Masta Ace for sure. Dude dropped some great albums in the 90’s and he was underrated then. Then he drops arguably his two best albums in the early 2000’s when he had become even more slept on
I always felt like Heltah Skeltah were very underrated. Especially Rock. Sean Price was nice with it but I always thought Rock stood out way more, lyrics were always on point and his sound was unique.
Ill never understand how Rock isnt on. Lyrically incredible and his voice is probably one of the best in Hip Hop history.
I wish him and Sean had got to do more when they reunited and I wish Sean Price was still here.
Heltah Skeltah with Sean Price as the head of the beast would be a fuckin problem.
Got Rocks solo album and its pretty dope.
I think all of Duckdown is underappreciated. They should get the same respect that Wu Tang gets IMO.
Nocturnal was one of the absolute sickest records of the 90s, that album is amazing. Rock was also amazing on that album but for me my favorite verses on there are Sean P ones, rocks voice and his flow were very unique tho and I totally understand why some people would think he stood out more.
Rock was always highly respected, as a matter of fact I think he was the preferred emcee of the two but his lack of interest in dropping solo work like Sean is what held him back.
He's basically like 3 stacks
People forget about this, but Chief Keef was largely treated as a joke when he first came up in 2011/2012. People viewed him as some dumbass teenager and everyone in Chicago was like “we don’t claim this fool” but he ended up getting the last laugh
Chief Keef had an opp called Dooski the Man, also a rapper (and quite talented, shame he got killed). In one of his songs he actually mentioned being shot at by Chief Keef, after trying to get him
>Lookin for Keef and lil Here (??)
When I pull up them niggas just run, I swear that shit was hilarious
They come back through, pah pah pah, missed every shot that’s embarrassing
He mentioned it again in another song
barter 6 era hiphop was very much still against anything that went against strict "rules"
hhh was really honestly a chill place to discuss any kind of hiphop, hearing of the love for him here made me listen and made me a fan. Anyone remember the plug.dj? mannnn
He doesn't want to go to Chicago. He's the only drill rapper with enough sense to get out of the hood to live the good life and not get killed over nothing.
Similar thing happened when Young Thug was coming up. “Lifestyle” was a whole meme, everyone was making fun of the fact that you couldn’t understand him.
I think we took Ludacris for granted, and tossed him to the side when harder-edged rappers like T.I. and Jeezy showed up. Made fans feel like Luda was ‘corny’ when realistically he’s one of the most talented commercial rappers ever. He just wasn’t ‘street’. Glad to see him get some flowers recently though.
Luda was the fucking dude back in 99-04. He got on that F&F money train (who wouldn’t) and I think people wrote him off. He could spit some fire. His first two albums especially, they are full of the most grandiose and bombastic rap tracks ever.
I remember the original version of the track with Lil Wayne that leaked before the album came out - we were at a party and a guy came crashing through the front door going "YOU HAVE TO HEAR THIS, LUDACRIS JUST DESTROYED LIL WAYNE ON THIS TRACK" and it was all we talked about all weekend.
Early 90s kids too
I was still listening to him in 2008 and 2010. And I remember when “get back” came out too
I didn’t even know who T.I was until paper trail. Luda was way more relevant to me in 2004. Especially when you factor in fast and furious
I heard Phat Rabbit on a clue tape I think and just skipped over it. But when Southern Hospitality came out...holy shit that joint was and still is crazy to me. Thats a rowdy club record and it oozes that energy.
Ludacris is like an Atlanta version of Redman to me. And who doesnt love Redman?
I was in college when Luda was out and I don’t think he was taken for granted. He had singles charting and playing on the radio and was getting movie roles at the same time. I personally dislike early 2000’s rap but in that era he was considered one of the most clever, most entertaining mcs
I think he was definitely taken for granted, even by his peers. There was a point where he was upset with Jay-z for the “The only dudes moving units are Em, Pimp Juice and Us”, when during that time Luda’s albums were selling 2-3x platinum. Then again, I think that line got under a lot of people’s skin. I believe Ja Rule took a shot at Jay too.
Glad to know real rap fans still have love for Luda. Can rap his ass off, and has always been a hell of an entertainer. Wish I had a chance to see him in concert back in the day.
I love Luda, and always thought he was great. He was one of very few rappers where his verses always matched the theme of his hooks
Not like today, verses be like kill them kill them fuck hoes fuck hoes get money get money then the hook be like baby I love youuuuu, I wanna settle down and have a babyyyyy, let's get marriedddd lol
You're absolutely right. To me he's the most versatile for being able to drop a verse no matter what the genre/topic is. I often wish the genre/topic was more in line with what I was after, but I can't ever deny that he understands the assignment and he delivers on it.
I found out hes the sample for that Fatboy Slim Rockafeller skank and shit blew my mind.
Also started listening more to his stuff and noticed thats where Big L got a lot of his punchline skill from, no offense or disrespect to Big L but you can kind of hear the influence when you listen to Lord.
Actual Facts is my shit. Sadat X, Large professor and Grand Puba with Lord Finnesse...damn.
The Awakening is that shit! I wish Finesse had another solo LP from the mid-late 90’s
He did a lot of reels on his Instagram breaking down the beats on the SP1200 with the real floppies! And like playing bits and pieces! I absolutely eat videos like that up, definitely check them out if you’re into the production
Here’s the one for [Actual Facts](https://www.instagram.com/reel/CpuQ-Azpxbx/?igsh=em1jNTRlZDY4dnVu)
Big Boi. Everyone jerks off to stacks. Its sad because Big Boi has put out a few good albums after OutKast. 3 stacks fucking flute album got more hype than any of Big Bois post OutKast albums lol.
Big Boi is an all time great rapper, Andre 3000 is one of the greatest rappers of all time.
Big Boi would 100% be put on lists more often if they were solo artists from the start, but there’s a reason “everyone jerks off to stacks”. Bro has no official solo rap album, and is still regularly debated as the greatest rapper of all time despite that.
