Jon Pareles Jon Caramanica and Lindsay Zoladz

Our critics on 10 new holiday albums from Cher, Robert Glasper, Sabrina Carpenter and more.

Seventy-one tracks that asked big questions, found new kinship between genres and helped us see the good in Ken.

Many of the LPs that made an impact this year, including SZA’s “SOS” and Olivia Rodrigo’s “Guts,” came from looking inward.

The most effective artists of the year weren’t afraid to root around deep inside and boldly share the messiness, the complexities and the beauty of...