Jay Rock & H.E.R React To Making Obama's 2018 Favorite Songs List

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Jay Rock performs onstage during the 2018 Made In America Festival - Day 2 at Benjamin Franklin Parkway on September 2, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Jay Rock and H.E.R are ecstatic over the recognition.

Barack Obama recently shared his list of favorite songs, movies, and books of the year. The former president has a healthy balance of all sorts of music. He's previously included artists like Jay-Z and SZA on the list -- the former made it again alongside Beyonce as The Carters -- but what may have shocked many was his pick of Jay Rock and H.E.R. While the two artists had a big year in 2018, to be included on Obama's year-end list of his favorite songs is a major accomplishment. Both Jay Rock and H.E.R took to Instagram to share their excitement.

Kendrick Lamar previously made Obama's favorite songs list of 2017 with "HUMBLE." but this year, he appears on the playlist alongside Jay Rock. Obama dubbed "Wow Freestyle" as one of his favorite songs of the year. Rock shared a screenshot of Obama's list on his Instagram, captioning the post, "WOW!!!! I appreciate the love Mr President @barackobama !!!"

H.E.R. also shared a screenshot of Obama's list on Instagram and thanked the president for the inclusion of her song "Could've Been" ft. Bryson Tiller. "Look mama i made it 😩 thank you @barackobama," she wrote. 

Obama's playlist also contained Chance The Rapper and Joey Purp's "My Own Thing," J. Cole's "Kevin Heart," Cardi B's "I Like It" ft. J Balvin and Bad Bunny, Khalid & Normani's "Love Lies," and The Carters' "Apeshit."


About The Author
Aron A. is a features editor for HotNewHipHop. Beginning his tenure at HotNewHipHop in July 2017, he has comprehensively documented the biggest stories in the culture over the past few years. Throughout his time, Aron’s helped introduce a number of buzzing up-and-coming artists to our audience, identifying regional trends and highlighting hip-hop from across the globe. As a Canadian-based music journalist, he has also made a concerted effort to put spotlights on artists hailing from North of the border as part of Rise & Grind, the weekly interview series that he created and launched in 2021. Aron also broke a number of stories through his extensive interviews with beloved figures in the culture. These include industry vets (Quality Control co-founder Kevin "Coach K" Lee, Wayno Clark), definitive producers (DJ Paul, Hit-Boy, Zaytoven), cultural disruptors (Soulja Boy), lyrical heavyweights (Pusha T, Styles P, Danny Brown), cultural pioneers (Dapper Dan, Big Daddy Kane), and the next generation of stars (Lil Durk, Latto, Fivio Foreign, Denzel Curry). Aron also penned cover stories with the likes of Rick Ross, Central Cee, Moneybagg Yo, Vince Staples, and Bobby Shmurda.
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