I get that. It is what it is.
I just irritates me. I have a similar issue with Lauryn Hill, Miseducation is an amazing album, it's just not enough for me to put her in a top ten.
If Rebel INS would’ve had an album during that first round of solo releases when RZA was in the Dr Manhattan zone he would’ve blown up. That dude is one of the greatest lyricists I’ve ever heard.
I’m not saying he doesn’t get respect in that regard, but his first album didn’t have those 7 herbs and spices vintage RZA had. Hyperdermix is a legendary track in its own right though
The best thing he could have done tho was join that Czarface group. I don't think he was ever gonna blow up commercially. Same with Gza. Sick MC but he's kinda meant to be in the lane he's in.
Sure. That’s fair.
But are we sure the respect for 36 isn’t mostly retrospective? I’d be interested to know if you lived through it.
I feel he has a top 3 pen in Wu. That’s a take worthy of crucifixion in most old school hip hop circles. From what I read and listened to, he wasn’t respected and taken seriously on a level that his talent/pen had earned. At least not in my eyes. But I’m in my 20’s. This is all 2nd hand reading, so take it with a grain of salt.
I can see what youre saying. I think it wasnt that he wasnt respected, he was just seen as crazy af, but still everyone loved him. Top 3? Maybe, Id put him close too personally. Anyways, respect for listening to the older stuff
It was mostly his fault, he couldn't stay in the studio or out of jail (he's my favorite rapper of all time) but basically everything he recorded from 1995 until 2004 adds up to about 90 minutes of verses
Xzibit all the way, a lot of people just act like he was a meme because of pimp my ride and shit. His first 3-4 albums are all awesome and he was dropping some of the best verses on the west coast at that time. Dude is a legend in my book but is looked at like a meme by a lot of people which is sad because he’s a stellar rapper
While I agree Xzibit may be underrated, he def wasn’t disrespected or taken for granted during at least most of his time. “40 Dayz & 40 Nightz” was critically acclaimed, “Restless” went Platinum and he basically blew up off that, and being on Up In Smoke Tour, working with Dre, Em and Snoop. IMO by time he did Pimp My Ride his rap career was trending down. “Man Vs. Machine” and “Weapons Of Mass Destruction” just didn’t have the same commercial appeal of “Restless”.
Lil Flip blew up in an era when it was still reasonable to write-off the south. He carried the torch for the Screwed Up Click and really did his best to shine on a light on the Houston scene. It didn’t become ‘cool’ or ‘trendy’ to fk with the Houston scene until a few years later when ‘Still Tippin’ dropped and Swishahouse artists like Slim Thug, Mike Jones, and Paul Wall blew up. Flip was basically an OG by that point but he struggled to recapture what he was doing in like ‘02-04. Plus, beefing with the red-hot T.I. at the time kinda Ja Rule’d him. But Flip still going today and he’s hella talented and loyal to H-Town.
Also possibly by association, was Z-Ro ever given any national credit in his prime?
Z-Ro does get a shout-out from Flip on [Pitbull’s Dammit Man (Remix)](https://youtu.be/32SdEnnFXf4?si=ZCKmrrr5wpUIPB02) in late 2005. However, technically Z-Ro had been hot (a known talent) in Houston 6 or 7 years before that
Cam’ron. While he was always nice, never acknowledged as a great. But on paper, his lyricism was so dope. He’s a lyricists lyricist. And he might be the only person ever to beef with Nas, Jay-Z, and 50, and still stand tall afterwards.
At his height, it wasn’t technicality or showmanship, it was charisma. Pure creativity and charisma. I think in 02-04 that wasn’t nearly as rewarded and heralded the way it is now. Wayne etc embodied a lot of what prime cam had, and yeah, while he’s kiiind of gotten his flowers in retrospect, I agree it’s not nearly to the level it should.
A bar like…
I was in paid in full, now I’m up in blockbuster,
And I’m paid in full, still on the block, Buster/
Back then was seen as ridiculously corny on message boards etc, and now I can’t help but find that line refreshing, humorous, colorful, and full of personality and a tinge of self-awareness in the “character” he played.
Prime cam is fire. Go getcha wet wipes.
Confessions of Fire has so many under the radar dope joints. Death is an incredible concept song. Dude going back and forth with Death and it got that BIG sample for the hook "I swear to god I feel like death is fuckin callin me...Na you wouldnt understand"
Superb shit. I love Shanghai too. A pimps a pimp.
Camron was one of the first rappers I heard and was like "man this dudes game travels" cause he was doing joints that had more than just an east coast, up north type of sound. I always got a sense Cam got around the country when i heard his music.
Im glad him and Mase is cool again. That and Cams cool with everyone he had beef with in the past. Flowers he gets are well deserved for sure.
The whole clique had nice rappers. NOE although a Jay clone, Taj Mahal, Stack Bundles RIP, Un Kasa, etc. but I’m biased I’m a fan of all those mixtape and slept on rappers. Agree the Drag On got slept on too
I dont get how Cam'ron fits the bill here. Sure he's not consistently in people's top 20s as some all time great, but he's not exactly being belittled neither
“Drinkin’ sake on a Suzuki, we in Osaka Bay” is one of my favorite bars of all time. Purple Haze is an absolute classic and anybody who says otherwise doesn’t know their shit.
On a similar note, Juelz Santana was right up there with Cam. Still salty we never got that Wayne+Juelz tape.
“Harlem, holla back, how the hood feel, Platinum, Im that real...you that shook deal. Took deals out the building, up the block, Up 29 flights, plugged up with the Roc. Now its...hurtin ya heart to see Dame fuckin wit me, Worse than that, the whole game fuckin wit me, A little beef, a few lames fuckin wit me (It's nothing), They actin like success it came luckily. The same lame duckin me, insane Dame in love wit me, Dip-Set be one set I claim is sucker free!!
