Top 50 Hip Hop Albums of the 2010s

I hope you are all savoring these penultimate moments of the 2010s, a period where it’s natural to reminisce about an arbitrarily measured period of time. If you are like me – and the thousands of other hip hop music bloggers/critics – it also mean that it’s listicle time, baby!

Because what’s art if it’s not shoved into a queue ripe with personal biases  by a Twitter egg with maybe a hundred followers? Well for starters, its basically impossible to stay up to speed on the hundreds/thousands of hip hop albums that get released yearly – its a tough job but somebody’s gotta do it – and you’re getting pretty tired of falsely nodding when your younger cousin is asking if you “on that new Carti”? Also, what else are you really doing this holiday break – other than atrophying into your parents couch – that’s more rewarding than getting into mental hypotheticals of beating me up after I list Joey Bada$$ ahead of Young Thug?

But really, the reason I am bringing back WillBlogForHipHop on its 9 year anniversary and out of a 5-year hiatus is completely selfish – to catalog things so when I’m 80 (and still bumping Outkast non-stop btw) my cyborg brain and blood-boy powered body can log back in and appreciate my passion for the genre of hip hop music.

Without further adieu, pour up a drank, grab the salami and cheeseboard, and peep the top 50 hip hop albums of this decade, you multitasker you:

 

50: Flower Boy, Tyler the Creator (2017)

Tyler had maybe the most transformative 2010s of any hip hop artists, from the cringe-inducing Goblin (2011) to Grammy nominated IGOR (2019). Along this trajectory, Tyler continued to show brilliant moments like Wolf’s “Partyisntover”, and Cherry Bomb’s “2SEATER”, however remained at an arm’s length to most hip hop heads given his brash style and controversial persona. Flower Boy wasn’t a concession to these genre-pressures, but rather Tyler fully converting us to stans of his endless talent with tracks like “See You Again” and “November”

 

49: Long Live A$AP, A$AP Rocky (2013)

A master of self branding, from a legendary hip hop hood, and with looks to match, it’s easy to see how A$AP Rocky became one of the most hyped stars of the 2010s. However after his blisteringly hot debut in 2011 Rocky proved his staying power in the form of his own musical prowess, and – perhaps more importantly – an ear for the next sound, even if it falls outside of the borders of Harlem rap. “Wild for the Night (feat. Skrillex)” is a perfect example of Rocky’s unique input into the drama, while “1 Train” remains the last great NYC posse track that I can recall, 7 years later.

 

48: Cole World, J. Cole (2011)

In retrospect, J. Cole was (outside of the often ridiculed sub-group of Cole fans who hold no one above him) underrated in the 2010s. Storming in off a slew of impressive mixtapes and a Jay Z co-sign, he only trailed Drake in terms of hype at the turn of decade. This led to his major label debut to be massively weighted down by expectations, which, as nearly always, led to the initial criticism that plagued him his whole career: “he’s not captivating enough”. And it’s true there are some bleh tracks on this album – “Mr. Nice Watch” – but there are also some gems – “Lights Please” – and 5 albums (a few – including this one – that famously went “double platinum with no features”) later Cole is established as a top voice in the genre.

 

47: Earl, Earl Sweatshirt (2010)

A perfect embodiment of the crossroads of rap in 2010 – the Soundcloud mixtape that attracted a generation of kids fresh off of Ebaums world and Limeware and helped solidify Odd Future’s growth into the group you loved and your parents hated. A chaotic work of brash, but brilliantly fresh, lyrics by then 15 year old Earl Sweatshirt and looped digital beats that flipped every 2 minutes in collage fashion like a J Dilla or Madlib mixtape, the project was a perfect recipe of anti-rap establishment that opened a gaping space that would define much of the next 10 years of “horror-core” hip hop.

