Here are our Staff Picks for 2016 (feel free to argue about your faves)...
Amber - Midday Host, Assistant Program Director. Weekdays 10-3
Top Song #1: Phantogram - You Don't Get Me High Anymore
Top Song #2: Glass Animals - Life Itself
Top Song #3: Miike Snow - Genghis Khan
Top Song #4: Judah & the Lion - Take it All Back
Top Song #5: Frightened Rabbit - Get Out
Honorable Mention: Phantogram - Same Old Blues
Best Album of 2016: Glass Animals - How to Be a Human Being
Artist of Year for 2016: Phantogram
Best New Artist of 2016: Judah & The Lion
Favorite Philly Area Band/Artist: The Districts
Favorite Concert/Show of 2016: Glass Animals @The Fillmore
Favorite Radio 104.5 Block Party of the Summer: CHVRCHES/Miike Snow
Best Philly Area Concert/Show Venue: The Fillmore
Most Anticipated Album for 2017: The National
Best Radio 104.5 Studio Session of 2016: Band of Horses
Favorite Band/Artist to follow on Instagram: Michael Stipe @michaelstipe
Most Overlooked Artist of 2016: Frightened Rabbit
Mike Jones - Afternoon Drive, 3-7
Top Song #1: Green Day - Bang Bang
Top Song #2: Weezer - King of the World
Top Song #3: Blink-182 - Bored to Death
Top Song #4: Bishop Briggs - River
Top Song #5: Bastille - Good Grief
Honorable Mention: Blink-182 - Built This Pool
Best Album of 2016: Green Day - Revolution Radio
Most Disappointing Album of 2016: Lumineers - Cleopatra
Artist of Year for 2016: Blink-182
Best NEW Artist of 2016: Bishop Briggs
Best Music Video of 2016: Red Hot Chili Peppers - Go Robot
Favorite Philly Area Band/Artist: The Loud Company
Favorite Concert/Show of 2016: Radio 104.5 Birthday Show Night One - Honorable Mention to Green Day
Favorite Radio 104.5 Block Party of the Summer: August with The Struts/Bishop Briggs
Best Philly Area Concert/Show Venue: Electric Factory
Artist/Band You Hope Takes A Long Break in 2017: Kanye West
Most Anticipated Album for 2017: Andrew McMahon, Bleachers, 311, Linkin Park
Best Radio 104.5 Studio Session of 2016: Weezer
Favorite App: Amazon / WWE
Favorite Band/Artist to follow on Twitter: Twenty One Pilots
Favorite Band/Artist to follow on Instagram: Jack Antonoff (except for his Mets shirt)
Favorite Band/Artist to follow on Snapchat: The Struts
Most Overlooked Artist of 2016: Catfish and the Bottlemen
Jessie - Nights/New Music Show
Top Song #1: Lewis Del Mar - Loud(Y)
Top Song #2: Red Hot Chili Peppers - Goodbye Angels (RIP Scott Weiland)
Top Song #3: Kaleo - Way Down We Go
Top Song #4: Judah & The Lion - Take It All Back
Top Song #5: Mumford & Sons - There Will Be Time - TIED with The Head and the Heart - All We Ever Knew TIED with The Claypool Lennon Delirium - Mr. Wright
Honorable Mention: Jagwar Ma - Give Me a Reason (7 minutes of schleft & schright and schleft & schriiight)
Best Album of 2016: The Claypool Lennon Delirium - Monolith of Phobos & Red Hot Chili Peppers - The Getaway
Most Disappointing Album of 2016: M83 - Junk
Artist of Year for 2016: Blink-182 !!! What a comeback story!
Best NEW Artist of 2016: Nothing But Thieves, Kaleo, The Struts, Lewis Del Mar... (This is impossible to choose just one. I feel like Bowie blessed us with incredible new talent as he voyaged back to the stars.)
Best Music Video of 2016: I didn't really watch any tbh
Favorite Philly Area Band/Artist: The HOOTERS hUN!!