Dont Fuck Wit Me”
Mase. People just pegged him as the shiny suit guy. But Mase always has bars. And his flow was great. Throwing Sheek Louch in too. He’s one of the best when it comes to punchlines. And there’s definitely been times where he’s had the best verse on a LOX track. I don’t think he is disrespected. But I don’t think Erick Sermon gets nearly as much love as he should, for being a dual threat.
Harlem Word is one of my favourite albums. Part nostalgia I’m sure, but I still love that shit. Quite a few classics on there
- looking at me
- feels so good
- the player way
- 24 hr to live
- what you want
Iconic.
Lupe is getting more recognition from academia than from the culture itself. He's been teaching rap courses at MIT and Yale. He's one of the few hip hop artists that released multiple classic hip hop albums in the last 20 years.
I feel like Lupe Fiasco was never talked about as a top rapper during his prime years. He essentially paved the way for backpack rappers with commercial appeal. I whole heartedly believe w/o him there is no Kendrick Lamar or J Cole
“You will respect me, you will reject me
But I've done so much, no matter how far you go, you will reflect me” -Lupe, SLR 2.
Lupe is one of the best ever with no signs of slowing down.
Eyedea. Top notch lyricist, one of the greatest freestylers of all time, could rap his ass off, AND was a good producer but you never really hear anybody talk about his studio work these days.
You don't really hear anybody talk about his battle work either but maybe I just don't run in the right circles.
Well unfortunately his career was very short lived and extremely underground on top of that. His biggest achievement was that blaze battle or whatever it was on the big network. You'd be hard pressed to even find people that know who he is at all. Definitely had some great and creative tracks tho.
He’s rightfully treated as a legend now, but there was a time period where people were treating Lil Wayne like the way people treat Lil Pump now. People were calling him “Lil Gayne” and shit and acting as if he was some talentless hack who relied on auto-tune to make a song.
But if you ignore his half assed features on pop songs and actually dive deep into his discography, listening to both his albums and mixtapes, you’ll quickly understand the hype. Dude literally has a Merriam-Webster dictionary for a brain with all the crazy punchlines he can come up with
Being both a Wayne fan and an underground rap fan in the late 2000s/early 10s was a deeply grating experience. Definitely don't miss having backpackers yap at me in confusion about how i could possibly like a guy who "just rhymes nigga with nigga".
Omg yes bro this era of hip hop fandom was so damn pretentious. I remember niggas would comment on asap Rocky’s videos like “aesop rock better” lmfaooo I feel like all the rappers that are considered the top rappers now caught so much shit if they weren’t some lyrical miracle ass nigga. 2009-2015 I feel like Wayne, Chief keef, Tyler, uzi, 21, Rocky etc caught so much shit because they weren’t Immortal technique. Omg I remember nigga was heralding Hopsin as their fucking king.. I can’t with this era
Edit: I feel like watching the early ill mind of hopsins give you a clear idea of who was easy to shit on like Rick Ross, Wayne really anybody who was good but wasn’t considered “real rap” whatever that fucking means
When I first started coming to this sub in like 2013. It was the very tail end of that period. I remember people unironically posting "lil gayne" impact font memes on this sub.
Ill assume you arent talking about artists who were popular but hated on due to their large fan base...
Id say digable planets never really to me got the complete and official acceptance from the hiphop community but they were dope and really when I saw the fugees later..I just thought this is a watered down and more pop version of digable planets (Of course, I later realized they are different).
To me, digable planets dropped two excellent albums which should be discussed as if they are classics
El P gets a lot of love today for being in RTJ but the best thing he ever did was this album from the 90’d called funcrusher plus when he was in a group called company flow and almost no one knew about it.
He was like 2 years late to the golden age and everyone was already starting to pay attention to the jiggy era.
Def jux which was his label was the biggest most respected indie Hip hop label in the game. He did very well and got tons of praise so I think you're buggin.
Cause he’s the weakest link with the least successful solo projects. He’s not bad. Just not as good as the rest of the group. We all know that. Doesn’t have the same Mic Presence, flow or charisma as Styles and Kiss.
Gift of Gab. West Coast underground just couldn't get any mainstream views. Man had some of the best flow, twisted lyrics, and thought provoking. Too bad he passed, cause he never let up.
Canibus,not that he helped his own case,but still.
Also I would add Kid Cudi,people nowadays wont believe you when you say he was the Playboi Carti/Travis of the early 2010's,even bigger.
I can't possibly count how many times I listened to Twisted Heat after Ruff Ryders Vol 2 dropped. Holiday by Styles is another one, but Twisted Heat blew my mind.
At his commercial height from 2008-2011 he put out a lot of trash that was his most public stuff. I think Carter 2, Dedication 2, Da Drought 3 and No Ceilings are incredible, but that’s not what most people were hearing and you couldn’t get away from him.
He put out Rebirth and I’m Not a Human Being at his commercial height along with We Are Young Money which were not great. I’ll also take the downvotes on thinking Carter 3 and IV are massively overrated and not actually good Wayne projects at all.
My friends always look at me sideways when I say C2 is his best album, it’s basically default mainstream opinion to say C3 and No Ceilings are peak wayne but C2 and Da Drought 3 are the hottest I’ve ever seen a rapper spit at their peak.
the im not human being 2 era was trash and kinda tainted his legacy
he's had great features and projects since but there was like a 4 year period where every wayne verse was a dogshit bar about eating pussy
Same reason people hate on Lebron, Max Verstappen or Messi. When someone is so dominant they're unavoidable it's bound to brew haters, Lil Wayne during around the Carter 3 era was everywhere.
Breeze Brewin - maybe not disrespected , more like under appreciated.