 

46: Birds in the Trap Sing Brian McKnight, Travis Scott (2016)

Travis Scott began the decade as an up and coming former-blogger rapper (a RARE instance, let me tell you) who then navigated the hip hop hierarchy with skill and finesse gaining features from increasingly powerful artists (peaking at “Sin City” from Kanye West’s ‘Cruel Summer’ tape) before evolving into a stain-less solo act. This same navigation appears in his sophomore work, and is similarly driven by his dedication to perfection. When you listed to BITTSBM each distortion in the beat, ad-lib in his raps, and even name of the song are so masterfully designed by Scott, creating a style that is un-replicable – though many try.

 

45: Yes Lawd!, NxWxrries (2016)

Helping draft the upwind in live-instrumentation, and soul/funk samples that emerged in the second half of the decade – the same one that introduced the Flying Lotus’s and Thundercat’s of the world to a mainstream hip hop audience – Anderson .Paak seemingly could do no wrong in 2016. Directly following his solo debut, he teamed up with relatively unknown and obscure producer Knwledge to create a careless, lean-back-in-your-cadillac stream of beats with satisfyingly simple themes like cars “Kutless” and women “Link up” and of course hating on other rappers “H.A.N.”.

 

44: IMMIGRANT, Belly (2018)

The 2010s saw some re-alignment of social issues and music that was so driving in the 1990s by the likes of Tupac, only to be banished to the underground (Dead Prez, Immortal Technique) in favor of the Money Cash Hoes era that would dominate through the 2000s. One of the more exciting breakthroughs was from the Muslim community specific to Toronto (shoutout Drake for making the lane) and led by Belly. Specifically, Belly mastered a style his own that blends boastful, conscious, and even funny lyricism to tracks that are heavy with meaning “Immigrant” to those that are just plain dope “Numbers”, “Maintain Feat. Nav”

 

43: So Much Fun, Young Thug (2019)

Enigmatic, prolific, divisive, iconoclastic (at least accordingly to Pitchfork lol), Young Thug trail-blazed the sub-genre of “mumble-rap”, by breaking every rule in the book from gender-bending to – to some fans disappointment – not leaning into when he strikes gold. Instead, Thugger is always onto the next project, whether it be the guitar-heaving ‘Jeffery’ or love album ‘Beautiful Thugger Girls’, to a rumored country album (still TBD). Thus, the last thing anyone was expecting in 2019 was an expansive, collaborative, and near perfect achievement of the Atlanta trap music he helped invent.

 

42: Crash Talk, Schoolboy Q (2019)

Lists become most difficult with artists like Schoolboy, who – save for some kinks that were worked out in Setbacks – has released 4 nearly equally phenomenal albums this decade. True to a Raekwon or Pusha T type, his consistency has bred a specialization in his brand of street politics, a bar he continues to try to raise creatively while obeying the thematic confines of hood life. Crash Talk contains some of his best attempts to make the bar unreachable, including “Die With Them” and “Floating” – proving he stands at the upper echelon of solo hip hop artists in the game.

 

41: No Dope on Sundays, Cyhi the Prince (2017)

Cyhi the Prince seemed destined to follow the footsteps of Jay Electronica – a promising rapper (whom I wrote about at length on this blog – NEED LINK) signed to a major label only to never release the debut album. However after years of label disputes we got to see from Cyhi finally release No Dope on Sundays, 7 years after he took the hip hop world by storm in “So Appalled”. The album feels like a bit of a collection of best hits, however with Kanye on the boards and heaving hitting features (like Schoolboy on “Dat Side”) we’re not complaining for a better storyline, just more fire.

 

40: Issa Album, 21 Savage (2017)

To be honest, I didn’t want to like 21 Savage. And no not just because of his name, but because he looked like and acted like your run of mill Social Media rapper with more clout than talent. But where his contemporaries held to their social influence as power, Savage used his buzz to get his music to more ears, like mine – and within weeks I was humming the bassline to “Bank Account” and following word for word on catchy versus on tracks like “Bad Business”. What makes Issa Album so listenable is how much fun 21 is having on songs – but make no mistake he’s a master at storytelling on the mic.

