Frank Ocean

Hype aside, 2012’s two buzziest hip-hop albums – Jay-Z and Kanye’s self-toasting paean to superfame, 'Watch the Throne', and Tyler, the Creator’s goofy/chilling id-vomit breakthrough, 'Goblin' – share a single factor: Christopher Francis Ocean, the 24-year-old singer-songwriter who guest-croons on each. But even more impressive is 'Nostalgia, Ultra', Ocean's own 2011 LP.