It's important to take note of my method of how I do these lists. This is by no means an attempt to make an objective list. These are really just my favorite. But I do have a standard.. My standard for good hip-hop/music will forever be Nas's "Illmatic" and A Tribe Called Quests's "The Low end Theory." These albums set a standard in several different ways:
- Flow and lyrical skill
- Sampling and production
- Integration of what I consider essential themes to hip-hop (i.e. Social Justice, race, crime, politics, spirituality, funk, Jazz, soul, etc.)
- Awareness of what the f is going on in the world and of people in their community and in hurting communities around the country/world. (this was one is pretty essential to me, but I am artistically open to it being expressed in many different ways, refer to a Schoolboy's album). I have a hard time putting an album like Views (an album I actually REALLY liked) on this list, because I feel like the album occurs in a rich rappers vacuum, which is not what hip-hop was founded on. No vacuums in this art form.
Like last time, I will list the album, why I like it and why I think it deserves a place on this list, and then share my favorite song with a link. Please, share with me your top 10 lists!
10. The Life of Pablo - Kanye West
For Kanye fans across the board, this album was a huge surprise. In many ways Yeezus continued to push his music to new places, incorporating new sounds, and using his voice in clever and unique ways. Pablo, who is Paul from the Bible is considered to be historically one of the most important figures in developing Christianity's theology, writing most of the new testament. Content wise, the Life of Pablo perfectly describes Kanye. It goes through his whole spectrum, from his spiritual side, giving, to his dark side where he spills out his darkest thoughts. His honesty in this album is not a new thing. My favorite track of the album is Real Friends, where Kanye openly admits his faults as a friend, and family member. Musically, Kanye pushes hip-hop past the classic drum breaks, but not into repetitive trap style music. Kanye is in many ways, the "Pablo" of music and art. Unfortunately, not many listeners have had their "Ultralight beam" moment to him.
Favorite Track: Real Friends, no link because Kanye is a bloodsucking contradicting egomaniac who soon will have no real friends because he keeps dissing them. (can you tell I'm writing this after his stunt in Sacramento?)
9. ScHoolboy Q - Blank Face
Releasing his 4tH studio album, Top Dawg Ent.'s ScHoolBoy Q never ceases to amaze me. To be quite frank witH you, Q is a little bit rougH around tHe edges, and in many ways, His music cHallenges me. It's not my go to style, but I couldn't ignore tHis album. Q brings an incredibly important perspective to the rap game. He was a gang banging crip, who sold oxy, cocaine, and marijuana at different points in His life. In many ways He is tHe embodiment of wHat He is rapping about, unfortunately tHat is sometHing tHat is being lost in tHe art recently. I say it's an important perspective because Q, altHougH He is no longer gang banging or slinging dope, is very aware of tHat lifestyle, wHat causes it, wHy people do it, and wHat it means for Hip-Hop to save one's life. He is more conscious on tHis album tHan his previous ones, but isn't afraid to bring out His past. We always need tHis voice in rap, because it reminds us of it's saving power. Q explains why He doesn't put out as mucH music as otHer rappers, and it's because of His family, His wife and daugHter, who are tHe 2 most important tHings in His life. He refuses to put tHem on tHe back burner, but nonetHeless He manages to release one of tHe most raw and sHarp edged albums of tHe year.
Favorite track: tHat part Black hippy Remix
8. Isaiah Rashad - The Sun's Tirade
Top Dawg Ent.'s youngest son, Black Hippy's younger brother, has been proving himself to be one of the most to be reckoned with rappers of this generation. One of the challenges of being with the TDE crew is feeling the pressure of sounding like the other members. When you're on the same label as Ab-Soul and Kendrick Lamar, people will assume that the best option is to just imitate these two all-stars. From his first album, "Cilvia Demo," Rashad wanted to be clear, he isn't Kendrick, he isn't J Cole, he isn't anyone out there, he's himself. Of course there are elements of this album that have some resemblence to today's greats, you would have to be a fool to not let the legends of today influence your style, but "The Sun's Tirade" seals the deal, Rashad has his sound, a mix of smooth soul, with an ounce of dirty street rap. He isn't afraid to sing or hum or whistle, the music just flows out of this man.
