These things change from day to day, but here are my current picks. Discuss among yourselves…
5. Kool Moe Dee
Moe Dee was the first rapper to use the term “cliche” while simultaneously boasting about it on “Gotta Rock”, plus every old party tape you hear he runs shit. Plus that Busy Bee ethering.
4. Spoonie Gee
The OG Uptown slick talker set the stage for the Dipset‘s 00’s reign. Random rap fact: the majority of Kiss-FM listener’s mistook Spoonie’s “The Godfather” single for a new Rakim track when it first dropped.
3. T La Rock
No Terry, no Todd James Smith. Also, “It’s Yours”.
2. Lord Finesse
Laid down the blueprint for modern punchline rap, thus giving Big L, Mad Skillz and thousands more a foundation to build from, and the best live MC I’ve ever seen.
1. Kool G Rap
Technical, street and amusing all at the same time, G consistently entertains while formulating new ways to describe shooting people in the face in the most creative way possible while sporting a lisp that would have ended a lesser rapper dude before he’d even begun.
Spoonie Gee and Moe Dee need to be in more peoples lists. Spoonie is way way more influential than hes given credit for if you look outside the east coast. like Id say Too Short owes him a lot.
Schoolly-D also owes him a check.
*Smirk*…. I’m still miffed about the lame who had nerve to review classic albums without the proper historical context….
BUT, I shall fall into the trap you’ve laid, Robbie.
MY TOP 5 Dead or Alive as of 9:25am EST
Jay-Z
KRS
Rakim
Nas
Biggie
At 9:28 AM It’s
Rakim
KRS
Jay-Z
Nas
LL
Let the games begin!
@BKThoroughbred: Extra points if you can justify your picks in one sentence.
1 Biggie
2 KRS
3 E-40
4 Slick Rick
5 Scarface
cos near every verse was perfect and they never fell off, making exception for Biggie falling off physical plane and KRS falling off brink of insanity(which doesnt count since he just stopped being a rapper and became a amusing mentaller ala Danny Bonaduce or George Galloway) Backdating E-40 to 2011 since he has indeed started to fall off.
runner ups
Suga Free
Rakim
Mystikal
Kool Moe Dee
Prodigy
theseve all got strikes against them –
probably being a bit of a wrong’un irl,
hiding in Arizona longer than G Rap
100% being a wrong’un irl,
wrong move after wrong move during the star trek shades/George Carlin in Bill & Ted jacket era,
tutu/g-unit tats/sleepapnea p,
but not a square amongst them
Iron Sheik says
5 Kane
4 Redman
3 Black Thought
2 Kool G Rap
1 Nas
As Per Iron Sheik
10 Andre 3000
9 Ghost
8 Grand Puba
7 Biggie
6 Slick Rick
Iron Sheik says
5 Kane
4 Redman
3 Black Thought
2 Kool G Rap
1 Nas
Sheik is high and drunk right now
Easy as Pie…But Ima need more than a sentence AND I gotta get back to work, so this is the short version…
Jay-Z: From 1996-2013 (not including his years on the underground scene)Dude has consistent impact on the Culture, Sure he hasn’t been on the pure Hip Hop scene in over a decade. But out in The BK hoods we still love and respect dude.
Rakim: His slow and incite-full flow literally changed the game. Hip Hop can literally be seen as pre and post RA.
KRS: When he came on the scene he and BDP strong armed the game. He is the GREATEST PURE MC OF AlL- TIME. To this day if he gets on track he’ll steal the show like it’s 1987. Ego and bad track selection was his downfall
Nas: 1993-2013 strong years in the game creating at high level, and unlike Jay he still does it mostly from a street perspective.
Biggie: After KRS and Possibly over Ra as the next best pure MC. Dude had the most versatility. The reason I don’t rank him higher is because obviously his life was cut short. Maybe he would kept on ascending OR Maybe he would fallen more into the Puffy commercial viability side
My list in chronological order…all these dudes deserve to be mentioned on more top lists imo.
