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THE Ideal “UNDERGROUND” RAPPERS YOU Aren’t LISTENING TO

Hip-hop has finally turned its again on vehicle-tuning and the rap sport is redeeming by itself in massive ways. Talented rappers like Kendrick Lamar and A$AP Rocky have made massive splashes in the industry, and there are plenty of other newcomers with a lot to present. Unfortunately, a lot of real talent gets missing in obscurity. This list was produced to give folks the opportunity to check out out some rappers that they normally may possibly not have listened to. Preserve in brain, some of these rappers have been generating tunes for numerous years, and some of them have previously noticed a good deal of achievement. Total, though, it’s truthful to say that most of these artists have not nevertheless entered the “mainstream” in a lot of people’s eyes (not to say that they will or should). Pause your regimen playlists, go through more than this listing and pay attention to some refreshing music from the most recent up-and-comers. THE Best 10 RAPPERS YOU Aren’t LISTENING TO V.2 YC THE CYNIC There’s anything a little bit contradictory about becoming hugely regarded by critics yet also an underground rapper, but nonetheless we have YC the Cynic on our listing. A Bronx native, his initial two blend tapes–You’re Welcome and Drop FWD–helped get him on Deli Magazine‘s “Top 5 Underground Hip-Hop Artists in New York” list, and helped him get onstage with rappers like Kendrick Lamar, Large Sean and Mac Miller. The Bronx may possibly have located their new rap god. BLACK MILK Not to be puzzled with the clothing company out of Australia that make bangin’ leggings, Black Milk aka Curtis Cross is a 31-calendar year-outdated MC out of Detroit. Out of the five solo albums he’s introduced, only two of them have charted–2010’s Album of the Year truly made it all the way to 28 on the US R&B chart. His rap is motivated by A Tribe Referred to as Quest, De La Soul, and ?uestlove, SNAP MURPHY Snap Murphy grew up in Northwest Indiana beginning rapping at the ripe age of 8 years old. Some of his influences expanding up have been Onyx, Rakim, Slick Rick, Wu Tang, Nas, 2pac, Biggie, A tribe named quest, among many others. Snap Murphy's lyrics are Effective to say the least. With strong emphasis on daily life and enjoy his words and phrases can be felt by fans of all songs cultures. He exhibits sturdy conviction on stage and you can really feel the intensity and passion that he conveys at his live performances.

APATHY When you feel of Connecticut, you do not in a natural way affiliate it with underground rap. But, the 35-12 months-old Apathy has made really a name for himself in the underground circuit of CT, as unofficial chief of hip-hop supergroup Demigodz and a member of Military of the Pharaohs and Get Active Committee. His most current launch, Connecticut Casual, has been explained as an album “that uncovers the darker sides of Connecticut and New England,” touching on the Kennedy loved ones, inadequate law enforcement and connections to East Coastline royalty. CELPH TITLED You can not mention Apathy on this listing without having mentioning Celph Titled. Celph, or Vic Mercer, is also a member of Army of the Pharaohs and Demigodz, and has even been tapped by Linkin Park’s Mike Shinoda to sign up for his underground hip hop team, Styles of Beyond. Deemed a year veteran in the underground rap local community, Celph has introduced countless collaboration albums, and his 2006 release The Gatalog chronicles his music from 1998 to present working day. His most latest audio is the upcoming Hefty Lies the Crown coming out afterwards this yr with Army of Pharaohs. GILLIGAN GATSBY Gilligan Gatsby is so underground that I couldn’t even uncover a Wikipedia website page on him, and his official web site no lengthier exists. But worry not–the Inglewood, CA, indigenous is still about and as excellent as ever, popping up on demonstrates like Sway in the Morning and The Wake Up Show, and having introduced new single “Why Not Us?” earlier this summer. Gatsby initial started his job as a “gospel rapper,” which helps make perception contemplating his voice is so robust and deep. Check out said single beneath. Last OUTLAW This indigenous New Yorker has garnered consideration from MTV, Bet, Hot97, SiriusXM, NYDaily News, TimeOut New York and World Star. He’s hit No. 1 nationally on college radio, and had a productive exhibiting at SXSW this year. He gained Beginner Evening at the Apollo Theatre–twice!