Sep 17, 2017 This portion of the list is a little more modern. There’ve been some great albums released this decade and a handful of them fell from 79-70. I’ve noticed that there’s a big time bias in this list. Breathing time is a big contributor to the rankings, which is why more recent albums tend to be further down the list, but may over time creep upwards. Like I said before, I want this list to keep evolving, none of the ratings are set in stone. So let’s see how it goes. For now, here’s 79-70. 79. [2011] God’s Father - Lil B Lil B is a rap deity in the pantheons of the greats. And the 37 track spectacle that is God’s Father is his holy testament. Though daunting in it’s length, BasedGod manages to keep things interesting all the way through its 2-hour runtime. There’s deep philosophical ramblings (Pain), there’s stories about his life and career (Secret Obsession), there’s 80’s pop sampled hooks (Buss ‘em 4 Points), there’s even a song dedicated to hip hop itself (Real Hip Hop 2012). The production on God’s Father is astounding in its versatility. Deep a--- Thoughts features a beautiful water-trickling-down-a-lake guitar, SF Mission Music plays out over a somber piano loop, I Own Swag is a classic hyphy-fest. I’m not sure if BasedGod produced this entire project himself (maybe someone can enlighten me?) but either way, it’s diverse set of instrumnetals is one of it’s many strengths. As a rapper, Lil B has never sounded better. He’s witty, ebullient, hilarious and sharp. You can play this again and again and keep finding new things. If you haven’t jumped onboard the BasedGod hype-wagon yet, this is the perfect place to start (or better yet, his latest Black Ken mixtape). ya feel me? Best song: I Own Swag 78. [2016] Still Brazy - YG Who woulda thought that the guy behind Toot It and Boot It would have single-handedly resurrected traditional West-Coast gangsta rap? And all without Dre at his side? My Krazy Life was phenomenal but many a critic felt that Still Brazy was even better. FDT is an anthem. My American politics are a bit hazy but I’m pretty sure if Hillary played FDT on the campaign trail, we wouldn’t be facing nuclear holocaust today. One can dream. Twist My Fingaz must be one of the best songs to come out of Compton since the early 90’s. Who Shot Me is a standout as YG ticks off his possible well-wishers. The instrumentals on songs like Bool, Balm and Bollective and She Wish She Was are dripping in those thick, juicy Mustard-esque ratchet sounds (though Mustard is notably absent throughout) and the guest appearances from Drake, Wayne and Kamiyah are all on point. Best song: Twist My Fingaz 77. [2011] LiveLoveA$AP - A$AP Rocky Rocky is severely underrated. I always see those WorldStar and HipHopDX Twitter and IG posts with a picture of Kendrick, J. Cole, Drake and even sometimes Logic, proclaiming them the greats of the current generation. But never Rocky. I remember hearing Purple Swag back in 2011 and then downloading and listening to Rocky’s debut mixtape - LiveLoveA$AP and being absolutely blown away from the first instant the first song started. A hybrid of Bone Thugs and OutKast, stewed in the sounds of Houston and NY, Rocky grabs your attention from the first track Palace backed by an epic instrumental courtesy of Clams Casino (who also contributes his signature spaced-out, moody sounds to the mournful Demons, amongst others). Rocky’s no slouch on the mic, but his flow is his strongest point, building up to triple cadences and then simmering down to screwed-up refrains. The atmosphere of this project is oozing with a murky, cloudy feel, almost desolate in sound. There’s appearances from fellow A$AP mob affiliates, most of which are solid but Rocky’s the star of the show throughout. Rocky’s a potential top 3 artist of the current decade, no question about it. I’m looking very forward to his 4th project later this year. Best Song: Palace 76. [2006] Like Father, Like Son - Lil Wayne & Birdman Say what you will about the head-tatted, put-some-respek-on-my-name Birdman but the man knows talent when he see’s it. And he knows how to capitalize on it. With Wayne at the absolute pinnacle of his creative output, Birdman saw fit to produce and release Like Father, Like Son, a collaborative album from father