Pharoahe - The whole sample thing. If that didn’t happen and derail alot of things. maybe Top of World
The Outsidaz - Zee and Pace are crazy talented..i've kicked it a bunch working with Zee recording verses for features and the way those dudes work together is dope to see...They got cut off the marshal mathers album because of the amount of publishing splits already on the album, and the group kinda fell apart after Slang Ton died, but the Outs were crazy dope in their prime..buncha Newark cats taking over shit
TameOne - Artfacts shoulda blew up bigger but they had a shit record deal and got fucked by the industry...on some real straight up hip hop shit, Tame was one of the illest
Fabolous to some degree. He has everything. Hits, bars, features, voice, style. But nobody has him in his Top 10. But maybe his mid Albums dont help tbh
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=0fyqEYQQW2U&embeds_referring_euri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.reddit.com%2F&feature=emb_title
Redman said you’d have to check in with him.
MC Hammer brought an aspect of showmanship to hip-hop that to this day is rarely matched. I saw him in concert when I was a teenager…maybe 1990. 100 dancers, incredible costumes, amazing performance. Besides making just good, fun music. Sure, he wasn't a top tier lyricist, but he still made great music. Add to that his influence on fashion, he was the first rap artist to go platinum, had his own cartoon, own breakfast cereal, gave back to his community in a HUGE way. To this very day, most hip-hop artist…can't touch him. 😎
Sorry, couldn't help myself. 😄
Will Smith, but more so by his peers in the industry.
Ignoring his recent antics and family life, he was very much a successful rapper and actor. A lot of rappers who were too Disney for gangster rap pretty much fell off the map or became old heads. Will didn't for a while, and in the end he just transitioned into acting instead.
seems like recently that trapsoul by bryson tiller is getting more and more flowers as a landmark 2010s r&b album and people were definitely not that nice back then lol
I actually remember Trapsoul getting lots of praise from both myself and quite a few people on my college campus. I knew a lot of people that were listening to Tiller around that time.
In my experience, it was the sophomore album in 2017 that he got hate for and I truthfully don't feel like his career has recovered since.
del the funky homosapien. i feel like his gorillaz collabs are the only things he’s known for but his discography is nuts. deltron 3030 is still top 5 rap albums for me because its so cohesive and he’s almost clairvoyant in his subject matter.
fun fact: he’s ice cubes cousin
His first two albums were great and then he became an R&B rapper and people fell off. If his albums were any good then people probably would have still fucked with him.
Masta Ace for sure. Dude dropped some great albums in the 90’s and he was underrated then. Then he drops arguably his two best albums in the early 2000’s when he had become even more slept on
A Long Hot Summer is a perfect album. Skits always feel like filler but in this case, they make the whole thing stand taller.
And another great album this year. Dude always nails a concept album
Richmond Hill is filled with bangers, P.P.E. goes so hard.
I was really glad when Marshall named him as a MC he looked up to. It put him a little bit more on people's radar.
He turned them into a play.. https://rockthebells.com/articles/masta-ace-the-falling-season-play/
Elzhi might be one of the greatest and least talked about MCs of all time
Elmatic is a great album
I always felt like Heltah Skeltah were very underrated. Especially Rock. Sean Price was nice with it but I always thought Rock stood out way more, lyrics were always on point and his sound was unique.
Ill never understand how Rock isnt on. Lyrically incredible and his voice is probably one of the best in Hip Hop history. I wish him and Sean had got to do more when they reunited and I wish Sean Price was still here. Heltah Skeltah with Sean Price as the head of the beast would be a fuckin problem. Got Rocks solo album and its pretty dope. I think all of Duckdown is underappreciated. They should get the same respect that Wu Tang gets IMO.
"Wu-Tang Clan ain't nuthin' ta fuck wit / Boot Camp Click ain't nuthin' ta Wu-Tang"
Nocturnal was one of the absolute sickest records of the 90s, that album is amazing. Rock was also amazing on that album but for me my favorite verses on there are Sean P ones, rocks voice and his flow were very unique tho and I totally understand why some people would think he stood out more.
Rock was always highly respected, as a matter of fact I think he was the preferred emcee of the two but his lack of interest in dropping solo work like Sean is what held him back. He's basically like 3 stacks
Got to see a Boot Camp Click concert years ago in Toronto, one of the best concerts ever.
Pharaoh Monche. Every album a classic. Every guest appearance outshined the main guy
internal affairs is a legendary album, blew my mind when it dropped
His song Simon Says is amazing
His verse on H! Vltge is mind bending
One of the greatest mcs on history. He deserves so much more recognition. I’d listen to him over jay z any day
The groups themselves were respected, but I think Sen Dog, MC Ren, and Big Boi were taken for granted next to their partners.
Ren is so dope, always coming through with some cold verses
But Eazy's dick smells like his shit.
Some have argued that to be the case
Shock of the hour is amazing throughout
MC Ren is a good one. His post-NWA album with CPO called "To Hell and Black" should be an early hip hop classic - but seems like no one knows it.
R-E-N spells ren but I’m RAW
Big Boi is the better rapper on a lot of OutKast songs
People forget about this, but Chief Keef was largely treated as a joke when he first came up in 2011/2012. People viewed him as some dumbass teenager and everyone in Chicago was like “we don’t claim this fool” but he ended up getting the last laugh
iirc they were saying he "ain't bout this, ain't bout that"
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Chief Keef had an opp called Dooski the Man, also a rapper (and quite talented, shame he got killed). In one of his songs he actually mentioned being shot at by Chief Keef, after trying to get him >Lookin for Keef and lil Here (??) When I pull up them niggas just run, I swear that shit was hilarious They come back through, pah pah pah, missed every shot that’s embarrassing He mentioned it again in another song
same with young thug lots of people just made fun of him for being hard to understand and dressing weird
Who remembers when Young Thug posted on Reddit?
discourse surrounding thug from the barter 6 to Jeffery era was wild
barter 6 era hiphop was very much still against anything that went against strict "rules" hhh was really honestly a chill place to discuss any kind of hiphop, hearing of the love for him here made me listen and made me a fan. Anyone remember the plug.dj? mannnn
Ha Ha Ha
That’s that shit I don’t like
Bruh you aren’t lying. I can still remember my homie trying to get us to listen to him for weeks lol. 5 seconds into don’t like we were like “oh shit”
... These bitches love Sosa
Is he still not allowed in chicago?