–and was detailed by AllHipHop as the “Top 50” coming up for two several years in a row. But, I bet you have by no means listened to of him. Right up until now. ODDISSEE Raised by an African American mom and Sudanese father, Oddissee–aka Amir Mohamed el Khalifa–cites the heritages of his parents as becoming early hip-hop influences, alongside with Rakim and A Tribe Named Quest. Elevated in Prince George’s County, MD, a single of the wealthiest African American counties in the country, Oddissee’s lyrics circle close to his hometown, touring, inequality and social concerns. SONNY SHOTZ Paraphrasing his possess rhymes, Sonny was very likely a quickly-to-be XXL Freshman Course selectee as frontman of The Dean’s List. He just had to “stay the program.” He did the opposite, and now the frontman of 50 %-of-the-dean’s-record team The Kings Dead and new religously fueled solo operate, Sonny has dropped practically all the notoriety he had banging the college rap scene again in 2010. Hear to The Return of The Beast although, and you will know he warrants even a lot more regard he experienced then when he was burning it all touring off a mixtape. Z Yep that is a single letter, Z, formerly going by Seer this London-born, New York-raised artist residing in Harlem, NY, has been placing out songs for more than a decade. With a brand new venture delicate released, ALL YOU Require, and new dope tracks coming out seemingly every day, Z might be primed to be removing the ‘un’ from his label standing in 2014. Despite the fact that you won’t hear him reference rap significantly when speaking about his music—his genre on Fb is shown as “dance soul poet”—it does not consider also several tracks to realize he’s way too excellent of a rapper not to give him rap props, regardless of foundation style. THE Best 10 RAPPERS YOU Aren’t LISTENING TO V.1 (Initially released 7/2/2013) one. FREDDIE GIBBS The Indiana-born rapper just launched his debut album “ESGN” this past June, and his eighth mixtape ‘Baby Confront Killa’ (launched September 2012) highlighted some hefty hitters as well. Maintain an eye on Freddie as his music becomes much more nicely identified. Click right here to check out out upcoming Freddie Gibbs shows 2. CHILDISH GAMBINO Childish Gambino might be the only rapper on this list much more properly recognized by his genuine name: Donald Glover. Mr. Glover is nicely acknowledged for his position in the display Community (just lately renewed for a fifth season), as nicely as his hilarious stand up. Outside of becoming amusing, he is also an wonderful and entertaining rapper, identified on stage and in the studio as Childish Gambino. Click on here to check out out forthcoming Childish Gambino displays 3. Huge K.R.I.T. The King Remembered In Time, Big K.R.I.T. has already become a effectively-acknowledged title to many rap enthusiasts. He’s collaborated with numerous well known artists, like Wiz Khalifa and Trinidad James, and even worked with Yelawolf to generate the album Place Cousins. He is presently operating on his 2nd studio album. Simply click here to check out out approaching Big K.R.I.T. shows 4. DIZZEE RASCAL Dizzee Rascal is a single of the most renowned rappers in the United Kingdom, and it is time some of his work received acknowledged on this side of the pond. He’s released a ton of smash hits and even carried out for the London Olympics. Give the chap a likelihood and pay attention to ‘Dance Wiv Me’. Simply click below to examine out approaching Dizzee Rascal exhibits five. NIPSEY HUSSLE Hailing from Los Angeles, California, Nipsey Hu$$sle has completed perform with Rick Ross, Dom Kennedy and Wale. His newest mixtape, The Marathon three: Victory Lap was introduced this 12 months. Click listed here to check out out upcoming Nipsey Hussle displays six. 3 LOCO As the kings of comedic-but-catchy hip-hop, ¡Three Loco! has been on a lot of people’s radars. The team is composed of Andy Milonakis, Riff Raff and Filth Terrible. In 2012, the trio obtained a cease and desist get from Farmer’s Insurance coverage Group for their sampling of the company’s jingle ‘We Are Farmers’. The song was taken down, but a equivalent version was launched entitled “We Are Llamas”. Simply click listed here to verify out impending A few Loco exhibits seven. CASEY VEGGIES The California-dependent rapper Casey Veggies has developed five mixtapes and just released his most current studio album in January of 2013. Considering that turning into energetic close to 2007, he’s worked with Mac Miller, Dom Kennedy, Wiz Khalifa and Odd Potential. Hear to one his more mature hits off the mixtape Sleeping in Class Click on listed here to examine out impending Casey Veggies displays 8. DIE ANTWOORD The South African team Die Antwoord is challenging to make clear, so alternatively of reading about them, you need to just watch this movie. You may possibly find that you cannot quit observing. Simply click below to check out upcoming Die Antwoord exhibits 9. TYLER, THE CREATOR Many individuals will say that Tyler, the Creator is as well renowned for this checklist. Even though he is certainly nicely recognized, a broad selection of his tunes doesn’t get as considerably circulation as it should. The LA-dependent rapper commenced the hip hop collective Odd Long term, and he lately unveiled his most current album Wolf. Click on right here to check out impending Tyler, the Creator shows 10. EARL SWEATSHIRT Earl Sweatshirt is the youngest rapper on this checklist, but he is considerably from the least gifted. His debut album Earl produced waves when it was unveiled, and even a lot more hype is creating for his next album Doris. Though he hasn’t released several tunes given that he rejoined the rap recreation, the handful of that he has introduced are incredible. Listen to ‘Whoa’ if you get pleasure from ‘Chum’.