and (adopted) son. The album is dotted with skits featuring Mafia spoken word tangents about loyalty, respect and family and the album follows that theme to an extent, though Wayne is leagues above his adoptive father. That being said, Baby manages to hold his own and the contrast between his monotone drawl and Wayne’s off-the-wall delivery makes for entertaining stuff. And of course, Wayne is in top form - right in the midst of his legendary mixtape run. “understand the rap game is my court”. Sure, the runtime could have been cut a little shorter but overall and overall the project runs more like a 00’s mixtape, rather than an album but nevertheless, the duo know their strengths and stick to them. Over Here Hustling is the grandiose opening, Stunting Like My Daddy the big first single, Know What I’m Doing, the star-studded collaboration with a T-Pain hook and Army Gunz a punchline-fest. I wouldn’t call the shining pinnacle of Wayne’s career but its really fun to listen to, another notch in his epic mid 00’s run. Best song: You Ain’t Know 75. [2012] Finally Rich - Chief Keef At the age of 17, Chief Sosa completely revolutionized the game. Thats younger than Nas when he dropped Illmatic. Sosa’s only 22 now and he’s still making incredible music but his debut album still stands as his best collection of songs thus far (Back from the Dead 2 is a close second in my humble opinion). With a handful of big-name guest appearances, a co-sign from fellow Chicagoan Kanye, Chief Keef blew up overnight and his debut album, Finally Rich cemented his place for years to come. The infectiousness of rhythmic, chant-like hooks on songs like Love Sosa, I Don’t Like and Hate Bein’ Sober can still be heard in much of today’s rap, as can the dark and deep, hi-hat rattling sound procured by Young Chop and co. The closing title track, Finally Rich is a triumphant and gleeful ode to O-Block, and encapsulates the theme of the album to the T - “I know I’m finally rich, but ain’t a d--- thang gonna change”. Chief Keef’s evolution from this album to his latest works has been incredible, he’s developed as a song-writer, lyricist and especially as a producer but his debut still stands as his best. b--- b---. Best song: Love Sosa 74. [2015] DS2 - Future “Long live A$AP Yams, I’m on that codeine right now” I was actually really disappointed by Future’s latest Future/Hndrxx albums. Besides a handful of highlights, Future was just a beefed up version of EVOL, and Hndrxx just didn’t really appeal to me (I always preferred the post-Monster Future to the Pluto-era Future). DS2 falls squarely into the post-Monster era, a syrupy, smoky, codeine-drenched trip into the lean-soaked chasms of Future’s world, the polished cherry on top after the phenomenal 3-peat of Monster, 56 Nights and Beast Mode. Metro Boomin is probably my favorite producer of the present decade and his work on DS2 stands as some of his best work yet, perfecting the sounds of ATL-trap whether on the monstrous booming anthem Groupies or the mournful, ethereal Blood on the Money. Thought It Was A Drought is an exemplary re-introduction to Future, for new fans and old. Surely “I just f----- your b---- in some Gucci flip flops” stands amongst the greatest opening lines to a rap album of all time? There are almost no weak points throughout the entire (deluxe version) 18-song track list. More of a sequel to Monster, than to the original 2011 Dirty Sprite, Future switches effortlessly from crooning his heart out about Rich Sex, being back on the block on Stick Talk or conceding to his own demons on Slave Master. DS2’s atmosphere is heavy, immense and Future carries almost the entire thing on his back (save for the sole Drake guest appearance). I think it’s fair to say Future hasn’t put out a project as good since (though an argument can definitely be made for Hndrxx). Best song: Slave Master 73. [2015] I Don’t Like s---, I Don’t Go Outside: An Album By Earl Sweatshirt - Earl Sweatshirt I really enjoyed Earl’s first two projects - 2010’s, self-titled Earl (which he released at the age of 16) and 2013’s Doris. But something was missing from both of those projects. IDLSIDGO doesn’t attempt to make up for the shortcomings of his previous 2 efforts but rather strips everything down to the bones, a