In keeping with jazz tradition, thereâs an improvisatory quality to the way she sings throughout the album, unraveling structured pop hooks with stream-of-consciousness riffs and scat-like repetition. Acid Rap is Chance and his rawest, realest and scrappiest, not quite yet a Kanye prodigy with a gospel bent. The gorgeous âMarvins Roomâ was not a specific exception; the record smolders in the same auburn glowâdowntempo bass-pulses, dulled synths, tinkering, unattached pianos and Drakeâs feathery voice. The genre-bending, 10-song project is tantalizingly short, but it was long enough for listeners to realize her whimsical sonic universe is the place to be for the next decade.–A.G. Gibbs is tough with lines like âBut fuck my enemies what you looking for bitch I got âem.â Which can read sorta hollow, but when layered over Madlibâs soul beats and horn samples on a song about fried chicken among other things, itâs mad fluid. Just over three weeks later, Chicago rapper Fatima Warner, aka Noname, released her gorgeous debut mixtape Telefone, a smooth, jazz-inflected listen packed with heartbreaking social commentary about life as a black woman in America. After revealing our Top 100 Albums of the 2010s, we’re now getting a bit more specific with genre-by-genre breakdowns. This is where he first plucked a quaint indie rock vocalist in Bon Iverâs Justin Vernon, weaved him masterfully into his own hip-hop fabric and vaulted the mixture of the two. You can stan for the â90s golden era of hip hop, or maybe vouch for the 2000s boom, but you canât deny the evolution of the genre in the 2010s. From Drake, Future, and Kanye West to Kendrick Lamar, J. Cole, and Young Thug, here are the best hip-hop albums of the last decade. The past decade, 2010 to 2019, was full of both impressive and lacking albums by artists. âI been saying how I feel at the wrong time.â Where previous Kanye albums were rolled out with red-carpet hype, Pablo felt like a purposeful clusterfuck. Top 10 rap albums of the decade From Jay-Z and Cardi B to Nas and the late great Nipsey Hussle, this was a tough list to put together A laser-focused Pusha makes every lyric count, deftly depicting the luxurious life of a drug kingpin-turned-rapper who hardly recognizes the genre heâs spent two decades in (âIâm too rare amongst all of this pink hair, ooh / Still do the Fred Astaire on a brickâ). â Scott Russell, Take Care is certainly impressed with itself, but often rightfully so. The 30 Best Hip-Hop Albums of the 2010s 1. Not only did he unveil the tracklist on a piece of fucking notebook paper, he scrapped it multiple times. Weeks before its release, he defined Pablo as âa Gospel albumââthe equivalent of constructing a steeple on a Walmart and calling it a church. Instead, there are direct confrontations and call-outs: Don Lemon and cops get their just desserts on âThieves;â Donald Trump and All Lives Matter get suplexed on âTalk to Me;â reckless retweeters get splayed on âA Report to the Shareholders: Kill Your Masters;â land-grabbing developers in Atlantaâs Cabbagetown neighborhood get blasted on âDonât Get Captured.â RTJ3 isnât just a reaction to the shitshow that was 2016; itâs a line-itemized receipt. Love. âI just hope I make it âtil tomorrow,â he says at the end of âPROM/KING.â Saba and the city that raised him are growing through darkness. âI been out of my mind a long time,â Kanye raps over droning synth tones. On her debut LP, SZA trades Zâs whispery vocals for a robust timbre steeped in jazz and soul, evoking Amy Winehouse and earlier predecessors like Billie Holiday. Kendrick Lamar – To Pimp a Butterfly 2. When Butterfly came out, Lamar was coronated hip-hopâs king and savior. The 22-track “playlist” embodies a collaborative spirit, highlighting Jorja Smith and Young Thug. 10. There are nostalgic storytelling tracks like “Statute Of Limitations” and “I’m Not Crazy, Life Is” alongside straight up braggadocio like “2 Dollar Bill” and “Girl’s Best Friend,” but in the end, the unifying factor is that “Sam” always gets his due.–A.W. This is a list of the best-selling hip-hop albums in the United States from 2010 to 2019 based on RIAA certification and Nielsen SoundScan sales tracking. Danny Brown has said that he looked to push the boundaries with his second album XXX; mission accomplished. The stark ballad âMade in Americaâ (featuring a solid but underwhelming Ocean hook) provides fascinating glimpses into Kanyeâs past, coupled with his trademark wordplay: âStarted a little blog just to get some traffic / Old folks will tell you not to play in traffic / A million hits and the web crashes.