 

39: T.L.O.P., Kanye West (2016)

It’s basically impossible to critically review Ye’s music, especially recently, without the veil(s) of his bigger than life persona affecting your opinion either positively but more likely negatively. But as a self-proclaimed Kanye fanatic (he’s my #1 producer of all time, still) I was fortunate to recognize that this sprawling, still perplexingly named, work of music was his best output since MBDTF in 2010. “Ultralightbeam” and “Father Stretch My Hands” are immediate displays of his producer eliteness, but really where Kanye maintains his seat as hip hop royalty are the brilliant “Real Friends feat. Ty Dolla Sign” and “No More Parties in L.A. feat. Kendrick Lamar” (with help from Madlib).

 

38: Run the Jewels, Run the Jewels (2013)

While the rapper/producer collaboration concept album wasn’t completely novel in 2013 (Deltron 3030, CZARFACE, and going back a bit further Gravediggaz, etc..) when El-P,  an “underground” producer and CEO of Def Jux, and Killer Mike, a long-time Outkast collaborator who’s hype was bubbling based on the release of R.A.P. Music – also produced by El-P, joined forces to create an album named after an LL Cool J bar, it was about as revolutionary to hip hop as anything else released in the past 10 years. The album is 35 minutes of punch-you-in-the-face music, with Killer Mike’s booming voice highlighting El-P’s synthy guitars and heavy metal drum-laden beats – making it a perfect zero skipps, crush it at the gym soundtrack. There’s a very valid argument that RTJ2, or RTJ3 are actually better albums as the duo perfected their craft, but I’ll stick with the groundbreaking debut.

 

37: 90059, Jay Rock (2015)

Top Dawg’s roster in the 2010s was crazy deep (like, best of decade) and while the company you keep can raise your notoriety and skill – it also can be a hinderance with listeners short attention spans and tendency to default to known expectations like slating a rapper who’s 5th (or 6th – shout out to SZA) on the totem as a feature-only specialist. Though “Money Trees” is remixed into its own track – and K.Dot as well as his other TDE mate features are highlights of the album, its the melody-focused singles like “Gumbo” and “Telegram” that serve as evidence that Jay Rock can stand on its own – though the competition certainly doesn’t hurt.

 

36: Tangible Dream, Oddisee (2013)

There’s been two eras in my hip hop fandom – pre and post my listening to Oddisee. Seriously, when I first listened to Tangible Dream it felt like so many missing pieces in the web of the genre were filled, specifically the continuation of the instrument forward, soul influenced sounds and uplifting, proud lyrics that represents an idyllic alternative hip hop vibe (think Tribe, or Blackalicious) with a dash of go-go influence based on his DC roots. But Tangible Dream is not just a refuge for ‘conscious’ rap fans, it’s advances the genre as a whole from the mesmerizing intro of “Tangible Dream” (if you recognize it, Logic swiped this beat entirely) and throughout the non-skippable classic sure to stand the test of time.

 

35: Dr. Lecter, Action Bronson (2011)

Hip hop is amazing in it’s ability to create some of the more unique music personalities – stemming from its ubiquitous adoption (anyone can do it) and fans demand for talent over everything. Action Bronson is the perfect example of this beautiful intersection – an enigmatic Albanian rapper from Queens who’s dedication to the craft and savvy ability to self promote his unique position to gain more listeners, top-notch producers to collab with, a Vice TV show, you name it. Dr. Lecter is the origin of Bronson, and while his lyrics and persona we’re still being sharpened – peaking, arguably, in Blue Chips 2 and Rare Chandeliers – it’s rawness and novelty are not often matched.

 

34: Playboi Carti, Playboi Carti (2017)

“Magnolia” hit the streets in 2017 harder than any track since “Hot Nigga”, but peeling away the layers that are Playboi Carti there’s little that actually anchors him as a Bobby Shmurda-esque, chart-top or bust, figure. For example, he carries an aura of mystery, so that everything he does (including his trademark train of thought, mumble-rap) is a bit of a surprise. This tactic plays fully into his favor, due to the consistency and creativity of his full-length debut. With tremendous help from producer P’ierre Bourne, Carti paints soundscapes which capture recognizable themes using economy of language that require massive confidence – or carelessness – or perhaps both.