brief 30-minute, 10 track album that is by far the the darkest, most dense and depressing thing to ever come out of the Odd-Future camp (although Tyler and co are notably missing here). First of all - the production on this album (almost entirely self-produced) is so dense and claustrophobic, an impenetrable, thick layer of rough-hewn cuts that seem to flow together without any semblance of progression; it’s more like one whole 30-minute song. The tracks are short and concise but stuffed to the brim with dark and devilish content, all delivered without a f--- to give and only briefly breaking off into short hooks or refrains. No song sticks to an exact topic, Earl twists and turns between themes of his parents (Faucet), relationships (Manrta), drugs (AM//Radio) and the situation he faced when his mother sent him off to Samoa, resulting in him missing out on Odd Future’s initial successes (Inside). For the most part though, everything seems to clump together in a congealed mass.The instrumental on Grief is barely an instrumental at all, just a thrumming bass line with sparse drum-claps, and Earl matches the tempo, somber, paranoid and dark as f---. This album’s certainly not for everyone but even if the dark atmosphere doesn’t appeal to you, there’s no denying Earl’s talent as both a producer and lyricist, IDLSIDGO is his best work by far and I’m very interested to see what he offers next. Best Song: Off Top 72. [2012] Life Is Good - Nas If you didn’t know, Nas is my favorite rapper of all time and he appears a lot on this list. I even enjoy some of his less acclaimed albums (Street’s Disciple was fire). Life Is Good is Nas’ 10th solo LP, the only one of his solo albums to be released this decade. The term ‘Grown Man Rap’ has been thrown around a lot recently, (especially after Jay’s 4:44) but I think it would be fair to say that Nas was one of the first to bring the term to the fore, with the release of this album. Nas isn’t looking through his project window anymore, he’s a wildly successful 40+ year old man, hailed as one of the greatest rappers of all time. Nas has always had a knack for the poetic, injecting imagery, similes and metaphors into his bars, describing the world around him and on Life Is Good he does just that. There’s a lot of content to cover since his previous solo album 4 year prior - his marriage (and subsequent divorce) to Kelis, his daughter growing up and the state of his own career since his legendary debut. No Introduction covers all that and more, the perfect opener over Justice League’s typically luscious and triumphant-sounding instrumental. Loco Motive sounds like it could have slotted right onto Illmatic, while The Don modernizes the Nas sound without sacrificing his razor-sharp mic skills (which are just as an intact as they were 20-odd years ago). Songs like A Queen’s Story and Back When showcase Nas’ tremendous talent; Nas has never had much of an ear for beats but here they suit the context - brash and powerful (Accident Murderers) or jazzy and laid back (Stay) when needed. Not Nas’ greatest but a strong performance from one of hip hops’ greats and who knows? maybe a blueprint for ‘grown man rap’, as stars begin from the era of Nas begin to age. Best song: Loco-Motive 71. [2000] Let’s Get Free - dead prez dead prez’s breakout single Hip Hop was such a massive smash hit that it completely outshined the album it appeared on, in fact it even out shined the duo of stic.man and M-1 themselves. And thats a pity because the dead prez’s debut album - Lets Get Free - is a bonafide hip hop classic. And thats because M-1 and stic.man aren’t your average rappers. both immensely talented emcees, the duo takes the opportunity of their debut album to make a statement - and a powerful one at that. Drawing influence from NWA and Public Enemy before them, dead prez infuse their music with politics; Pan-Africanism (I’m a African), education (They Schools), black liberation (We Want Freedom) and the absolute standout, the Orwellian Animal in Man. Another highlight is Be Healthy, where duo trade bars about their dietary habits over a trickling guitar lead - and it actually works. Hip Hop itself is a comment on the duo’s beliefs concerning the commercialization of the music industry. Another strong point