â In the Nina Simone-fueled/RZA-produced showstopper âNew Day,â both rappers cut the bullshit, dispensing life adviceâlearned the hard wayâdirectly to their unborn sons: âIâll never let him ever hit the strip club; I learned the hard way that ainât the place to get love,â goes one choked-up Kanye couplet. ... One of the best albums of 2019, Rap Or Go To The League finds 2 Chainz balancing his … Trap Muzik supplemented the grimy sound of T.I. FKA twigs: LP1 6. Thatâs just math making a strong case that this LP is the best thing this groupâs ever done. The rest of the record unfurls with the same bittersweetnessâcontemplative and cerebral, balanced out with a playful plinking piano or sunny âdoo doos.â With Telefone, Noname invites us into a meaningful conversation, and weâd all be fools not to be on the other end of the line. Rodeo gave the very idea of punk-rap a voice on the Billboard charts. Danny’s spirited delivery and no-filter songwriting veered the star-making 19-track album from hilarious and absurd to manic and sinister, all-the-while showing that he’s a supremely gifted rapper. While the 1990s are inarguably considered the Golden Era of hip-hop and the 2000s were the biggest boom period for the genre, the 2010s have seen the most innovative explosion of talent in its 40-year history to date. In highlighting the struggles inherent in his morality, he forces his listeners to consider their own. This isnât the music of someone whoâs been born again. When RCA threw $3 million behind A$AP Rocky, it wasnât just investing in the Harlem rapper. There may not be an album here that better embodies its title than 21 Savage and Metro Boomin’s Savage Mode. â911/Mr. The first number-one song of the decade was "Empire State of Mind" by Jay-Z featuring Alicia Keys.In 2012, Drake broke the record for the most Hot Rap Songs number-one songs, previously held by Diddy. It sure seems like a vote of no confidence, then, that instead of introducing listeners to Rockyâs codeine-and-cashmere aesthetic, the first real single from Rockyâs RCA debut, Long. Some of the artists mentioned above are Warner Music artists. No one knew if he could lift the weight of the expectations levied against him, most especially because Section .80 added up to a ton (see: “Kush & Corinthians,” “Ronald Reagan Era,” and the J. Cole-produced “HiiiPower”). Everyone has their own favorite, and each decade of the genre’s existence has brought its own merits, weaving new threads into its ever-expanding tapestry of culture, history, and sound. Some might see the missing tooth, the long messy hair, the tongue sticking out of his mouth and the infectious smile, and cast Brown as rapâs goofy class clown. Embattled mayor Rahm Emmanuel announced he would not be seeking re-election. Shortsighted rap fans had lumped Joey Badass into a neo-nineties lane based on his earlier work but All American Badass was the moment he shed that reputation and let it be known that he had his own voice. âStephen F. Kearse, The Low End Theory and Midnight Marauders are great Tribe albums. The attention that Beyoncéâs release earned herâand letâs not pretend every Beyoncé release doesnât get attention, but this turned heads that typically wouldnât turnâis for good reasons, to perpetuate the pushing of womenâs equality into every conversation and the need for reexamination of societal expectations and attitudes toward women, not limited to sexuality, motherhood, the workplace and appearance. George Clooney’s ‘The Midnight Sky’ Is A Fine Space Movie And We’re Lucky To Have It, The Rundown: Merry Christmas, Let’s Watch ‘The Nice Guys’, Pedro Pascal On Having The Time Of His Life In ‘Wonder Woman 1984,’ And If He’ll Send You A Refund For Your ‘Mandalorian’ Razor Crest Toy, Indigenous Comedians Speak About The Importance Of Listening To Native Voices, Deepak Chopra Shares Secrets From His Personal Week-Long Silent Retreat, Master Brewer Jaega Wise On Getting More Women Into The Beer Industry And Brewing During A Pandemic, The Ultimate Streetwear Holiday Gift Guide For 2020. Mac Miller’s final album may very well have been his best — as a producer, as a writer, and as a self-possessed human being. 