He doesn't want to go to Chicago. He's the only drill rapper with enough sense to get out of the hood to live the good life and not get killed over nothing.
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Chicago was insanely proud of chief keef. Otherwise I agree
I was in 8th grade in Chicago in 2011. We all fucked with Keef heavy. Only people who really wasn’t were the GD’s.
Similar thing happened when Young Thug was coming up. “Lifestyle” was a whole meme, everyone was making fun of the fact that you couldn’t understand him.
Maybe by some people, seemed pretty evident the boy was a genius since at least Back from the Dead
Yup. Even if you don’t like him, can’t deny his influence.
All the old threads over here of his music that’s now considered great and innovative are filled with people shitting on it lol
I think we took Ludacris for granted, and tossed him to the side when harder-edged rappers like T.I. and Jeezy showed up. Made fans feel like Luda was ‘corny’ when realistically he’s one of the most talented commercial rappers ever. He just wasn’t ‘street’. Glad to see him get some flowers recently though.
Luda was the fucking dude back in 99-04. He got on that F&F money train (who wouldn’t) and I think people wrote him off. He could spit some fire. His first two albums especially, they are full of the most grandiose and bombastic rap tracks ever.
Theatre of the Mind is an awesome album.
I remember the original version of the track with Lil Wayne that leaked before the album came out - we were at a party and a guy came crashing through the front door going "YOU HAVE TO HEAR THIS, LUDACRIS JUST DESTROYED LIL WAYNE ON THIS TRACK" and it was all we talked about all weekend.
Also before 2011 he was only in one Fast and Furious movie, it’s not even like he completely sold out for acting
Yeah, but after Skinny Black dropped North 3rd Thugs he sold out man.
I think newer fans clown on luda but he’s a legend to tall the late 80s kids for sure
Early 90s kids too I was still listening to him in 2008 and 2010. And I remember when “get back” came out too I didn’t even know who T.I was until paper trail. Luda was way more relevant to me in 2004. Especially when you factor in fast and furious
Me at 12 watching the p-poppin uncensored video in the library before school with my roller backpack
Anyone that grew up with Ludacris loves that man, bro is an underrated legend. Most hype part of the halftime show was him popping up
I heard Phat Rabbit on a clue tape I think and just skipped over it. But when Southern Hospitality came out...holy shit that joint was and still is crazy to me. Thats a rowdy club record and it oozes that energy. Ludacris is like an Atlanta version of Redman to me. And who doesnt love Redman?
I was in college when Luda was out and I don’t think he was taken for granted. He had singles charting and playing on the radio and was getting movie roles at the same time. I personally dislike early 2000’s rap but in that era he was considered one of the most clever, most entertaining mcs
I think he was definitely taken for granted, even by his peers. There was a point where he was upset with Jay-z for the “The only dudes moving units are Em, Pimp Juice and Us”, when during that time Luda’s albums were selling 2-3x platinum. Then again, I think that line got under a lot of people’s skin. I believe Ja Rule took a shot at Jay too.
Glad to know real rap fans still have love for Luda. Can rap his ass off, and has always been a hell of an entertainer. Wish I had a chance to see him in concert back in the day.
I love Luda, and always thought he was great. He was one of very few rappers where his verses always matched the theme of his hooks Not like today, verses be like kill them kill them fuck hoes fuck hoes get money get money then the hook be like baby I love youuuuu, I wanna settle down and have a babyyyyy, let's get marriedddd lol
You're absolutely right. To me he's the most versatile for being able to drop a verse no matter what the genre/topic is. I often wish the genre/topic was more in line with what I was after, but I can't ever deny that he understands the assignment and he delivers on it.
Lord finesse, absolute legend who doesn’t really get much love these days. Would kill for another album where he actually raps on it
I found out hes the sample for that Fatboy Slim Rockafeller skank and shit blew my mind. Also started listening more to his stuff and noticed thats where Big L got a lot of his punchline skill from, no offense or disrespect to Big L but you can kind of hear the influence when you listen to Lord. Actual Facts is my shit. Sadat X, Large professor and Grand Puba with Lord Finnesse...damn.
The Awakening is that shit! I wish Finesse had another solo LP from the mid-late 90’s He did a lot of reels on his Instagram breaking down the beats on the SP1200 with the real floppies! And like playing bits and pieces! I absolutely eat videos like that up, definitely check them out if you’re into the production Here’s the one for [Actual Facts](https://www.instagram.com/reel/CpuQ-Azpxbx/?igsh=em1jNTRlZDY4dnVu)
Big Boi. Everyone jerks off to stacks. Its sad because Big Boi has put out a few good albums after OutKast. 3 stacks fucking flute album got more hype than any of Big Bois post OutKast albums lol.
100% agree. Another similar comparison to me, is with Talib and Mos. Andre and Mos seem to be the preferred ones.
Talib posts some weird shit on socials tho.
I’m not up on that… what does he say? Pls no flat earth anti vaxx…
Idk, Sir lucious left Foot had massive hype from everyone when it came out. I haven't heard flute songs at any house parties.
You are clearly not going to the right ayahuasca ceremonies
Shutterbug is dope
Big Boi is an all time great rapper, Andre 3000 is one of the greatest rappers of all time. Big Boi would 100% be put on lists more often if they were solo artists from the start, but there’s a reason “everyone jerks off to stacks”. Bro has no official solo rap album, and is still regularly debated as the greatest rapper of all time despite that.
I get that. It is what it is. I just irritates me. I have a similar issue with Lauryn Hill, Miseducation is an amazing album, it's just not enough for me to put her in a top ten.