 

33: Undun, The Roots (2011)

The Roots enjoyed a bit of a renaissance in the 2010s, with their band gaining mainstream appeal on the Jimmy Fallon show leading to ?uestlove and Black Thought each developing intriguing personalities outside of their music. With all of that going on, its easy to forget Undun, a true masterpiece amidst a hall of fame catalog for the Philly based group. Setup as a reverse chronological, concept album about a fictional character – Redford Steven’s – life, the group are able to touch on common themes of a black man trying to make it in America with a particularly novel approach and sound. Many tracks, like “Kool On” and “Make My” are uber-thematic, with a tinge of indie influence – progressing the narrative with unique, varied, but also dope songs.

 

32: 2014 Forest Hills Drive, J. Cole (2014)

We take for granted in 2019 that a J. Cole release is guaranteed to bump – his template of a limited tracklist of introspective tracks over vocal and string heavy self-productions has elevated him as the internet rap age’s mentor (hell, just listen to him explain it on “Middle Child”). However, in 2014, after a relative dud that was Born Sinner, Cole was in search of a new, independent identity outside of the Rocafella umbrella. The outcome, as is the case with any hero story, was this project which conflated his re-establishment as a rap great with tracks like “Wet Dreams” and “GOMD” with his desire to stay true to his identity – the one we know so well now.

 

31: Malibu, Anderson .Paak (2016)

Every so often, an artist emerges as a perfect answer to the always considered but so difficult question in music – “what’s next?”. Following Kendrick’s foray into soul/funk with To Pimp a Butterfly and success of Mac Miller, Chance the Rapper and others breaking down the traditional 16s with singing and free verse lyrics, .Paak entered the scene as a multi-talented musician with a voice and lyrical approach to boot and was immediately beloved. It didn’t hurt that his debut just oozed positive vibes and begged to be played with the top down in your car, but really what made this album the best in 2016 was its surprisingly complex narratives and topics laced within the funk – just take “The Season | Carry Me” for another spin.

 

30: because the internet, Childish Gambino (2013)

One of the most ambitious artists of the 2010s, Childish Gambino (or Donald Glover now, right?) has influenced pop culture from many touchpoints, from Community and then Atlanta, to the phenomenal “Redbone” and the jarring “This is America”. Ahead of all of this, Glover seemed poised to be leaning in as a fully fledged hip hop artist, first with Camp and then in the more brilliantly composed because the internet. While in retrospect the album is very much structured like a TV show, with various skits and bridges between songs, his passion and enjoyment shines through in highlighted tracks like “The Worst Guys”, “Sweatpants” and “3005” – even if they are artifacts of a “what if” scenario where Gambino did not keep rising to the top.

 

29: 3001, A Laced Odyssey, Flatbush Zombies (2016)

Forging elements of the psychedelic, comic book super-hero personas, and most importantly raw Brooklyn attitude, the Flatbush Zombies separated themselves from the hyper competitive NY rap scene while amassing a group of dedicated fans that’s rare to see in the rap scene. Their debut album is aptly named an Odyssey, as the trio takes listeners through 12 tracks that are purposefully lengthy to ensure each song’s vibe is outrightly the thing fans want to come back to. This sound that is engineered by Erick Arc Elliott, can be off-putting to a house party or a fun listen, but if you’re willing to dive into the album, specifically tracks like “Bounce” and “Trade-Off”, you’ll no doubt appreciate the groups mastery of displaying their left-centered perspective with a hip hop sound.

 

28: At What Cost, Goldlink (2017)

Influenced by the template of successful indie-rap sound and adding a bit of DC influence and attitude, Goldlink struck gold with At What Cost. Led by the infectious single “Crew”, the album is a impressively cohesive collection of experimental tracks that test the boundaries of hip hop like only a rapper without the pressure of NY or LA could do. The best album of 2017 would be much higher on this list, save his recent inexplicable diss of Mac Miller.