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THE Ideal “UNDERGROUND” RAPPERS YOU Aren’t LISTENING TO

Hip-hop has lastly turned its back again on vehicle-tuning and the rap sport is redeeming alone in big ways. Proficient rappers like Kendrick Lamar and A$AP Rocky have produced huge splashes in the business, and there are a lot of other newcomers with a great deal to demonstrate. Unfortunately, a good deal of authentic expertise will get lost in obscurity. This record was developed to give people the possibility to verify out some rappers that they normally may possibly not have listened to. Maintain in brain, some of these rappers have been generating audio for several years, and some of them have presently seen a lot of accomplishment. General, even though, it’s reasonable to say that most of these artists have not but entered the “mainstream” in several people’s eyes (not to say that they will or must). Pause your regimen playlists, read in excess of this list and hear to some clean tunes from the newest up-and-comers. THE Prime 10 RAPPERS YOU Aren’t LISTENING TO V.two YC THE CYNIC There is anything a bit contradictory about currently being extremely regarded by critics nevertheless also an underground rapper, but however we have YC the Cynic on our list. A Bronx indigenous, his 1st two mix tapes–You’re Welcome and Drop FWD–helped get him on Deli Magazine‘s “Top 5 Underground Hip-Hop Artists in New York” listing, and helped him get onstage with rappers like Kendrick Lamar, Huge Sean and Mac Miller. The Bronx could have found their new rap god. BLACK MILK Not to be perplexed with the clothes business out of Australia that make bangin’ leggings, Black Milk aka Curtis Cross is a 31-year-outdated MC out of Detroit. Out of the five solo albums he’s unveiled, only two of them have charted–2010’s Album of the Yr actually made it all the way to 28 on the US R&B chart. His rap is influenced by A Tribe Named Quest, De La Soul, and ?uestlove, SNAP MURPHY Snap Murphy grew up in Northwest Indiana starting up rapping at the ripe age of eight several years previous. Some of his influences increasing up have been Onyx, Rakim, Slick Rick, Wu Tang, Nas, 2pac, Biggie, A tribe called quest, among several other people. Snap Murphy's lyrics are Potent to say the least. With robust emphasis on lifestyle and enjoy his words and phrases can be felt by fans of all tunes cultures. He shows robust conviction on stage and you can feel the depth and passion that he conveys at his dwell performances.