Favorite Concert/Show of 2016: Green Day at Tower
Favorite Radio 104.5 Block Party of the Summer: The Struts!
Best Philly Area Concert/Show Venue: The Fillmore
Artist/Band You Hope Takes A Long Break in 2017: Not sure..no one really annoyed me too much this year!! :D
Most Anticipated Album for 2017: Incubus
Best Radio 104.5 Studio Session of 2016: The Struts (both times they visited!)
Favorite App: Headspace
Favorite Band/Artist to follow on Twitter: @KONGOS and @garykongos
Favorite Band/Artist to follow on Instagram: Brandon Boyd
Favorite Band/Artist to follow on Snapchat: Matt & Kim ....(caution: NSFW)
Most Overlooked Artist of 2016: Lewis Del Mar
Cole - Music News/Blogger
Top Song #1: Miike Snow - Heart is Full
Top Song #2: Judah & the Lion - Stockholm
Top Song #3: Panic! At the Disco - LA Devotee
Top Song #4: Blink-182 - Left Alone
Top Song #5: Jack Garratt - Worry
Honorable Mention: Taking Back Sunday - Fences
Best Album of 2016: Jimmy Eat World - Integrity Blues
Most Disappointing Album of 2016: Red Hot Chili Peppers - The Getaway
Artist of The Year for 2016: Blink-182
Best New Artist of 2016: Jack Garratt
Best Music Video of 2016: Miike Snow - Genghis Khan
Favorite Philly area Band/Artist: TIE: Sonnder/Civil Youth
Favorite Concert/Show of 2016: Weezer/Panic! At the Disco/Andrew McMahon
Favorite Radio 104.5 Summer Block Party of 2016: September with CHVRCHES, Miike Snow and the Griswolds
Best Philly Area Concert/Show Venue: The TLA
Most Anticipated Album for 2017: Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness
Best Radio 104.5 Studio Session of 2016: Weezer
Most Overlooked Artist of 2016: Jack Garratt
Josh - Sundays, 10a-6p
Top Song #1: Twenty One Pilots - Ride
Top Song #2: Twenty One Pilots - Heathens
Top Song #3: Green Day - Bang Bang
Top Song #4: Kings of Leon - Waste a Moment
Top Song #5: The Struts - Kiss This
Honorable Mention: Fitz and the Tantrums - Handclap
Best Album of 2016: The Struts - Everyone Wants
Most Disappointing Album of 2016: The Lumineers - Cleopatra
Artist of The Year for 2016: Twenty One Pilots
Best New Artist of 2016: The Struts
Best Music Video of 2016: Blink-182 - She's Out of Her Mind
Favorite Philly area Band/Artist: Run River North
Favorite Concert/Show of 2016: Radio 104.5 Birthday Show Night One (Twenty One Pilots) / Green Day at the Tower
Favorite Radio 104.5 Summer Block Party of 2016: August - The Struts/Bishop Briggs
Best Philly Area Concert/Show Venue: The Fillmore
Artist/Band You Hope Takes A Long Break in 2017: Florence + the Machine
Most Anticipated Album for 2017: Linkin Park / Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness - Zombies on Broadway
Best Radio 104.5 Studio Session of 2016: Weezer
Favorite App: iHeartRadio
Favorite Band/Artist to follow on Twitter: Phantogram
Favorite Band/Artist to follow on Instagram: Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness
Favorite Band/Artist to follow on Snapchat: Jared Leto
Most Overlooked Artist of 2016: The Head and the Heart
Trish - Digital/Photo/Video
Top Song #1: The Head and the Heart - All We Ever Knew - this song really got under my skin esp with what happened with Josiah
Top Song #2: Bishop Briggs - River
Top Song #3: Miike Snow - Heart is Full
Top Song #4: Lumineers - Cleopatra
Top Song #5: CHVRCHES - Bury It
Honorable Mention: Warpaint - New Song / King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard - Nuclear Fusion
Best Album of 2016: Leonard Cohen - You Want it Darker (RIP, wow, what an album to go out with) but lots of other good ones
Most Disappointing Album of 2016: I wanted to like Jagwar Ma - Every Now and Then more, but couldn't get into it except for a few songs.