 

27: My Name is My Name, Pusha T (2013)

Much (rightful) love was given to DAYTONA when it dropped as part of Kanye’s 5-part release in 2018 – but it’s worth considering that the momentum King Push had built behind him by that point provided undeniable hype for the release. Just take MNIMN for another spin, and try to skip a track between “Numbers on the Board” to “Nosetalgia” (easily a top 5 song of the decade) and “Pain” – and it’s easy to see Pusha T and Kanye perfecting a sound that was as bulletproof as any in the decade.

 

26: Victory Lap, Nipsey Hussle (2018)

The tragic passing of Nipsey earlier this year was especially shocking to hip hop heads like myself who were still buzzing off of his opus Victory Lap, easily the best release of 2018. Nipsey was a ever-present figure in rap through the 2010s, but in earnest wasn’t often on my radar, perhaps due to my East Coast bias or Spotify subscription which led me to favor albums vs mixtapes. So it was a bit of a blessing for his first official release to hit the mainstream, and between the brilliant reconstructed sample of “Hard Knock Life” (via Annie) for “Hussle & Motivate” to the phenomenal life story presented in “Loaded Bases”, and everything in-between, the album isn’t elevated by it’s circumstances, but rather recognized country-wide because of them.

 

25: Bandana, Freddie Gibbs & Madlib (2019)

To get under the hood of my hip hop taste, I praise to a holy trinity – no not the one on Sunday’s but rather J Dilla, MF Doom, and perhaps my favorite, Madlib. Production wise, these guys prove there are – as Meek Mill put it best – “levels to this shit”, and these producers (who all collaborated, by the way) create a form of hip hop that is equally loved by heads and your stingiest of critics. Thus the long-awaited sequel to Pinata was about as hyped as any album I can remember – and boy did it deliver with Freddie spitting gangster verses over Madlibs top notch sampled productions on tracks like “Half Manne Half Cocaine” and “Palmolive” just to name a few.

 

24: Cilvia Demo, Isaiah Rashad (2014)

We’ve spoken to TDE’s roster depth earlier in this list, and there’s no better example of this than from NC rapper Isaiah Rashad’s debut. At the time the album felt completely refreshing against the backdrop of hip hop and even between his roster-mates – led by the sunny “Heavenly Father” which took a southern sound and introspective lyrics that were reminiscent, though not at all the same, as Arrested Development. In all the album is extremely cohesive, and humble, with a hazy but positively leaning album that requires replaying ASAP as it has aged so well.

23: Marcberg, Roc Marciano (2010)

It’s easy to conclude that hardcore NY rap was dead with Sean P’s retirement and ultimate early passing mid-decade, however upon your first listen to Roc Marciano’s Marcberg you would be quick to realize that the producer/rapper has made it his life’s work to prove that conclusion completely wrong. Taking influences from all over the map, but mainly from 70s Blaxploitation films and 90s hip hop, the Hempstead native proves that the age old narrative of drug dealing and pimping is a well that’s not empty, and tracks like “Snow”, “Thugs Prayer”, and “Pop” are as hot today as they were 10 years ago.

 

22: Summertime ’06, Vince Staples (2015)

2015 was the best year in hip hop of the decade, which for Vince Staples fans is either a shame or a blessing, as his breakthrough 2 disc release was for the most part relegated to just another mid-level release from a notable roster (in this case Odd Future). For those who stuck around for the coming of age album would realize its an ambitious, but totally in control, string of game-changing beats (“Norf Norf”) and casual but intelligent verses (“Street Punks”) that catapulted Staples to a leading voice in the genre.

 

21: DAMN., Kendrick Lamar (2017)

Kendrick is the artist of the decade, no question (and apologies, Drake). So while DAMN. is comfortably his 4th best release, it still beats nearly every other album any other artist released in the 2010s. It’s incredibly intimidating to meet the self-applied pressure K.Dot put on himself with not only the quality of his first 3 albums but also the fact that so many of his life’s narratives having been already covered, but of course the Compton rapper finds a way to evolve his music into a more mature narrative, with simply-titled songs like “Humble” and “Loyalty” that pristinely define Kendrick’s post fame world-view without any excess.

