17 For 17: The Records We’re Most Excited About This Year

US R&B maestro Justin Timberlake has spent much of the last decade focusing on his acting as well as his music career. His starring vocal role in DreamWorks animation Trolls was his most recent venture, in which he won a Golden Globe for soundtrack song "Can't Stop The Feeling".

In October last year he discussed following up 2013's neo-soul double album The 20/20 Experience, saying what he's written so far will "punch you right between the eyes". Other interviews have seen him discuss his Tennessee and country music roots, leading to speculation of a departure from his R&B past.

- Charlotte Krol

Drake just doesn’t quit! Having dominated 2016 with his fourth studio album Views, the Canadian rapper is gearing up to release more music this year – with the delayed More Life project due at some point.­ The release will contain new music from the man himself but is also expected to feature others on his record label, OVO, though who will feature and exactly what shape the playlist project will take is still unknown.

The rumour mill is in full gear for this one, with some sources pointing towards the man dropping 2 or even 3 records in 2017.

Five years on from Cruel Summer, it looks like – and of course nothing is predictable in the world of Kanye West – we can expect GOOD Music’s Cruel Winter to drop sometime this year.

With a roster packed full of ridiculously talented artists, the chances of Cruel Winter being an incredible compilation are as high as they are for it being a complete mess. Either way, the results will be fascinating and gone over with a fine toothcomb by every single music writer.

We’ve already heard “Champions” featuring Kanye, Gucci Mane, Big Sean, 2 Chainz and Travis Scott and that wasn’t a disaster. Kanye has promised a 12-15 minute version featuring every GOOD Music artist, which is a brave move considering the talent at his disposal.

BUT, given that GOOD Music can call on President Pusha T, Teyana Taylor, Tyga, Migos and John Legend it’s surely inconceivable that Cruel Winter would fail us.

- Andy Hannah

Hopeless romantic Jens Lekman will finally release his latest studio album in 2017, five years on from I Know What Love Isn’t.

With Life Will See You Now, we don't expect him to have re-invented the wheel in that time, though. We know what we want from Jens, and he knows how to give us exactly that: Poetic, soulful and swooning songs perfectly constructed from either simple acoustic guitar or sweeping orchestration – nothing more, nothing less, but utterly perfect.

Lekman revealed in August 2016 that the new album was 99% done – in the midst of a project which saw him writing a song a week - and with a UK tour scheduled for April we can expect the LP to drop around that time. It’s unlikely we’ll find Lekman returning to a heavy use of samples (we think they'll still sneak in) but it could be an eclectic record peppered with the spontaneity he found on the “song a week” project. Whatever it is, it will be one of 2017’s loveliest experiences.

- Andy Hannah

New Zealand's pop prodigy Ella Marija Lani Yelich-O'Connor, aka Lorde, made a huge impact with her debut single "Royals" in summer 2013. The then 16-year-old was praised for her insightful lyricism on wealth and materialism, topping many album charts worldwide and later landing a Grammy for Song of the Year in 2014. No music has since followed save for "Yellow Flicker Beat" for The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 soundtrack but her Coachella announcement points towards that much-anticipated second album.

- Charlotte Krol