The ultimate 2016 playlist, featuring everyone from Anderson .Paak to Young Thug.

Over the past 12 months, we have got accustomed to losing. We have lost Messrs David Bowie, Muhammed Ali, Leonard Cohen and Rogers Nelson, giants who shaped the cultural and sartorial identity of every modern male worth their salt. In Britain, we lost our place in Europe twice in one week – firstly thanks to Brexit and then thanks to the Icelandic national football team. We have seen the US divided over their presidential election. We have shouted into Facebook echo chambers for collective therapy and emerged more lost and confused than before. It’s little wonder many are calling 2016 the worst year ever.

I, too, think it’s been a bit of a shocker. But I’ve also become tired of crying into filter bubbles only to get a bucket of my own tears emptied on my head. Maybe I’m still tipsy from all that eggnog, but as Christmas approaches, I’m consciously choosing to end 2016 by focusing on something amazing it has given us – new music.

It’s easy for us to overlook it in the face of such bleakness, but this year has produced some of the most innovative songs and albums in recent memory. So, as a well-deserved treat for all of our readers, I’ve waded through 12 months of albums, EPs and singles, and compiled a mammoth playlist of MR PORTER’s 100 favourite tracks of the year.

They aren’t ranked in order of preference, but are presented alphabetically by artist. From chart toppers and trap rappers, to niche avant-classical composers and experimental electronica, these are the artists who kept us going in 2016. I hope this playlist fills you up with optimism for 2017 and beyond. And more than anything, I hope it brings a smile to your face.