is the album’s production - way ahead of the time of it’s release date in 2000, the instrumentals sound futuristic and diverse, incorporating strong African-themed rhythms. If you haven’t already checked this out, I’d highly recommend it. Best song: Animal in Man 70. [2008] The Carter III - Lil Wayne DJ Akademics sparked some debate on Twitter the other day about C3 and whether or not its a classic. The hype building up to this album was insane. I happened to be staying in Florida when Lollipop dropped and it was f---in everywhere. And then when A Milli dropped everyone just lost their s---. After 3 years of waiting since its’ predecessor, C3 was shaping up to be a decade-defining spectacle. I mean just off the album art alone, it had to be. I had relocated to London by the time C3 dropped and my mates and I got high out of our minds to listen it for the first time. And we all were kinda let down at first. We’d been bumping the ever-living daylight out of C2, Drought 3, The Leak EP and all those dozens of Empire tapes that had leaked building up to C3 and it just felt like something was missing from C3. That being said, it did grow on us, with time. And I’d say its stood the test of time. Perhaps not the classic is was shaping up to be but a pretty great album nonetheless. Carter Sr passing the torch to Carter Jr. on Mr. Carter is the obvious highlight, as are the singles. I always appreciated the creativity of Dr. Carter and Phone Home. You Ain’t Got Nuthin with Juelz and Fab is another strong cut that doesn’t often get much recognition. Best song: Mr. Carter ft. Jay-Z Spoiler: Mention List @Big Cuntry @MFer Jones @Changeling @Mraczewsky @RobTheDude @MidnightMercenary @jmillithauglybasedgod @Pablo @Ordinary Joel
Sep 17, 2017 This is the most number of albums I love you ranked all at once. Still Brazy. Finally Rich, C3, Like Father, Like Son, DS2, and LIVE.LOVE.A$AP are all great. I don't really f--- with the other ones too much.
Sep 17, 2017 I've never listened to it and I have a really sour opinion of Lil B as a rapper from what I've heard, even though i took his s--- for my rap name.
Sep 24, 2017 69. [2014] Piñata - Freddie Gibbs & Madlib It was only after the release of Freddie Gibbs and Madlib’s 2014 collaborative album Piñata, was I convinced to go back and dig into Gibbs’ discography. The Gary, Indiana native has an impressive track record, dating back his 2009 mixtape debut. Gibbs’ rough and taut voice reminds me a lot of DMX and while his debut album - ESGN - was a bit long-winded, it was still an excellent project. In 2014 however, teaming up Madlib, Gibbs released what is still his best project so far. Madlib provides the soundtrack; dusted, crisp and and coated in a luxurious sheen, but Gibbs is the star of the show. His gravelly drawl matches Madlib’s tempo to perfection, running from chaotic, almost fever-pitch (Shitsville) to smoked out, laid back (Harold’s). The album loosely follows a narrative, shadowing Gibbs as he recounts his days of dope dealing on the aptly titled Scarface, to the way it affected his relationships (Deeper, Shame) and culminating in the epic feature-heavy title track, Piñata. Speaking of which, the guest features on here are incredible. Raekwon is in typical chef-like form on Bomb, while Danny Brown lends his drugged-out vocals to High. If you haven’t already developed an ppreciation of Freddie Gibbs, this is the place to start. Best song: Uno 68. [1994] 6 Feet Deep - Gravediggaz Before the legendary debuts from GZA, Raekwon, ODB and Ghostface (and m---, I guess), there was Gravediggaz. The quartet of RZA, Prince Paul, Frukwan and Poetic (who adopted Gravedigga monikers The RZArector, The Undertaker, The Gatekeeper and The Grym Reaper, respectively), came out with their collective debut entitled 6 Feet Deep (previously, Niggamortis), in 1994, soon after Wu-Tang’s fabled 93 debut. Besides perhaps from Geto Boys, I don’t think the term ‘horrorcore’ had been used much up until this point and the Gravediggaz can surely be considered pioneers of the sub-genre. Filled to the brim with suicide, death, murder, psychosis and trips right up to the gates of h--- itself, 6 Feet Deep is a trip (and I mean trip) into the unholy, the horrifying and late-night, dimly lit graveyard robberies. At