outdoor amphitheatre summer show on a sun-soaked lawn this year, there has been a ton of great music released in 2020. 

Despite its hardships, the pandemic has inspired new appreciation from fans that enjoy the togetherness music can bring. The ongoing social justice issues the world experienced this year also sparked creativity that brought more perspective from much-needed voices. 

The great Nina Simone once said that “An artist’s duty as far as I’m concerned is to reflect the times. I think that is true of painters, sculptors, poets, musicians.” And while the music in our Best of North Carolina playlist may not be as somber as the reality of 2020, the music does reflect the times we live in. 

From Durham’s Sylvan Esso and Young Bull to Winston Salem’s Sonny Miles, Charlotte’s Lute and Anthony Hamilton to Raleigh’s Arson Daily and Chatham County Line, here is our Best of North Carolina 2020 playlist. 

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