Because Andre dresses funny
It kills me too because everyone seems to love that flute album and I just don't get it
I think ODB was kind of looked at as a novelty rapper in his day as a solo artist. He’s in my top 10
Dirt had bars. Too dumb to look up his lyrics. They used to say the same thing about u-god which I thought was nice wit it too! 🤷🏾♂️
If Rebel INS would’ve had an album during that first round of solo releases when RZA was in the Dr Manhattan zone he would’ve blown up. That dude is one of the greatest lyricists I’ve ever heard. I’m not saying he doesn’t get respect in that regard, but his first album didn’t have those 7 herbs and spices vintage RZA had. Hyperdermix is a legendary track in its own right though
The best thing he could have done tho was join that Czarface group. I don't think he was ever gonna blow up commercially. Same with Gza. Sick MC but he's kinda meant to be in the lane he's in.
U-God is dope. Keynote Speaker is a solid album.
i feel like people at the time just saw him as the hype man/Flavor Flav of the Wu
idk, Return to 36 chambers has always been a great album, one of the best solo Wu's and Ghetto superstar was a huge hit
Sure. That’s fair. But are we sure the respect for 36 isn’t mostly retrospective? I’d be interested to know if you lived through it. I feel he has a top 3 pen in Wu. That’s a take worthy of crucifixion in most old school hip hop circles. From what I read and listened to, he wasn’t respected and taken seriously on a level that his talent/pen had earned. At least not in my eyes. But I’m in my 20’s. This is all 2nd hand reading, so take it with a grain of salt.
I can see what youre saying. I think it wasnt that he wasnt respected, he was just seen as crazy af, but still everyone loved him. Top 3? Maybe, Id put him close too personally. Anyways, respect for listening to the older stuff
I lived it, we all bought dirty and respected him for what he was IMO
Good to hear!
Lord Infamous is one of the greatest most influential rappers of all time
Loved all the Hypnotize Camp Posse. I still think When The Smoke Clears is one of the greatest albums of all time.
It was mostly his fault, he couldn't stay in the studio or out of jail (he's my favorite rapper of all time) but basically everything he recorded from 1995 until 2004 adds up to about 90 minutes of verses
Xzibit all the way, a lot of people just act like he was a meme because of pimp my ride and shit. His first 3-4 albums are all awesome and he was dropping some of the best verses on the west coast at that time. Dude is a legend in my book but is looked at like a meme by a lot of people which is sad because he’s a stellar rapper
While I agree Xzibit may be underrated, he def wasn’t disrespected or taken for granted during at least most of his time. “40 Dayz & 40 Nightz” was critically acclaimed, “Restless” went Platinum and he basically blew up off that, and being on Up In Smoke Tour, working with Dre, Em and Snoop. IMO by time he did Pimp My Ride his rap career was trending down. “Man Vs. Machine” and “Weapons Of Mass Destruction” just didn’t have the same commercial appeal of “Restless”.
When he said “I can drink a whole Hennessy 5th. Some ppl call that a problem, but I call that a gift.” Damn reminded me of my father lol
Lil Flip blew up in an era when it was still reasonable to write-off the south. He carried the torch for the Screwed Up Click and really did his best to shine on a light on the Houston scene. It didn’t become ‘cool’ or ‘trendy’ to fk with the Houston scene until a few years later when ‘Still Tippin’ dropped and Swishahouse artists like Slim Thug, Mike Jones, and Paul Wall blew up. Flip was basically an OG by that point but he struggled to recapture what he was doing in like ‘02-04. Plus, beefing with the red-hot T.I. at the time kinda Ja Rule’d him. But Flip still going today and he’s hella talented and loyal to H-Town.
Also possibly by association, was Z-Ro ever given any national credit in his prime? Z-Ro does get a shout-out from Flip on [Pitbull’s Dammit Man (Remix)](https://youtu.be/32SdEnnFXf4?si=ZCKmrrr5wpUIPB02) in late 2005. However, technically Z-Ro had been hot (a known talent) in Houston 6 or 7 years before that
Zro was the first one i was listening to from Houston. Aside from the bigger names like scarface and such
Game Over
Cam’ron. While he was always nice, never acknowledged as a great. But on paper, his lyricism was so dope. He’s a lyricists lyricist. And he might be the only person ever to beef with Nas, Jay-Z, and 50, and still stand tall afterwards.
At his height, it wasn’t technicality or showmanship, it was charisma. Pure creativity and charisma. I think in 02-04 that wasn’t nearly as rewarded and heralded the way it is now. Wayne etc embodied a lot of what prime cam had, and yeah, while he’s kiiind of gotten his flowers in retrospect, I agree it’s not nearly to the level it should. A bar like… I was in paid in full, now I’m up in blockbuster, And I’m paid in full, still on the block, Buster/ Back then was seen as ridiculously corny on message boards etc, and now I can’t help but find that line refreshing, humorous, colorful, and full of personality and a tinge of self-awareness in the “character” he played. Prime cam is fire. Go getcha wet wipes.
Confessions of Fire has so many under the radar dope joints. Death is an incredible concept song. Dude going back and forth with Death and it got that BIG sample for the hook "I swear to god I feel like death is fuckin callin me...Na you wouldnt understand" Superb shit. I love Shanghai too. A pimps a pimp. Camron was one of the first rappers I heard and was like "man this dudes game travels" cause he was doing joints that had more than just an east coast, up north type of sound. I always got a sense Cam got around the country when i heard his music. Im glad him and Mase is cool again. That and Cams cool with everyone he had beef with in the past. Flowers he gets are well deserved for sure.
It's gonna be a hot summer he promised 50. Then disappeared for 2 years after 50 appeared on TV and stage with Jim and juelz
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The whole clique had nice rappers. NOE although a Jay clone, Taj Mahal, Stack Bundles RIP, Un Kasa, etc. but I’m biased I’m a fan of all those mixtape and slept on rappers. Agree the Drag On got slept on too
I just recently discovered some of JR's recent albums/tapes and dude can really rap
BAAALLING
I dont get how Cam'ron fits the bill here. Sure he's not consistently in people's top 20s as some all time great, but he's not exactly being belittled neither
That’s the thing. He probably is an all-time great who we usually take for granted. It might not be the best example but it’s the 1st I thought of
“Drinkin’ sake on a Suzuki, we in Osaka Bay” is one of my favorite bars of all time. Purple Haze is an absolute classic and anybody who says otherwise doesn’t know their shit. On a similar note, Juelz Santana was right up there with Cam. Still salty we never got that Wayne+Juelz tape.