 

20: Oxymoron, Schoolboy Q (2014)

As consistent as there has been a rapper this decade, Schoolboy Q peaked with his 3rd official release, Oxymoron. I’ve touched on how many modern rappers struggle with novelty in a genre that is largely built around themes of hustling, rags to riches, and gaining power and respect, and Schoolboy is an optimal example of an artist who was able to reinvent that solidified idea. The theme of the album is clear in its name, as Q is struggling with raising a daughter while gangbanging and struggling with his Oxy addiction. Throughout, the album masterfully touched on these themes, highlighted in “Break the Bank”, “Blind Threats”, and the album’s title track.

 

19: Kush and OJ, Wiz Khalifa (2010)

Holy shit this mixtape is amazing! Kush and OJ represented, at the time, the accumulation of all of the hype behind Pittsburgh rapper Wiz Khalifa – who reinvented Snoop Dogg’s ‘cool stoner’ aura for a new generation of fans so successfully. From the opening “Mesmerized”, to the dank (in 2010, this was a compliment for a song haha) “Never Been”, and ending with the slick “Supply” the entire tape is laden with gems that foresaw Wiz amassing a huge following of hip hop heads and weed smokers alike (though really how different are those two groups?).

 

18: Watching Movies with the Sound Off, Mac Miller (2013)

We’ve covered some impressive artistic transitions in this list, but no rapper improved more from his initial fun and young mixtapes to what would be a string of universally critically acclaimed albums. The first of which is WMWTSO, an expansive and risky album at the time, as Mac went deeper personally than arguably any rapper in the decade. His brilliance in presenting his own demons, like on “Red Dot Music”, was matched with his youthful creativity that lightened the album and made it wholly palatable (see “Duplexes Inside of Complexes and Duplexes”). We miss Mac every day.

 

17: If You’re Reading This, Drake (2015)

In case you used to read this blog, you probably know I was a staunch anti-Drake fan, using excuses that now seem petty (“he’s too pop”, “not a real rapper”) instead of focusing on the music. Well, Drake’s 2015 release forced me to change my mind, as I was bumping “Know Yourself” and “No Telling”, and really the whole album, nonstop. In fact, like few albums I can recall, IYRTITL made me go back in Drake’s discography and realize his dominance of the 2010s wasn’t just looks or hype – the dude is uber talented. But don’t tell my 2010 self that.

 

16: Live Love A$AP, A$AP Rocky (2011)

The first 6 tracks from Rocky’s debut are the definitive example of the revolutionary NYC trap sound as exists, and single-handedly put Harlem back on the rap radar. In retrospect, the idea of conflating Houston trap music with New York’s classic hip hop sound was super risky, but Rocky’s bars go extra hard, perhaps nowhere better exemplified as in “Brand New Guy”, and the beats by Clam Casino (“Wassup”) among others help to form a mixtape that just succeeds in it’s coolness. While A$AP Rocky has gone onto bigger and more ambitious projects since, this record serves as the cornerstone for a sound that dominated the decade.

 

15: Barter 6, Young Thug (2015)

Claiming a discography that is as prolific as it is complex and diverse, Thugger made a point for his official first album to raise the bar of not only his work but his competition. His unrivaled creativeness on the mic, and confidence in his atypical sound, evidenced best on tracks like “Check” and “Halftime”, is a step up from his previous mixtapes, and we also hear a more personal side of Thugger on this record than known before. Altogether, it’s not farfetched to consider this one of the most influential records of the decade, having made most of us expand what we know about the genre of hip hop.

 

14: 1999, Joey Bada$$ (2012)

Though potentially more accurately named 1995 (also the year that Joey was born), the Brooklyn born rapper’s intro to the hip hop world was an endearing retrospective to mid 1990s golden era, with funky beats and rhymes to match. But this wasn’t just a nostalgic ploy using known successful blueprints, as Joey is keen to balance his obvious love for older-school sounds – hell, he raps over beats from J Dilla to MF Doom and Lord Finesse – with a distinguishable flow and modernized themes throughout the release.

