Here Are Apple’s Best of 2016 for Music, Movies and More

While alluding to the deaths this year of such music industry heavyweights as David Bowie and Prince, Apple says that 2016 in music has been “full of life” especially with the biggest songs and albums of the year available on iTunes and Apple Music. And according to Apple’s editorial team for music, the top song of 2016 is “One Dance (feat. Wizkid & Kyla)” by Drake and the top album of 2016 is the very album that song is from, “Views.”

Though it “combines elements of dancehall, Afrobeat, and UK funky,” Apple says of “One Dance,” the song “is, above all, a Drake song: atmospheric, immediate, and hypnotic.” And Apple praises “Views” for being “a sleek and meticulously crafted tour de force from a game-changing MC.”

Drake is no stranger to being celebrated by Apple. In September, the Grammy-winning Canadian rapper scored a major first for Apple Music when “Views,” his latest studio album, became the first album to be streamed over a billion times on Apple’s music streaming service.

It’s also worth noting that Drake stars in the latest commercial for Apple Music.

“When we sat down to choose our favorites of 2016,” Apple says, “we decided to celebrate the films that gripped and delighted us with their clever, original takes on everything from superheroes and musicals to coming-of-age stories, politics, and animation.”

• Best Blockbuster: “Deadpool”
• Best Comedy: “Sausage Party”
• Best Hollywood Romance: “La La Land”
• Best Animated Movie: “Kubo and the Two Strings”
• Best Documentary: “Weiner”
• Best Feel-Good Movie: “Sing Street”
• Breakout Star of the Year: Andrea Arnold, “American Honey”
• Best New Filmmaker: Barry Jenkins, “Moonlight”

In a year of so many great and innovative TV shows, choosing the best of 2016 is no easy task. But Apple has nonetheless come up with a list of some of the year’s most noteworthy shows, “[f]rom fresh, relevant comedies to intricate dramas — and even a drag reality competition.”

• This Year’s Obsession: “American Crime Story”
• Most Though-Provoking: “O.J.: Made in America”
• Late-Night Rule-Breaker: “Full Frontal with Samantha Bee”
• Best New Comedy: “Atlanta”
• Most Original Kids Show: “Steven Universe”
• Extravaganza of the Year: “RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars”
• Most Consistently Great: “The Americans”
• Best New Drama: “This Is Us”

In 2016, for the first time since it began supporting podcasts, Apple passed 10 billion podcast downloads and streams in a single year. So it’s only fitting for the company to celebrate the productions that made 2016 such a remarkable year for podcasts. Here are its favorites:

• Revisionist History
• How I Built This
• In the Dark
• Jocko Podcast
• Anna Faris Is Unqualified
• NPR Politics Podcast
• My Favorite Murder with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark
• 2 Dope Queens
• Accused
• FiveThirtyEight Politics
• Heavyweight
• Pardon My Take

With regard to books, Apple notes that the best of 2016 “weren’t afraid to grapple with deeply challenging topics like racism, the lack of affordable housing, and depression” while saying that each of its picks is “a brilliant ray of light.”

• Novel of the Year: “Moonglow” by Michael Chabon
• Nonfiction of the Year: “Evicted” by Matthew Desmond
• YA Novel of the Year: “If I Was Your Girl” by Meredith Russo
• Debut of the Year: “Homegoing” by Yaa Gyasi
• Mystery: “Charcoal Joe” by Walter Mosley
• Thriller: “Behind Closed Doors” by B A Paris
• Popular Fiction: “Sweetbitter” by Stephanie Danler
• Literary Fiction: “What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours” by Helen Oyeyemi
• Memoir: “Born to Run” by Bruce Springsteen
• History: “Dark Money” by Jane Mayer
• Romance: “Beautiful Burn: A Novel” by Jamie McGuire
• Science Fiction: “A Closed and Common Orbit” by Becky Chambers
• Fantasy: “The Fate of the Tearling” by Erika Johansen
• Kids: “Raymie Nightingale” by Kate DiCamillo
• Cookbook: “Everything I Want to Eat” by Jessica Koslow
• Graphic Novel: “March: Book Three” by John Lewis