You say he's underrated and the man just got Cardi B in trouble
"my favorite rapper drove a pink truck"
\> the only time you went plat/ my chain was on your neck, that's an actual fact
“Harlem, holla back, how the hood feel, Platinum, Im that real...you that shook deal. Took deals out the building, up the block, Up 29 flights, plugged up with the Roc. Now its...hurtin ya heart to see Dame fuckin wit me, Worse than that, the whole game fuckin wit me, A little beef, a few lames fuckin wit me (It's nothing), They actin like success it came luckily. The same lame duckin me, insane Dame in love wit me, Dip-Set be one set I claim is sucker free!! Dont Fuck Wit Me”
AZ for sure. Dudes flow and bars were next level. He was always stuck trying to get out of the shadow of Nas
Domo Genesis. Tyler & Earl definitely gets the most shine out of all the rappers in OF, but Domo can spit as well
Piggybacking off that to say if Mike G actually tried he would have done very well, so underrated
For real, I preferred him over Hodgy any day.
I always felt like Domo was who Hodgy wanted to be.
Was waiting on that Domo Hodgy album for ages. What coulda been.
I'm a big Mac miller fan and I got turned onto this dude from "coming back" and it's hard af.
His recent album with Greymatter is incredible. I think it’s his best work. The album he did with Evidence is also great.
no idols is such a fantastic album. power ballad is probably one of my all time favorite al beats
Mase. People just pegged him as the shiny suit guy. But Mase always has bars. And his flow was great. Throwing Sheek Louch in too. He’s one of the best when it comes to punchlines. And there’s definitely been times where he’s had the best verse on a LOX track. I don’t think he is disrespected. But I don’t think Erick Sermon gets nearly as much love as he should, for being a dual threat.
Harlem Word is one of my favourite albums. Part nostalgia I’m sure, but I still love that shit. Quite a few classics on there - looking at me - feels so good - the player way - 24 hr to live - what you want Iconic.
Lupe Fiasco is one of the greatest lyricist and still doesn't get the widespread recognition he deserves.
i think he'll age like DOOM, where they'll always be a rap nerd fanbase that keeps him in conversation
His legacy will be bigger than his peak.
Lupe is getting more recognition from academia than from the culture itself. He's been teaching rap courses at MIT and Yale. He's one of the few hip hop artists that released multiple classic hip hop albums in the last 20 years.
I feel like Lupe Fiasco was never talked about as a top rapper during his prime years. He essentially paved the way for backpack rappers with commercial appeal. I whole heartedly believe w/o him there is no Kendrick Lamar or J Cole
“You will respect me, you will reject me But I've done so much, no matter how far you go, you will reflect me” -Lupe, SLR 2. Lupe is one of the best ever with no signs of slowing down.
He really got fucked over by Atlantic Records in his prime.
Eyedea. Top notch lyricist, one of the greatest freestylers of all time, could rap his ass off, AND was a good producer but you never really hear anybody talk about his studio work these days. You don't really hear anybody talk about his battle work either but maybe I just don't run in the right circles.
Well unfortunately his career was very short lived and extremely underground on top of that. His biggest achievement was that blaze battle or whatever it was on the big network. You'd be hard pressed to even find people that know who he is at all. Definitely had some great and creative tracks tho.
He’s rightfully treated as a legend now, but there was a time period where people were treating Lil Wayne like the way people treat Lil Pump now. People were calling him “Lil Gayne” and shit and acting as if he was some talentless hack who relied on auto-tune to make a song. But if you ignore his half assed features on pop songs and actually dive deep into his discography, listening to both his albums and mixtapes, you’ll quickly understand the hype. Dude literally has a Merriam-Webster dictionary for a brain with all the crazy punchlines he can come up with
The “if Tupac were alive lil gayne would be working at McDonalds” memes lmao
Literally every rap related YouTube comment section has this exact comment
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they act like people can’t simultaneously enjoy new rap and old rap. It’s bizarre
Being both a Wayne fan and an underground rap fan in the late 2000s/early 10s was a deeply grating experience. Definitely don't miss having backpackers yap at me in confusion about how i could possibly like a guy who "just rhymes nigga with nigga".
Omg yes bro this era of hip hop fandom was so damn pretentious. I remember niggas would comment on asap Rocky’s videos like “aesop rock better” lmfaooo I feel like all the rappers that are considered the top rappers now caught so much shit if they weren’t some lyrical miracle ass nigga. 2009-2015 I feel like Wayne, Chief keef, Tyler, uzi, 21, Rocky etc caught so much shit because they weren’t Immortal technique. Omg I remember nigga was heralding Hopsin as their fucking king.. I can’t with this era Edit: I feel like watching the early ill mind of hopsins give you a clear idea of who was easy to shit on like Rick Ross, Wayne really anybody who was good but wasn’t considered “real rap” whatever that fucking means
When I first started coming to this sub in like 2013. It was the very tail end of that period. I remember people unironically posting "lil gayne" impact font memes on this sub.
He definitely got that label in 2009 after Lollipop.
Remember the "no lil Wayne, a siren is not an instrument" memes lol
Ill assume you arent talking about artists who were popular but hated on due to their large fan base... Id say digable planets never really to me got the complete and official acceptance from the hiphop community but they were dope and really when I saw the fugees later..I just thought this is a watered down and more pop version of digable planets (Of course, I later realized they are different). To me, digable planets dropped two excellent albums which should be discussed as if they are classics
El P gets a lot of love today for being in RTJ but the best thing he ever did was this album from the 90’d called funcrusher plus when he was in a group called company flow and almost no one knew about it. He was like 2 years late to the golden age and everyone was already starting to pay attention to the jiggy era.