Favorite track: Wat's Wrong
7. Vince Staples - Prima Donna
I have not been a faithful Vince Staples fan for that long, maybe a year. It took me a while to admit that he didn't annoy me. I remember after listening to him for a bit, I saw this video where he said that we need to stop obsessing over 90's (and before) rap. He said that the best things from then was Biggy and Pac, other wise stop move on. I was pretty pissed. But even as a seasoned hip-hop head as myself, it's always important to put what a rapper says in an interview, on an album, or when interrupting a grammy acceptance speech, in a panoramic perspective. After listening to more interviews, all of his tracks, and finishing "Prima Donna" I think I got what he was saying, and what a lot of this album is about. He wasn't saying 90's hip-hop is unimportant. But what he was saying is our generation has our own fights, we need to learn from the grandfathers and fathers of hip-hop (cue in Andre 3000 on the first track of the album), to fight today's battles. This album takes a much more conscious approach to what's going on today, and he speaks to us in this album more as Vincent Staples, than as Vince Staples. Production wise and musically, this album is a whirlwind of sounds, incorporating artists such as Kilo Kish, which would normally never appear on a hip-hop album, in this way Vince is moving hip-hop forward in a positively collaborative way.
Favorite Track: Smile
6. Chance the Rapper - Coloring Book
Wow. Where do I begin. As I write this I don't know how this album is #6. It's almost sinful. But I have multiple commitments. Chance the Rapper will forever be the artist of this year. He embodies many of the musical breakthroughs that Kanye had back in 2004, except he's likable hah. If you don't know, throughout his whole career Chance has remained independent, not signed to a label. This is his 3rd official "mixtape." Chance is breaking so many barriers it's unheard of, I don't actually think we can comprehend all of the ways in which is changing the game right now, until we start see a rise of independent artists not controlled by labels take center stage in several years. At the top of the list of ways this album is radical is how this album could easily, and should be under the "gospel" category. From the gospel samples, and use of gospel choir in multiple songs, to the repeated presentations of the gospel message, Chance shows us, it's ok to cuss on a gospel album. This album is very special for me because it came out at a dark time for my faith. This past year I began to realize and how feel just how disconnected I am to the "christian culture." Many times this past year I questioned whether that meant there was something wrong with me. In many ways, this album playing in my car on the morning to work was my main source of connecting with God, of entering a place and time of worship, not during Sunday morning at church. I watched as hundreds of my friends got into this album, people from all backgrounds, who had never listened to hip-hop before, but fell in love with this album. That to me is powerful, and doesn't happen very often in music. Chance has an amazing spirit, he is a dreamer, a hard worker, and a visionary, all of those things are perfectly exemplified in music form in "Coloring Book", the album that paints a picture of what he wants this world to be like for his daughter.
Favorite Track: Finish Line/Drown
5. Kendrick Lamar - Untitled Unmastered
I hope this proves that I am not a blind fanboy of Kendrick Lamar, as his collection of unreleased songs comes in in 5th place. It has nonetheless been an interesting year for the greatest rapper of all time. Yeah I said it. K-Dot is a peculiar artist. It is evident in so many ways why he does what he does. To be honest I couldn't promise you that he will be releasing another album, he could be done with "music." Well, he could be done making albums, who knows, probably not. What I'm trying to say is Kendrick Lamar is a pioneer of human thought, not just of music. This album is further proof of his music pioneering though. I will never forget the night when this dropped. I walked outside late at night and listened the whole way through, as I did with TPAB. My jaw was dropped, this time it wasn't solely because of the lyrical content (although don't think this album isn't filled with deep deep theological, philosophical and social commentary). What Kendrick and co. managed to do was meld funk, soul, jazz and hip-hop in a way that I don't think anyone has done before. It wasn't just sampling Miles Davis or the Isley Brothers.. they didn't need samples to bring the jazz or soul feel to it, they brought it themselves.. Of course plenty of hip-hoppers have done similar things before, incorporating elements of these other musical forms together, but never has it been done so masterfully and into one homogenous mixture. This album truly requires a genre of it's own, saying it's a combination of genres doesn't do this masterpiece justice.
Favorite Track: untitled 08 | 09.06.2014.
4. Noname - Telefone
Yet another Chicago native, independent artist, Noname has been dropping her name with various artists including Saba and Chance the rapper over the past few years. In a time when we are in desperate need of women rappers, Noname reminds her listeners in a tweet that she: isn't a female rapper, she's a rapper. Noname has an extremely distinctive flow and sound, although it has some resemblance to Rhapsody, the often childlike sounds in this album gives it a life giving feel to all of its listeners. This album is just smooth like butter. Each song fills the room with not just sounds, but bright colors and sweet tastes. I think purposefully, there aren't too many big names on this album. I forsure thought Chance would make an appearance, but he doesn't, intentionally so I think. As this new wave of independent artists is going to slowly take over the industry, it is important to not just make disciples of this tradition, but to make disciple makers of this tradition. Noname includes a few names that before this album I never heard of, giving them a headstart to work with. I love where this album took me, and I am looking forward to Noname continuing to develop her strong and much needed voice.