Artist of the Year for 2016: The Lumineers
Best New Artist of 2016: Bishop Briggs
Favorite Concert/Show of 2016: Jimmy Eat World at our Movember Gala was pretty sweet and intimate
Favorite Philly area Band/Artist: Gonna shout out Ben Arnold for his Lost Keys album performed live and Mannequin Pussy
Favorite Radio 104.5 Block Party of the Summer: TIE: The Struts/Bishop Briggs and CHVRCHES/Miike Snow satisfying both the rock and dancey sides of my personality
Best Philly Area Concert/Show Venue: Radio 104.5 Performance Studio! but outside of that Union Transfer
Artist/Band You Hope Takes A Long Break in 2017: I love them but think maybe Twenty One Pilots needs a little month or two vacation to write new songs and sleep for a week straight, but they probably won't take it and that's why we love them
Most Anticipated Album for 2017: Jesus and Mary Chain probably ... MGMT? Tame Impala? Hozier? Airborne Toxic Event?
Best Radio 104.5 Studio Session of 2016: Where do I begin - so many good ones. Weezer, The Struts, Bishop Briggs, Band of Horses, Plus The Fame Riot were hilarious and a total surprise
Favorite App: Back in love with Hipstamatic since they added double exposures! Hon Mention: Instagram, OSnap! Pro for timelapse action
Favorite Band/Artist to follow on Instagram: Ben Gibbard's trail running exploits. Nice mountains!
Most Overlooked Artist of 2016: I'm probably overlooking them right now! Maybe The 1975 or King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard
Reed Streets - Saturday Night Mixtape Live (10-12) and Events DJ
Top Song #1: Phantogram - You're Mine
Top Song #2: The 1975 - The Sound
Top Song #3: The XX - On Hold
Top Song #4: Chance the Rapper - All Night
Top Song #5: Flume - Never Be Like You
Honorable Mention: Miike Snow - My Trigger, Glass Animals - Life Itself, Grouplove - Welcome To Your Life, ATCQ - We The People, Miami Horror - Real Slow, St. Lucia - Dancing On Glass
Best Album of 2016: Phantogram - Three
Most Disappointing Album of 2016: Two Door Cinema Club - Gameshow
Best New Artist of 2016: Great Good Fine OK
Best Music Video of 2016: The Chemical Brothers ft. Beck - Wide Open
Favorite Philly area Band/Artist: Vacationer
Favorite Concert/Show of 2016: Birthday Shows
Favorite Radio 104.5 Summer Block Party of 2016: The Struts
Best Philly Area Concert/Show Venue: Foundry (Fillmore)
Artist/Band You Hope Takes A Long Break in 2017: Corey Feldman
Most Anticipated Album for 2017: Vampire Weekend
Best Radio 104.5 Studio Session of 2016: Catfish and the Bottlemen
Favorite Band/Artist to follow on Instagram: Matt & Kim
Jeff Moore - Sales Manager
Top Song #1: Cold War Kids - First
Top Song #2: Cage the Elephant - Trouble
Top Song #3: Bastille - Good Grief
Top Song #4: Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness- High Dive
Top Song #5: Lumineers - Ophelia
Honorable Mention: Judah & The Lion - Take it All Back
Best Album of 2016: Bastille - Wild World
Best New Artist of 2016: Judah & The Lion
Favorite Philly area Band/Artist: Foxtrot and the Getdown
Favorite Concert/Show of 2016: Panic! and Andrew McMahon
Best Philly Area Concert/Show Venue: Fillmore
Best Radio 104.5 Studio Session of 2016: Twenty One Pilots
Favorite Band/Artist to follow on Twitter: Bastille