 

13: Acid Rap, Chance the Rapper (2013)

Chance the Rapper has unfortunately become a bi of a commodity, in the last few years, but before then he had a supremely calculated and successful rise to the top, capped off by the flawless mixtape Acid Rap. An album that blends Chance’s knack for melodies with his bright lyrical ability and with songs so lucidly strung together that you get a feel that you are listening to personal live show. Trust me, I still catch myself humming the beat of “Favorite Song” and “Chain Smoker” to this day.

 

12: Section.80, Kendrick Lamar (2011)

A theme touched on in this blog is that the 2010s counteracted the late 2000s idea that hip hop is dead. More than any single work Section.80 exemplifies this tipping point – regressing the genre back to respecting lyrical quality and meaningfulness. No one else could have done this outside of K.Dot, who masterfully aligned social awareness “Ronald Reagan Era” with mass appeal “ADHD” in a way that shocked the hip hop world and crowned its new king.

 

11: RODEO, Travis Scott (2015)

An album that revolutionized hip hop to what you know it as today, it’s expansiveness (its a whopping 75 minutes!), indulgence, but also introspection gave a voice to a new generation who viewed Kanye as an aging influence but craved their own music to let steam off to. From the raucous “Pornography” its apparent Travis isn’t holding anything back –  by “3500” you realize this guy’s got some serious talent – and by the final track “Never Catch Me” you are wondering what the hell type of journey you just went on – and you want more.

 

10: Channel Orange, Frank Ocean (2012)

While not technically “hip hop”, Frank’s first album is bumpable for any hip hop fan, and not just the classic verses from Andre 3000 (“Pink Matter”) and Earl Sweatshirt (“Super Rich Kids”). Frank has a unique ability to connect with the masses with generalized themes of love and existentiality in such specialized ways it seems that he’s the first to ever sing it. What helps make Channel Orange so palatable is its genre shifting throughout – one minute its a ballad (“Pilot Jones”) and next you’re in the complete trance-like sound of”Pyramids” – and as a listener its hard not to appreciate that.

 

9: XXX, Danny Brown (2012)

You want groundbreaking? Danny Brown was a relatively ordinary rapper before switching to his now signature grating voice and upheaving of rapper norms (as in, remember the line from Common’s “I Used to Love H.E.R.” ‘hip hop went from selling crack to smoking it’ – well Danny Brown seems to take pride in his drug use). But XXX isn’t just a ode to debauchery, it’s sparkling in its originality and cohesiveness. The drums on “Die Like a Rockstar” hit you just as hard as Brown’s controversial lyrics, while later in the album (almost as if the high from the beginning of the album is waning) “Party all the Time” is downbeat as Danny laments about his rockstart lifestyle. The output was one that attracted hip hop fans and mosh pit rock heads alike as an outlet from your Top 40 and skyrocketed Brown to hip hop royalty.

 

8: Dirty Sprite 2, Future (2015)

An album that wasn’t necessarily groundbreaking in its blueprint and sound, but a true top-of-class representation of the sub-genre that takes pride in its shameless, singular goal of turning up. You might as well throw the skip button out the window when pressing play on “Thought There Was a Drought” with the now legendary line ‘I just fucked your bitch in some Gucci flip flops’, as each song is an addictive exploitation of the trap lifestyle, perfectly formatted with Future’s raspy voice and Metro Boomin’s wreckless productions.

 

7: Control System, Ab-Soul (2012)

In 2012 I rated this above GKMC, and while time has made that take a bit irrational, the album is still a pinnacle of higher level thinking (think Dead Prez, Lupe, Immortal Technique). From “Bohemian Grove” (titled after the gentlemen’s club in California tied to conspiracies) to “Terrorist Threats” the content of the album is intentionally controvesial, but Ab has a way to make you believe, or at least consider, that there’s layers to this world that are hid from our perspective – intentionally or not. Mixed into these stoner theory tracks are more centered topics like male/female stereotypes “Double Standards” and boastful self confidence “ILLuminate”, helping this release prove at the time that TDE was more than just Kendrick Lamar’s label.