Grandmaster Kaz
KRS One
Kool Keith (pre 2000s)
Pharoahe Monch
MF DOOM
This is the 11:04 am EST Top 5 Dead or Alive “Founders Edition”
Caz
Melle Mel
Moe Dee
Spoonie G
Kurtis Blow
Honorable Mention: Busy Bee and Jimmy Spicer
As of UK tea time over here 17:54..
1.Rakim
2.Kool G. Rap
3.T La Rock
4.Latee
5.Lord Finesse
KOOL MOE Dee on the list!!!!!!!!!
Unbookmarking this ite asap!!!!!!……
1) TERMANOLOGY
2) MAINO
3) A$$WIPE ROCKY
4) ACTION BRONSTEIN
5) JIM JONES
” I want to play wif ewuuu… ” -(c)Gage/Pet Semetary
1.RAKIM ALLAH
2.KRS ONE
3.NAS
4.Kool G RAP
5.CANIBUS
Old School: Grandmaster Caz, Melle Mel, Kool Moe Dee, T La Rock, Spoonie Gee
Mid 80’s : DMC, Just-Ice, Schoolly D, LL Cool J, Ectasy from Whodini
Golden Age: Rakim, Big Daddy Kane, Kool G Rap, KRS One, Lord Finesse.
Early Nineties: Ice Cube, AG, Q-Tip, Master Ace, Kool Keith
Mid/Later 90’s – Now: Big L, Nas, AZ, Biggie, Cormega
1) Biggie
2) Rakim
3) Ghostface
4) Chuck D
5) Ghostface
1) Biggie
2) Rakim
3) Ghostface
4) Chuck D
5) Melle Mel
This week only:
Ice Cube [1990 – 1992]. For 2 years, Cube was the best rapper in the world. The Predator was the fall off almum but Guerrillas in Tha Mist came out a month before it so he gets ’92.
Willie D [1988 – 1992]: Even louder and more to the point than Cube, over hard organ funk beats.
Maestro Fresh-Wes [1989 – 1991]: Could go toe-to-toe with Kane during the speed-rap era. Godfather of Canadian rap.
Slick Rick [1988 – 2000]: Speaking of speed raps. The Ruler’s Back LP is full of blink-and-miss-it-gems.
Slim Thug: Just started checking for him recently. Top 5 rap voice.
Top 5 as of 9:36pm EST:
1.KRS-One
2.Big Daddy Kane
3.Kool G Rap
4.Nas
5.Big L
Top 5 I bump on my way to work this morning:
1. B-1
2. Breeze Brewin’
3. T La Rock
4. Kamanchi Sly
5. Silver Bullet
Top 5 DOA:
1. G Rap
2. Kane
3. Rakim
4. T La Rock
5. KRS
G Rap
Big L
Lord Finesse
Tragedy Khadafi
MF Doom
1. G Rap (stays at the top ALWAYS)
2. Kane
3. Rakim Pharaoh Monche (criminally underrated)
4. Pharaoh Monche (criminally underrated)
5. Scarface
KRS and Nas get in there sometimes.
No particular order
Nas
Weezy
Ghost
Slick Rick
Prodigy
can’t even manage a top five five-footers (no 5ft).
can’t even manage a top five ny five footers (still no 5ft).
styles (over jada)
prodigy (over don’t mention the war)
8-off
buckshot (yeah, still no 5ft)
bigavell (wait, how tall was juelz?)
and the lost talents: sha lumi, the most beautifullest keith.
hang on, mega’s a little cunt isn’t he?
*can’t believe bus was legitimately mentioned by someone, i’m just tryna get on with my life here, suggest you do the same.
oops and chuck a lamont lament up there too.