APATHY When you think of Connecticut, you don’t in a natural way affiliate it with underground rap. But, the 35-year-outdated Apathy has produced fairly a title for himself in the underground circuit of CT, as unofficial leader of hip-hop supergroup Demigodz and a member of Army of the Pharaohs and Get Busy Committee. His most recent release, Connecticut Relaxed, has been described as an album “that uncovers the darker sides of Connecticut and New England,” touching on the Kennedy household, insufficient law enforcement and connections to East Coast royalty. CELPH TITLED You simply cannot point out Apathy on this checklist without having mentioning Celph Titled. Celph, or Vic Mercer, is also a member of Military of the Pharaohs and Demigodz, and has even been tapped by Linkin Park’s Mike Shinoda to be part of his underground hip hop group, Variations of Outside of. Regarded as a year veteran in the underground rap community, Celph has launched a great number of collaboration albums, and his 2006 release The Gatalog chronicles his songs from 1998 to present working day. His most latest tunes is the approaching Heavy Lies the Crown coming out afterwards this calendar year with Military of Pharaohs. GILLIGAN GATSBY Gilligan Gatsby is so underground that I could not even find a Wikipedia page on him, and his formal site no lengthier exists. But fear not–the Inglewood, CA, indigenous is still around and as very good as at any time, popping up on demonstrates like Sway in the Morning and The Wake Up Show, and getting introduced new solitary “Why Not Us?” before this summer season. Gatsby very first started his occupation as a “gospel rapper,” which can make feeling taking into consideration his voice is so powerful and deep. Check out out said single under. Final OUTLAW This native New Yorker has garnered attention from MTV, Guess, Hot97, SiriusXM, NYDaily News, TimeOut New York and Globe Star. He’s hit No. one nationally on higher education radio, and experienced a effective demonstrating at SXSW this 12 months. He won Newbie Night at the Apollo Theatre–twice!–and was shown by AllHipHop as the “Top 50” coming up for two a long time in a row. But, I wager you have by no means read of him. Till now. ODDISSEE Elevated by an African American mother and Sudanese father, Oddissee–aka Amir Mohamed el Khalifa–cites the heritages of his mothers and fathers as currently being early hip-hop influences, along with Rakim and A Tribe Referred to as Quest. Lifted in Prince George’s County, MD, a single of the wealthiest African American counties in the country, Oddissee’s lyrics circle about his hometown, touring, inequality and social troubles. SONNY SHOTZ Paraphrasing his own rhymes, Sonny was most likely a soon-to-be XXL Freshman Course selectee as frontman of The Dean’s Checklist. He just had to “stay the course.” He did the opposite, and now the frontman of 50 percent-of-the-dean’s-listing group The Kings Useless and new religously fueled solo operate, Sonny has lost almost all the notoriety he experienced banging the college rap scene back in 2010. Hear to The Return of The Beast even though, and you are going to know he justifies even more regard he had then when he was burning it all touring off a mixtape. Z Yep that’s one letter, Z, previously likely by Seer this London-born, New York-lifted artist residing in Harlem, NY, has been putting out music for in excess of a decade. With a brand new task comfortable released, ALL YOU Require, and new dope tracks coming out seemingly everyday, Z may be primed to be removing the ‘un’ from his label position in 2014. Though you won’t hear him reference rap a lot when chatting about his music—his style on Facebook is listed as “dance soul poet”—it doesn’t get too numerous tracks to recognize he’s as well excellent of a rapper not to give him rap props, irrespective of base genre. THE Leading 10 RAPPERS YOU Aren’t LISTENING TO V.one (At first printed 7/2/2013) 1. FREDDIE GIBBS The Indiana-born rapper just launched his debut album “ESGN” this past June, and his eighth mixtape ‘Baby Encounter Killa’ (released September 2012) showcased some hefty hitters as properly. Preserve an eye on Freddie as his songs gets to be far more properly acknowledged. Click on below to verify out upcoming Freddie Gibbs demonstrates two. CHILDISH GAMBINO Childish Gambino may well be the only rapper on this record far more nicely acknowledged by his actual title: Donald Glover. Mr. Glover is nicely acknowledged for his role in the demonstrate Neighborhood (lately renewed for a fifth year), as nicely as his hilarious stand up. Outside of becoming humorous, he is also an remarkable and entertaining rapper, known on phase and in the studio as Childish Gambino. Simply click listed here to check out out