Favorite Track: Reality Check
3. Beyonce - Lemonade
"Lemonade" is one of those albums that isn't deserving of just a spot on a top 10 list, or a blog, it's deserving of a book, or a class on it. This album is PACKED to the brim with musical brilliance and dense deep content. I remember seeing all of the people FREAK out when she released her music video and did the Super Bowl performance of "Formation." Someone told me that they thought this was an anti-police album/song because there was a bunch of people raising their fists like the Black Panthers. I saw women across the board denounce her and that "this" is not a role-model for girls. Coming out during a time when the conversation about the police killings of unarmed black people, people continued to give confused responses of mourning, or rather, lack thereof. As I silently watched the many negative responses of this album, it further proved just how important and essential this album was, is, and will forever be. This album is clearly misunderstood by many, as is with much hip-hop and black expression of today, the main reason is a failure to understand the context in which black liberation art exists in. I'm not going to try and explain that in a paragraph. But although this album is about her broken relationship with her husband, Jay-Z, primarily due to an affair he had, this album is about SO much more than that. Not to dismiss the tragedy of Beyonce's relationship, but she knows her art isn't just about her. It's about her daughter, it's about Trayvon, it's about Tamir Rice, and it's about us as a nation, and people learning to deal with pain and suffering. The album goes through the WHOLE spectrum of emotions in the midst of deep pain. From anger, to sadness, to hopelessness, to forgiveness, to hope, to freedom. There isn't one part of this album that is more important than the other. For many people in America, particularly Christians, the forgiveness and hope part is the most important, and while it is necessary, it is not sufficient for many. For many, the other side of the spectrum is a requirement for redemption. It is part of the healing process.
Favorite Track: Freedom
2. Common - Black America Again
"We are re-writing the Black American story." Bilal sings on the last track of this album. Common has always been regarded as one of the most revered prophetic voices of hip-hop. "Black America Again" is arguably his most spiritual and prophetic albums to date. As this year comes to an end, I can't think of a more needed record in our country. The Black American story has been so marred and raped, and this isn't the first attempt to bring truth and light to that story. But common doesn't attempt to bring light to it to hide the darkness, that would be counter productive. If you can't understand black strife and struggle, there is no way you can mend any of the brokenness surrounding it. Common finds a way to make this message for Black Americans, but also for anyone willing to listen and learn. He doesn't tear down white people, or cover them all in a blanket statement, this album isn't about them, but he invites any and all to gaze into the ways in which the false Black American story continues to be a disease for the people today. In this album, Common again unites people of all faiths, filled with many elements and symbols of Islam, Judaism, and Christianity, he calls for all of God's people to unite under justice and peace.
Favorite Track: Letter to the Free
1. A Tribe Called Quest - We Got it From Here... Thank you 4 Your Service
It shouldn't come as a surprise that the blog with the name "Low End Theory" would feature ATCQ's final album as the number 1 album of the year. But rest assured, it's place as #1 is well deserved. This was an extremely difficult year for the Tribe. Earlier this year, founder and hip-hop legend Phife Dog died from complications due to his diabetes. There have been a plethora of celebrity deaths in the past few years, and if I'm being honest with you, every time one happens I usually glance over it, and I'm always confused as to why people care so much or how it effects them so much when often they have never met the person. I haven't really experienced much death in my life, but for the first time I felt true sadness from the death of someone who I have never met before. I don't know that much about Phife Dog, but what I do know is the impact that ATCQ has had on my life. It was this very group that drew me into this art form, and as many of you can tell, this isn't just a hobby that I enjoy occasionally, hip-hop is one of the most important things in my life, and it is one of the things that brings me most enjoyment and joy in life. I have Phife, Q-tip, Jarobe, and Ali to thank for that. I heard someone say that it was as if this album was written and recorded in 1992 and never released. Although I was 2 years old in 1992, I understand exactly what they mean, listening to this album brought me back 7 years ago when I listened to the "Low End Theory" for the first time. The ways that album made me feel, this album did yet again, with fresh newness. ATCQ is always questin' for the people. It's always about the people. So many samples were homages to classic Tribe songs, sending us back in time to the funky rhythm that ATCQ introduced to so many of us. They give a special shoutout to Joey Badass, Kendrick, Earl and J Cole, commenting on how they are continuing the tradition of "instinctive soul" (one of ATCQ's earlier albums), paving the way for the next generation of conscious artists to continue Phife Dog's legacy. Rest easy, 5 foot assassin.
Favorite Track: We the People
Here is a spotify playlist with all of my favorite tracks from this list: https://open.spotify.com/user/124603695/playlist/4wer7MbRKybalH0WhzLpRD
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