Top 50 (Rap) Lyricists Of All Time...

[hugh]

tupac is and always has been stupidly overrated. I guess its kinda cool how he came so far off the sound of his voice more than anything.
Anyway, when people talk of great rappers they always just sound off the same list of overrated household names and as a true fan of hip hop and having listened to it my whole life I find it tedious to see these top 10 lists always composed of the same entries.

And since I'm an elitist tnuc, here's a track with better, denser lyrics than 99% of the output of all the artists on that list. And the beat is dope.

[Laszlo]

also i must say im very much influenced by the production b/c i hate pretty much all of it

ive listened to 2 albums & only track i like is old school

Ha ha, yeah I feel you on the production thing - it lets him down when comparing All Eyez On Me with Biggie's Life After Death, for example.
Again, i'd put some of that down to age of the listener, not all but some. My theory being is if you were growing up in the 90s then you hadn't been spoiled by all the wondrous production we have now and so the tracks you were hearing sounded fresh. Now, well, they sound dated as fuck, some more than others (like I said - AEOM vs LAD)

I love 'Old School' for the fact he pays his respects - a lot of these youg-ass mother fuckers in the rap game would do well to do the same imo.

[hugh]

also i must say im very much influenced by the production b/c i hate pretty much all of it

ive listened to 2 albums & only track i like is old school

Ha ha, yeah I feel you on the production thing - it lets him down when comparing All Eyez On Me with Biggie's Life After Death, for example.
Again, i'd put some of that down to age of the listener, not all but some. My theory being is if you were growing up in the 90s then you hadn't been spoiled by all the wondrous production we have now and so the tracks you were hearing sounded fresh. Now, well, they sound dated as fuck, some more than others (like I said - AEOM vs LAD)

I love 'Old School' for the fact he pays his respects - a lot of these youg-ass mother fuckers in the rap game would do well to do the same imo.

The end verse of this Matlock track is great - he just counts off a bunch of his favourite musical influences. The whole track is wonderfully nostalgic actually.




(ye I know...Matlock spam etc)

[mo_respect]

tupac is and always has been stupidly overrated. I guess its kinda cool how he came so far off the sound of his voice more than anything.
Anyway, when people talk of great rappers they always just sound off the same list of overrated household names and as a true fan of hip hop and having listened to it my whole life I find it tedious to see these top 10 lists always composed of the same entries.

And since I'm an elitist tnuc, here's a track with better, denser lyrics than 99% of the output of all the artists on that list. And the beat is dope.

tl;dr:
i'm a true fan of hip hop; i just happen to hate 99% of it

[dickman69]

I just don't like the production on most west coast hip hop, it's not a thing about how dated it sounds.

That's an interesting theory tho

[hugh]

tupac is and always has been stupidly overrated. I guess its kinda cool how he came so far off the sound of his voice more than anything.
Anyway, when people talk of great rappers they always just sound off the same list of overrated household names and as a true fan of hip hop and having listened to it my whole life I find it tedious to see these top 10 lists always composed of the same entries.

And since I'm an elitist tnuc, here's a track with better, denser lyrics than 99% of the output of all the artists on that list. And the beat is dope.

tl;dr:
i'm a true fan of hip hop; i just happen to hate 99% of it

More like 50%, since there's so much trash out there

[Laszlo]

Yeah, perhaps 'theory' was a bit of a strong term. I'm not exactly publishing it for peer review.

[hugh]

I think what I am saying is that you have this weird paradigm in hip hop/rap at the moment where there are so few artists who are genuinely recognised and respected across the music industry, which always results in these lists composing of the same people. The fact is that there is so much crap out there tarring and damaging the reputation of the music that other potentially great artists are being missed out on and not talked about. Most people seem to have no idea of what state hip hop is in these days and there is certainly no exposure of the better artists. In fact, I would struggle to name an artist outside of Rhymesayers that seems to be getting some major exposure that really writes anything thats thought provoking or intelligent, and Rhymesayers itself is certainly not a product of the music industry and still relatively underground in itself....

Anyway I am rambling, I don't really know how to clarify what I am trying to say and maybe I am just sad that the music I like isn't more popular

[dickman69]

i dont think you have to be political or thought provoking to be a great rapper tho

[hugh]

i dont think you have to be political or thought provoking to be a great rapper tho

I didn't say that you had to be. Vinnie Paz is one of my favourites but he's hardly thought provoking. But he always sounds on point and Stoupe produces some of the nicest beats going so I can always nod my head to that shit

But at the other end of the stick - can you name me a famous chart rapper now who isn't utter shite?

[dickman69]

ok

seems like a lot of people get hung up on that now a days tho...

w/ me it just has to have substance, just has to MAKE sense, even if youre rapping about drugs/murder/money w/e if you can flow & weave a story thats what puts ppl apart

can you name me a famous chart rapper now who isn't utter shite?

i dont listen to any billboard rappers (just rhymesayers/detroit/hipster shit)

[Laszlo]

@hugh - Nah, I understand what you're saying but nobody in this thread has agreed with the list. Everyone called bullshit in one way or another.
For me personally, hip hop/rap stopped meaning anything a long while ago and that is a big shame. I'll admit to getting caught up in the late 90's money, cash, hoes bollocks but when I had a chance to reflect I saw it for what it was - pop rap (sorry, Magma. I'm using 'pop' as a dirty word). The last new artist I gave time to listen to was 50 cent. I gave up on (new) hip hop soon after.
You know, my bad for not putting the effort into finding new artists but as I got older and (unfortunately) set in my ways I just haven't got the time or the inclination for it.
This whole 'trap' thing, for example, i've completely ignored. It's not a state of mind i'm proud of but it is what it is.

@Rayman - To be a great rapper, I think you do. Any kind of artist aims to be thought provoking, don't they?

[dubstepper]

am i blind or am i not seeing obie trice on da list?
surprise motherfucker
you never thought i would arise motherfucker
its obie trice motherfucker

guy has got pure lyrics i bought his album cheers surprisingly from a mini teso in well st when i lived in hackney just on a whim
but after playing it i was blown away. musta been bout 2003

[mo_respect]

obie trice came here recently, and they had an autograph session at a hat store

cheers was good tho

[hugh]

am i blind or am i not seeing obie trice on da list?
surprise motherfucker
you never thought i would arise motherfucker
its obie trice motherfucker

guy has got pure lyrics i bought his album cheers surprisingly from a mini teso in well st when i lived in hackney just on a whim
but after playing it i was blown away. musta been bout 2003

Drips will always make me laugh



it's vile and hilarious at the same time

[herbs]

am i blind or am i not seeing obie trice on da list?
surprise motherfucker
you never thought i would arise motherfucker
its obie trice motherfucker

guy has got pure lyrics i bought his album cheers surprisingly from a mini teso in well st when i lived in hackney just on a whim
but after playing it i was blown away. musta been bout 2003

He was/is decent...but you can't claim this guy has lyrical prowess with that quote

[hubb]

I was about to suggest we'd just post some of our favourite rappers tracks, but then the one I would've suggested has a murder confession as his first youtube vid.

[E-F]

imortal technique would kill most of these guys, if we are talking about lyrics

[ehbes]

imortal technique would kill most of these guys, if we are talking about lyrics

[E-F]

ppl above the age of 14 listen to immortal technique?