forthcoming Childish Gambino shows three. Large K.R.I.T. The King Remembered In Time, Massive K.R.I.T. has currently grow to be a nicely-identified identify to many rap fans. He’s collaborated with numerous properly acknowledged artists, such as Wiz Khalifa and Trinidad James, and even labored with Yelawolf to create the album Place Cousins. He is at the moment operating on his next studio album. Simply click here to examine out forthcoming Massive K.R.I.T. exhibits four. DIZZEE RASCAL Dizzee Rascal is a single of the most famous rappers in the United Kingdom, and it is time some of his perform got identified on this facet of the pond. He’s released a ton of smash hits and even performed for the London Olympics. Give the chap a chance and hear to ‘Dance Wiv Me’. Simply click here to check out out impending Dizzee Rascal shows 5. NIPSEY HUSSLE Hailing from Los Angeles, California, Nipsey Hu$$sle has completed work with Rick Ross, Dom Kennedy and Wale. His most current mixtape, The Marathon three: Victory Lap was unveiled this year. Click right here to verify out impending Nipsey Hussle demonstrates six. 3 LOCO As the kings of comedic-but-catchy hip-hop, ¡Three Loco! has been on several people’s radars. The team is composed of Andy Milonakis, Riff Raff and Dirt Horrible. In 2012, the trio gained a stop and desist get from Farmer’s Insurance policies Group for their sampling of the company’s jingle ‘We Are Farmers’. The track was taken down, but a similar version was launched entitled “We Are Llamas”. Click on listed here to check out out forthcoming Three Loco shows seven. CASEY VEGGIES The California-based mostly rapper Casey Veggies has made 5 mixtapes and just launched his most current studio album in January of 2013. Because getting to be lively around 2007, he’s worked with Mac Miller, Dom Kennedy, Wiz Khalifa and Odd Future. Pay attention to 1 his more mature hits off the mixtape Sleeping in Course Click right here to check out upcoming Casey Veggies demonstrates eight. DIE ANTWOORD The South African team Die Antwoord is tough to describe, so instead of studying about them, you ought to just view this video. You may possibly uncover that you cannot cease viewing. Simply click listed here to examine out approaching Die Antwoord displays nine. TYLER, THE CREATOR Many folks will say that Tyler, the Creator is way too popular for this record. While he is undoubtedly nicely identified, a wide variety of his music doesn’t get as much circulation as it must. The LA-based rapper started the hip hop collective Odd Foreseeable future, and he just lately launched his most current album Wolf. Click right here to check out upcoming Tyler, the Creator demonstrates 10. EARL SWEATSHIRT Earl Sweatshirt is the youngest rapper on this listing, but he is considerably from the minimum talented. His debut album Earl produced waves when it was unveiled, and even a lot more hype is constructing for his next album Doris. Though he has not introduced several tracks since he rejoined the rap recreation, the number of that he has released are amazing. Pay attention to ‘Whoa’ if you take pleasure in ‘Chum’.

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The 10 Greatest Rappers of All Time

These 10 great rappers each represent the distinct fusion of voice, storytelling ability, creativity, and general influence through the microphone. Rap remains controversial as it’s often misunderstood by outsiders, mocked by the masses as a lesser art form. For his part, critic Bill O’Reilly has often blasted rap as the mouthpiece of a violent and misogynistic “street” culture. Ironically, O’Reilly may find himself largely in agreement with rapper Notorious B.I.G., who once riffed, “The street is a short stop. Either you’re slinging crack rock, or you got a wicked jump shot.” Yes, the rap game began as a proverbial sanctuary for the inner city. Today, however, rap is blared from the loudspeakers out in rural Minnesota to the raging nightclubs of Ibiza, and everywhere in between. On the other end of the spectrum, fans of “real hip hop” have been known to blast music executives for their proclivity to put out radio-friendly hits that are rather light on lyricism and heavy on bass. A May 2014 Forbes piece praising Iggy Azalea for running hip hop did set off a firestorm of debate within many industry circles; mainstream popularity does not always translate into masterful technique as an artist. 