 

6: Faces, Mac Miller (2014)

At face (pun intended) value this mixtape is string of loosely related tracks about doing drugs and laboring on about the meaning of life, but there was something that kept dragging me back to it. But looking at the project under the surface you begin to realize the brilliance behind the artist’s mind, specifically the way Mac ties his seemingly lacksidasical persona to a larger existential experience of life with a pinpoint perspective is unmatched in the genre. And the production may seem off-kilter, but each track – from the drugged out “Angel Dust” to the childhood reminiscing of “Polo Jeans”, and straight turn up of “Insomniak” – has beats from Mac himself (as Larry Fisherman) that fit perfectly.

 

5: Pinata, Freddie Gibbs and Madlib (2014)

The most unlikely duo in hip hop created the undisputed top producer emcee combo of the decade. The reason behind this was that neither artist conceded to the others style, creating a refreshing new perspective at the genre that melded Gibbs gangster approach with Madlib’s 70s/80s soul and funk stylings. Perhaps the novelty of the approach helped the immediate buzz behind the project, but it was the quality of tracks like “Thuggin”, “Robes” and “Knicks” that keep this album as relevant an example of a hip hop heads dream today as it was over 5 years ago.

 

4: To Pimp a Butterfly, Kendrick Lamar (2015)

Holistically the most layered and impactful album of the decade, Kendrick’s TPAB inspired everything from the Black Lives Matter theme song “Alright” to a – first of its kind for hip hop – long-form podcast dissecting each song. Flowing with deeper meaning about K.Dot’s personal upbringing, but also expanding that to racial tensions in America (just look at the album cover – phenomenal!), the project requires a certain mindset to digest its full purpose – but still appeals to the more casual listen with “King Kunta” and “The Blacker the Berry”. I’ve touched on how this album helped pivot the genre towards more instrumentation and soul music, but the highlight of this album, like all of Kendrick’s is his unbeatable ability to tell a story behind the mic – perhaps best evidenced in “How Much a Dollar Cost?”.

 

3: Watch the Throne, Kanye West and Jay-Z (2011)

An album whose title some would argue still reigns true today (though TDE and Drake respecitvely would have something to say about that), it’s also the last time Jay Z was truly great and a rare time that Kanye was openly collaboration. The result isn’t the most meaningful or groundbreaking album, but just a damn good rap album that odes to much of the best in genre (the Neptunes, RZA, Mike Dean, Swizz Beats, Pete Rock are just some of the co-collaborators) and Kanye and Jay are keen to call out their influences throughout the project – namely on “Otis” and sampling Nina Simone on the terrific “New Day”.

 

2: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, Kanye West (2010)

To many this album tops the all-decade and understandably so – while it’s not even my favorite Kanye album there’s at least x 4 songs on here that tangibly elevated the genre and proved kanye is most unique talent in hip hop. On “All of the Lights” Ye created an all-time great uplifting anthem used to today in aspirational commercials and promos. On “Runaway”, Kanye simplified the beat to a single piano key hit – perhaps the most famous now in American music. On “Monster” the legendary rumbling beat introduced us to the first female heavy-weight rapper since Lil Kim. And on “So Appalled” Ye, Jay Z, Pusha T, and Cyhi create an all-time cypher track. Wait, I didn’t even mention “Power”, “Gorgeous”, “Devil in a New Dress”, etc…

 

1: Good Kid m.A.A.d. City, Kendrick Lamar (2012)

Like Aquemini for OutKast this was the album where Kendrick’s raw, West-Coast born talent merged with his sophisticated, philosophical worldly mindset that’s jumped him to the influential voice of the genre – a mixing pot of an album that’s original in it’s storytelling (“Sing of My I’m Dying of Thirst”) but also grandiose in its ambitious genre-shifting tracks (“Bitch Don’t Kill my Vibe” and “Money Trees” to name a couple). Along the auto-biographical project we are taken on a journey of a day in Kendrick’s life, which provides an incredibly potent well of content but also an incredibly difficult format for any artist to play within – but as noted now 4x on this list, the greatest rapper of the decade aces his self imposed loftiest of expectations.