Here’s a lowdown of visual and musical awesomeness from the past year.

When I heard Grimes for the first time, I thought it was a reincarnation of Cibo Mato albeit lighter, rolled up into a more stargaze joint rather than trip-hop. I imagined her to be Korean or Japanese, about 5’5 and cute as Shibuya. I was right about the latter. So, when this video came out , it was like seeing Eminem rap for the first time. But in any case, this video is fantastic. And it introduced Grimes to the world.

This video is just ignorant to the very bare bones of what social taboos are. Trinidad James expresses all pop culture references in one ghetto fabulous music video. In a world where everything is viral, Mr. James shouts out into his lyrics all there is to know about current social media, from hipsters, to hype beasts and Instagram and highlighted hip-hop’s new favorite drug–the Molly. This stint gave Trinidad a record deal and everybody yelling “Pop the Molly, I’m Sweatin! ” straight to the countdown.

Die Antwoord + Face Paint + South Africa = Just watch it.

Danny Brown is one of my new favorite rappers. Reminding me of people like Ol’ Dirty Bastard and a mix of the Pharcyde, and all that classic hip-hop. For one thing, he’s crazy and crazy-looking. From concept to the music, this is one of my favorite videos of 2012.

The best birthday song to come out since 50 Cent’s “In Da Club” (insert L.O.L. hear). This birthday has everything you would actually want in a kid’s birthday party. Big booty, clowns, color, squares, an indian man dancing while drinking a 40 .oz and more booty. From time to time now, “When I die, bury me inside the Louis Store!” lingers in my head while stuck in high way traffic.

MIA, how we missed you. And in 2012 she came back strong with 3-wheel wheelies with taliban warriors dancing behind her. There was no one badder than MIA at that point.

Beyonce may have the Grammy’s, the Hova and the Hova’s baby, but there is no doubt that Solange is the cooler of the two Knowles sisters. This video is a pastel-colored tribute partly inspired by Italian photographer Daniele Tamagnis book Gentleman of Bacongo, which documents the Le Sape Society (“Society for the Advancement of People of Elegance”). To top it off the video was shot in Cape Town, South Africa and shows how you can have fun any day and where you please…Even if you’re “losing (him / her) for good”. FML tears slowly drip from eyes.

This is just pure ecstasy. Just. Press. Play.

This video introduced G.O.O.D. music into the foray of main stream hip-hop and into popular culture. All individuals in the video have gone and built their own personal legacies before and right after this video, every one of them just kept hitting milestones for the next 6 months. This also reintroduced the Lamborghini Merciullago to a younger audience who will never be able to afford it. Unless they work really really REALLY hard for it. This song encompasses what supreme excellence for 2012 could look like in DONDA’s eyes.

All the dub and all the fun times and energy packed into one fun video beautifully shot in Kingston, Jamaica. In 2012 there were a ton of collaborations, and one of the best was Major Lazer collaborating with Amber of The Dirty Projects. This list was made with both travelling and partying in mind, and this is why this video makes the list.