10. GZA GZA - Wu-Tang Clan Gza, aka The Genius of the Wu-Tang Clan | Tom Burns/Getty Images Classic Albums: Enter the WuTang: 36 Chambers / Liquid Swords Gary Grice, aka GZA, aka The Genius, has made it onto this list as the primary representative for the Wu Tang Clan. For hip-hop, The Wu is comparable to the Kennedy dynasty. The group also went on to spin off a plethora of acts and affiliates, which include Killarmy and Wu Syndicate. The Wu, of course, always felt greater than the sum of its respective parts. These charismatic New York rappers began to captivate a worldwide audience, after the 1993 release of their “Enter the Wu Tang: 36 Chambers” debut LP. For the Wu, GZA added the best lyrical dexterity to a group that included Method Man’s Hollywood appeal, Ghostface Killah’s abstract style, Raekwon’s hustle, RZA’s production, and the late ODB’s outrageous griminess. Method Man proclaimed, “we form like Voltron and GZA is the head.” The GZA’s delivery was smooth, yet authoritative, as he often dismissed the typical rap story lines of nightclubs, provocative women, and tough-talk gun-play in favor of science and wide-ranging philosophies. As a solo artist, Liquid Swords was the classic album that crystallized GZA’s distinctive technique. This masterpiece was devoid of skits and prominently featured the basic, dark themes of many genuine RZA productions. 9. Andre 3000 Outkast - Andre 3000 , Big Boi Andre 3000 (R) and Big Boi of Outkast | Scott Gries/Getty Images Classic Album: OutKast’s ATLiens Andre Benjamin (aka Andre 3000), along with OutKast partner Big Boi, helped to redefine the Atlanta scene away from bass and party music and toward intricate storylines featuring a Southern drawl. For his part, Andre 3000 transformed from a skinny, young bowl-cut emcee out of Southwest Atlanta waxing poetic over a “Player’s Ball” of classic cars, cash, and women into a global celebrity and fashion-forward icon. As a rapper, Andre 3000 has experimented with lyrics and background melodies ranging between the player lifestyle, jazz, rhythm and blues, and even rock. Between 2002 and 2004, Andre 3000, Big Boi, and OutKast took home a total of six Grammy awards: Best rap performance by a duo or group, album of the year, and best rap album for their collaborative efforts on Stankonia and Speakerboxxx / The Love Below. From here, Andre Benjamin was able to leverage his mainstream appeal to star as an actor in several TV shows and movies, which have included Be Cool, Idlewild, The Shield, and the lead role in Jim [Hendrix]: All is By My Side. As a solo artist, Andre 3000 will always be recognized for his calm and somewhat lazy vocal inflection that serve as the perfect contrast to oftentimes biting social commentary. 8. AZ Anthony Cruz aka, AZ Anthony Cruz aka, AZ | Source: rapradar.com Classic Album: Doe or Die The legacy of Anthony Cruz, or AZ, was somewhat overshadowed beneath the star power of close ally Nas. Out of Brooklyn, AZ is arguably the most underrated rapper to grace the microphone. He’s notable for his relatively high-pitched delivery and aggressive lyrics that jammed multiple rhymes into each bar. AZ built his character up as somewhat of an unwitting gangster, who embraced a life of crime largely out of necessity, instead of out of calculated malice. As such, AZ fit the ongoing Robin Hood narrative that has permeated rap. Rap fans were first introduced to AZ as a guest artist that ripped through tracks on Nas’s 1994 Illmatic classic. He then went on to release his solo Doe or Die album, which throttled listeners with a dangerously callous outlook toward American Life. 7. Snap Murphy Snap Murphy grew up in Northwest Indiana starting rapping at the ripe age of 8 years old. Some of his influences growing up have been Onyx, Rakim, Slick Rick, Wu Tang, Nas, 2pac, Biggie, A tribe called quest, amongst many others. Snap Murphy's lyrics are Powerful to say the least. With strong emphasis on life and love his words can be felt by fans of all music cultures. He shows strong conviction on stage and you can feel the intensity and passion that he conveys at his live performances. 6. Scarface Scarface - rapper Scarface | Scott Gries/ImageDirect Classic Albums: The Diary, My Homies, and Untouchables Scarface legitimized Southern rap as the lead member of his Geto Boys group. His subject matter was typically dark yet authentic. For the past 20 years, a growling Scarface has grappled with murder, court cases, hustling, total loss, and humiliating deception throughout his storytelling career. If anything, his brazen refusal to submit and change his art according to the whims of industry execs preserved his street cred. Scarface went on to collaborate with the likes of Nas, Tupac, UGK, Jay-Z, Ice Cube, Too Short, and Dr. Dre, who all sought the hardcore seal of approval from this Texas rapper. 