the time RZA was still beaming off the success of 36 Chambers and that raw and uncut, skull-crushing sound he produced so perfectly on that album leaks and trickles into this one. Instead of kung-fu however, the theme is horror and its reflected on this album’s psychotic, almost unhinged sound, whether the deranged trailing piano loop on the opener Constant Elevation or the demonic and skewed sample on the title track 6 Feet Deep, this is pretty much the evil version of 36 Chambers, with each emcee, battling it out for who can spit the most demented verse possible. Absolute must-listen for any Wu (or horrocore) fan. Best song: Diary of a Madman 67. [2015] Rodeo - Travi$ Scott Travi$ Scott hasn’t got a very good name. Labelled a biter and shameless trend-follower, the Texas native has freely borrowed from the popular mid-10’s Atlanta trap sound and it seems to have worked pretty d--- well in his favor. His first two projects - Owl Pharaoh and Days Before Rodeo didn’t receive much critical appreciation but the fans (including myself) lapped it up. If Travi$ is capable of one thing, it’s his ability to create an atmosphere, and his debut full-length album Rodeo is no exception. Atmospheric to its’ core, Scott draws heavily from the sounds ATLiens such as Future and Metro Boomin. In fact, both appear on the album; Metro’s fingerprints are all over a good portion of the track list, and his contributions suit Travis to near-perfection, whether on the frenzied, war-like 3500 or more slow-paced and laid back Wasted. Travis uses his guest appearances to perfection, framing them against the backdrop of his own heavily reverbed and auto-tuned wailing, not to mention that each of the album’s guests brings their A-game (Quavo on Oh My Dis Side is a standout, Young Thug on Maria I’m Drunk, is another), but even when Travis goes solo the result is great (Pornography, 90120). Overall, this is by far Travis’ best work yet. Best song: Nightcrawler 66. [1997] Harlem World - Ma$e “I’m not here to replace Notorious,” Mase proclaims on his debut album’s opener Do You Wanna Get $?. Then on the very next song - Take What’s Yours - goes ahead and claims he’ll “take ‘em back where Biggie took ‘em before“. It’s impossible to not draw comparisons - Mase’s voice and delivery has a lot of similarities to that of the late great but at the same time he’s obviously nowhere near as talented as BIG was. Comparisons aside, this album is great. Puff’s shiny-suit prints are all over the track list, there’s poppy R&B-infused instrumentals and backing vocals throughout but Mase is no slouch on the mic either and there’s some interesting topics covered throughout (24 Hours to Live, Will They Die 4 You). 20 years later, Harlem World still stands as Mase’s opus and a solid addition to the Bad Boy catlaog. Best song: 24 Hours to Live 65. [1996] The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory - 2Pac Before he was tragically murdered in 1996, Pac had spent a week following the release of his massive Death Row debut writing and recording songs for a planned fifth album, adopting a new Machiavellian persona, even going as far as to change his name to Makavelli. In some ways, this album is the perfect closer Pac’s fabled career. In others, it’s a bit of a let-down. The album starts off with a b---, Bomb First and Hail Mary are 2 back-to-back murderous spectacles (the album closer - Against All Odds falls int his category too), while songs like Toss It Up and Just Like Dady are interesting in their own right but marred by some less-than-stellar guest appearances. Still, there are powerful, classic Pac cuts throughout; White Man’z World is the fat middle finger to Delores Tucker, Me & My Girlfriend is a genius-level take on Nas’ I Gave You Power. It’s not my favorite Pac album but its’ still an incredible piece; Pac sounds full of rage throughout, his delivery and inflection is noticeably more pronounced, more aggressive than before (check out Blasphemy). Whether thats attributable to the content of the album (going at Big, Nas, etc.), or reflected a new direction entirely remains unknown. Best song: Hail Mary Spoiler: Mention List @Big Cuntry @MFer Jones @Changeling @Mraczewsky @RobTheDude @MidnightMercenary @jmillithauglybasedgod @Pablo @Ordinary Joel