Today…
RAKIM
DEATH GRIPS/MC RIDE
SLICK RICK
DEATH GRIPS/MC RIDE
SCHOOLY D
TOO SHORT
Kamanchi Sly!!!!! Yes mate! Been listening to a lot of Hijack lately, thought the rest of the world had forgotten him, definitely the best the UK has produced ( apart from The Ruler of course), Silver Bullet was dope too.
ITs a good list not mad at all.
Kane
Rakim
G Rap
KRS-1
Slick Rick
Nas
Scarface
Black Thought
Redman
MC Ren
@sonny7: Cosign. Back in the days we used to worship Hijack, Gunshot, Killa Instinct and all of them over here in Germany. How can they be forgotten?
Big Punisher
Ghostface Killah
Nasty Nas
Notorious BIG
Pharoahe Monch
It’ll be totally different in a few minutes… G Rap, KRS, Rakim, Scarface, Redman all deserve mention, as well as others. Who are your top five producers Robbie???
Mine…
Rakim
Nas
Redman
Hov
Common
Honorable mention: G Rap, Ghostface and Critical Beatdown/Funk Your Head Up era Kool Keith.
A top 5 is hard to list.
ALL TIME:
1.Kool G Rap
2.Rakim
3.Big Daddy Kane
4.Nas
5.Black Thought
HONORABLE MENTION: KRS One/Common
RIGHT NOW…
1.Elzhi
2.Hell Razah
3.Sean Price
4.Killah Priest
5.Half-A-Mil (’94-’95)
HONORABLE MENTION: Percee P/Prodigal Sunn
That’s SOME sh*t that gets me hype right now.
I’m surprised to not see Biggie & Tupac on everyone’s list. Unkut for the win.
KRS ONE IS GOAT!
GHOSTFACE
Q-TIP
JAY-Z
BIG BOI
GURU
Rapper —— Reason
1. Rakim —- I’m rated “R”…this is a warning, ya better void,Poets are paranoid, DJ’s D-stroyed,
Cuz I came back to attack others in spite-
Strike like lightnin’, It’s quite frightenin’! etc, etc
2. Kool G- Shoes are scoffed cos the road gets rough But i’ma rock it til my pockets ain’t stuffed enough All the freaks wouldn’t speak cos my checks was weak They would turn the other cheek so I started to seek
3. BDK—— The man at hand, to rule and school and teach And reach the blind to find their way from A to Z And be the most, and boast the loud and proud The Kane’ll reign your domain! (YEAH KANE!)
4. Chuck D.– I know your listening I caught you pissin in your pants You’re scared of dissin us the crowd is missin us, we on a mission ya’ll
5. Nas —– Giving shotguns to Medusa in Hell it ain’t hard to tell.
And AZ for the lifes a bitch verse
Dmfslimm says:
Redman
Black Thought
Ice Cube
Nas
KRS 1
bonus: for female emcee-Rah Digga
I think my brain would explode trying to narrow it to only five.
Saturday afternoon, trying to pick shit up at Homedepot, but these dudes is taking long with my order “Top 6-25 Dead or Alive”
6. Kane
7. Slick Rick
8. G-Rap
9. LL
10. Chuck D
11. Ice Cube
12. Treach (He did hold the Crown for a year or so)
13. Grand Puba
14. Redman
15. GURU
16. Scar Face
17. Snoop
18. Meth (He also held the Crown for a little, he’s the best pure MC in the WU, but the worst album maker of the bunch)
19. Eminem. Dude is Mic skills are beyond reproach. He can flip multiple styles and in his case numbers don’t lie (Well a little, because if he was African, he’ probably be Royce)
20. Tupac
21. Busta
22. Cam’ron
23. Big Pun
23. DMX
25. Kiss
Hotbox,
Pleased to see you praise The Ruler’s Back LP. I actually enjoy it more than Great Adventures. Not saying it’s better (although I might secretly believe that, too), but I enjoy it more.
Nas
Ghost
Black Thought
KRS
Rakim
What up, $yk!!