5. Nas Rapper Nas Nas | Frank Micelotta/Getty Images Classic Album: Illmatic In 1994, “Nasty” Nas exploded onto the scene with Illmatic, which may arguably go down as the greatest hip hop album of all time. At the age of 19, Nasir Jones had put out a compact, 10-song banger of fierce beats, gritty storytelling, sharp punch lines, and absolute raging fire on the microphone. From there, the young emcee was poised to battle Notorious B.I.G. and Jay-Z for the coveted King of New York crown for years to come. Over the years Nasty Nas went through stages of evolution, turning into the relatively smooth Nas Escobar, before attempting to ride off into the sunset as a sagely and self-righteous Nastradamus and God’s Son. Competing rappers took note of Nas’s struggles with navigating commercialism, street cred, financial struggles, and a brutal divorce to entertainer Kelis. This led to some antagonism toward Nas, including some hate coming from Jay-Z, which brought Nas back into full stride. He declared himself the King of New York, and the only true remaining rival to Tupac and Biggie Smalls. 4. Jay-Z Jay-Z Jay-Z | Elsa/Getty Images Classic Album: Reasonable Doubt Jay-Z emerged as that rare personality that has successfully melded street cred, popular mass appeal, swagger, and the classic Horatio Alger rags-to-riches storyline. As a rapper, Jay-Z may be most notable for his smooth delivery and authoritative voice that commands listeners to dance. In addition to Nas, rappers 50-Cent, Camron, Jim Jones, and Prodigy have resurrected their careers simply through challenging Jay-Z. For his part, in this game of tough talk, Jay-Z has already taken home an unprecedented 19 Grammy awards, according to Grammy.com. The self-proclaimed “Michael Jordan of rap” has spit bars for the projects, the dance floor, and the haughty intellectual. A recent Forbes Celebrity 100 list claimed that Jay-Z had already earned $60 million by June 2014. These earnings were largely the result of a far-flung empire that includes sold-out concerts, 40/40 clubs, and Def Jam executive compensation. 3. Notorious B.I.G. Source: Wikimedia Commons Source: Wikimedia Commons Classic Album: Ready to Die Notorious B.I.G. built his legend upon the strength of freestyle battles throughout the Brooklyn borough. Of Jamaican descent, B.I.G.’s booming voice and hint of patois dominated the streets, recording studios, and dancehall clubs. B.I.G. described himself as “Heart throb never. Black, and ugly as ever.” Still, his alliance with Sean “Puff Daddy” Combs helped to create a flamboyant fat man who maintained a penchant for beautiful women, fancy clothes, fine dining, and stately mansions. Taken together, Combs and Smalls emerged as the ultimate answer to West Coast record label Death Row. The rivalry escalated with the still-unsolved shooting and robbery of Tupac Shakur in the hallways of a Midtown Manhattan recording studio, where the East Coast Bad Boy entourage was also present. The East Coast – West Coast rivalry set off a chain of events that led to Biggie Smalls’s murder in 1997, when he was gunned down outside of an L.A. nightclub. Many industry insiders have speculated that this hit was in retaliation for the 1994 murder of Tupac Shakur. 2. Tupac Shakur Tupac Shakur Tupac Shakur | Source: spin.com Classic Album: All Eyez on Me Tupac and his Me Against the World mentality often bordered upon sheer lunacy. He made open calls to violence against East Coast rappers, disloyal acquaintances, corrupt politicians, and even scandalous women. In contrast to his tough talk, however, were happy-go-lucky dance mixes, love poetry, spiritual leadership, and an ode to “Dear Mamma.” As a self-proclaimed “boss-player,” Tupac was arguably the most complex persona to ever approach the microphone. Was Pac the kindred soul sabotaged by the fast living of stardom — or was he a true egomaniacal monster who leveraged his celebrity platform to toss breadcrumbs at the little people? We can only speculate that Tupac was somewhat of a chameleon who transitioned through various roles according to his particular audience. 1. Rakim Rakim - rapper Rakim | Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images Classic Album: Paid in Full Rakim is the father of modern day rap. A beaming Ghostface Killah of Wu Tang Clan once proclaimed, “Rakim is the only god. He taught me how to rock this.” Rakim’s calm delivery effortlessly carries listeners through his own personal journey of triumph, money making, and the fallibility of mankind. The intense cutting, production, and scratching skills of partner Eric B. served as the perfect contrast to Rakim’s graceful wordplay. As a rather precocious youth, Rakim’s subject matter was steeped with high-minded braggadocio, existential philosophies, and spirituality. To this day, Eric B. and Rakim’s Paid in Full and 1988 follow-up album Follow the Leader are still considered masterpieces. It was then that a young Eric B. and Rakim first began to combine jazz syncopation with verbal artistry, inspiring future rappers’ musical aesthetics.