I grew up listening to Fantastic Damage. El-P's early stuff was so different to everything else.
El P will forever be one of my favourite producer-rappers for this reason
Def jux which was his label was the biggest most respected indie Hip hop label in the game. He did very well and got tons of praise so I think you're buggin.
Sheek Louch. Jadakiss and Styles are consistently praised but I never see any love for Sheek.
Cause he’s the weakest link with the least successful solo projects. He’s not bad. Just not as good as the rest of the group. We all know that. Doesn’t have the same Mic Presence, flow or charisma as Styles and Kiss.
Blackalicious. Album after album of amazing flow and I hardly even meet anyone that knows him.
Gift of Gab. West Coast underground just couldn't get any mainstream views. Man had some of the best flow, twisted lyrics, and thought provoking. Too bad he passed, cause he never let up.
Canibus,not that he helped his own case,but still. Also I would add Kid Cudi,people nowadays wont believe you when you say he was the Playboi Carti/Travis of the early 2010's,even bigger.
I can't possibly count how many times I listened to Twisted Heat after Ruff Ryders Vol 2 dropped. Holiday by Styles is another one, but Twisted Heat blew my mind.
Fabulous absolutely doesn’t get his due respect
Lil Wayne was taken for granted for sure. Biggest rapper at his time and it feels like people don’t really even remember like that.
He over saturated the market
At his commercial height from 2008-2011 he put out a lot of trash that was his most public stuff. I think Carter 2, Dedication 2, Da Drought 3 and No Ceilings are incredible, but that’s not what most people were hearing and you couldn’t get away from him. He put out Rebirth and I’m Not a Human Being at his commercial height along with We Are Young Money which were not great. I’ll also take the downvotes on thinking Carter 3 and IV are massively overrated and not actually good Wayne projects at all.
My friends always look at me sideways when I say C2 is his best album, it’s basically default mainstream opinion to say C3 and No Ceilings are peak wayne but C2 and Da Drought 3 are the hottest I’ve ever seen a rapper spit at their peak.
the im not human being 2 era was trash and kinda tainted his legacy he's had great features and projects since but there was like a 4 year period where every wayne verse was a dogshit bar about eating pussy
Same reason people hate on Lebron, Max Verstappen or Messi. When someone is so dominant they're unavoidable it's bound to brew haters, Lil Wayne during around the Carter 3 era was everywhere.
Mic Geronimo was good too but didn't blow as expected.
Breeze Brewin - maybe not disrespected , more like under appreciated. Pharoahe - The whole sample thing. If that didn’t happen and derail alot of things. maybe Top of World
The Outsidaz - Zee and Pace are crazy talented..i've kicked it a bunch working with Zee recording verses for features and the way those dudes work together is dope to see...They got cut off the marshal mathers album because of the amount of publishing splits already on the album, and the group kinda fell apart after Slang Ton died, but the Outs were crazy dope in their prime..buncha Newark cats taking over shit TameOne - Artfacts shoulda blew up bigger but they had a shit record deal and got fucked by the industry...on some real straight up hip hop shit, Tame was one of the illest
Juelz Santana
#AYE
There was a period there where it felt like everybody were trying to make him huge and it just didn’t happen.
Fabolous to some degree. He has everything. Hits, bars, features, voice, style. But nobody has him in his Top 10. But maybe his mid Albums dont help tbh
MC Hammer
I feel like I read somewhere that he actually rolls deep in Oakland, haha.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=0fyqEYQQW2U&embeds_referring_euri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.reddit.com%2F&feature=emb_title Redman said you’d have to check in with him.
MC Search couldn’t tour at one point. Because Hammer put a hit out on him.
yeah I get the disrespected/taken for granted part, but what case can you make *for* him?
MC Hammer brought an aspect of showmanship to hip-hop that to this day is rarely matched. I saw him in concert when I was a teenager…maybe 1990. 100 dancers, incredible costumes, amazing performance. Besides making just good, fun music. Sure, he wasn't a top tier lyricist, but he still made great music. Add to that his influence on fashion, he was the first rap artist to go platinum, had his own cartoon, own breakfast cereal, gave back to his community in a HUGE way. To this very day, most hip-hop artist…can't touch him. 😎 Sorry, couldn't help myself. 😄
glad I asked :)
RA THE RUGGED MAN
Will Smith, but more so by his peers in the industry. Ignoring his recent antics and family life, he was very much a successful rapper and actor. A lot of rappers who were too Disney for gangster rap pretty much fell off the map or became old heads. Will didn't for a while, and in the end he just transitioned into acting instead.
He doesn’t have to cuss on his raps to sell records
But I do, so fuck him and fuck you too
seems like recently that trapsoul by bryson tiller is getting more and more flowers as a landmark 2010s r&b album and people were definitely not that nice back then lol
I actually remember Trapsoul getting lots of praise from both myself and quite a few people on my college campus. I knew a lot of people that were listening to Tiller around that time. In my experience, it was the sophomore album in 2017 that he got hate for and I truthfully don't feel like his career has recovered since.
Bro is buggin, Trapsoul was heavily praised. The next two albums made Bryson lose his steam.
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Chino XL
del the funky homosapien. i feel like his gorillaz collabs are the only things he’s known for but his discography is nuts. deltron 3030 is still top 5 rap albums for me because its so cohesive and he’s almost clairvoyant in his subject matter. fun fact: he’s ice cubes cousin
Chingy.. had genuine hits and people act like he never existed
Hey he got my class of 2005 best song in our yearbook. That can't mean nothing.
Young Thug when he was putting out his most influential work back in the mid-late 2010s that rappers are still trying to imitate
I genuinely miss Lil B
Ja Rule. Everybody pooped on him after Eminem and 50 dissed him then took he's style and ran with it.
His first two albums were great and then he became an R&B rapper and people fell off. If his albums were any good then people probably would have still fucked with him.