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Kanye West: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (2010). Songs like “Heavenly Father” and “Tranquility” exemplify that while it wasn’t all good in Rashad’s world, he undeniably has the talent to help him find his way out of the doldrums. How I Got Over has features from Monsters of Folk, Joanna Newsom, John Legend, and more. Mac’s knack for bringing out the best in his collaborators and love for the craft of making music shines through on tracks like “Inertia” and “Small Worlds,” leaving behind a legacy as one of rap’s more prolific, honest, and vulnerable artists yet.–A.W. âPussy, money, weed / All I really need,â he raps on âPMW,â and with the exception of fashion, thatâs about all he ever raps about. Not to sell Youth short, but Millerâs loosely saccharine production fit a Staples whoâs cooled quite a bit since then. Next up, our Top 25 Hip-Hop and R&B Albums of the 2010s. Simply put, it’s just that good. Considering the unorthodox release, which included music videos for every song and lack of a standard pre-release marketing push, the album was historic, especially considering that, at least initially, it worked, and the sales boomed as they had never boomed previously. Music Quiz / 2010s Artists on Their Album Cover Random Music or Artist Quiz Can you name the bands and musicians based on a picture that was on the cover of an album released in the 2010s? Rap was everywhere. Itâs developed in parts, compelling, and his existential struggles are somewhat realized. The albumâs various title shiftsâdamn, I really miss Swishâdominated headlines for months. Right there in the first verse, after some silly âna-na-nas,â Chance lays out the dilemma of growing up for his growing audience. Sifting through the wreckage of a failed relationship is never easy, and Nas’ earnest reflections constitute some of his best, most commendable writing in years. On Flower Boy, Tyler ditches his shock jock persona and dark, aggressive sound, instead opting for mellow, sun-soaked beats and lyrics that probe emotional complexities. âCigarettes on cigarettes, my mama think I stank / I got burn holes in my hoodies, all my homies think itâs dank.â Acid Rap positions Chance as an angst-ridden up-and-comer, a 20-something unsure of where life will take him next, but heâs sure as hell gonna make the best of where he is at the time. 100. This isnât a gospel album, despite its occasional, vivid bursts of feel-the-spirit belting (thatâs Kirk Franklin on opener âUltralight Beamâ) and Christian references. They waste no breath in declaring their summary of hip-hop in 2018: âSmino Grigio, Noname, and Saba the best rappers / And radio n****s sound like they wearing adult diapers.â Itâs on the albumâs first two tracks (âSelf,â followed by the observatory âBlaxpoitationâ), however, where Noname forges more political waters, delivering deeply important lines of poetry about racism and sexism. With just seven songs, Pusha T delivered the 2010s’ quintessential drug rap album with Daytona. The first revelation is âNew Slaves,â a racially charged gospel set to a gothic, electro-choral swirl. Each song is dedicated to a notable Black woman and lives as an exhibition in a luxury art gallery. âRobert Ham, While hip-hop media has been fixated on the line about âkissing white boys since 2004,â the truth is that Tyler, The Creatorâs 2017 album Flower Boy is much more than a revelation about his sexuality. They may still be far from the light, but theyâre also far from done. Bring Me The Horizon, ‘amo’ (SONY/RCA, 2019) 98 Kendrick Lamar – DAMN. He finds himself crucified on the very first trackâhis desire to do good, his outstretched hand to the blind of the world, turned upon him and used to undo him. Kanye Westâs persona elicits strong reactions, but MBDTF flashes the musical genius of pop cultureâs most polarizing figure. Parquet Courts: Wide Awake! All the building blocks are there, though; the passion, the fury, the intellect. While this decade wouldnât necessarily be categorized as hip-hopâs heyday (thatâs what the 1990s are for, after all) it was a truly distinct time period in which rappers experimented and pushed the genreâs limits, perhaps more than in any hip-hop age before. He canât help being human, and like the best among us, he is capable of, and often beholden to, a dark part of the mind. âAdrian Spinelli, This is what thoughtful hip-hop is supposed to sound like. They argued about it because, well, the internet. In fact, the reference is only in passing, buried mid-verse on âI Ainât Got Time!â and again on âGarden Shedâ when he says he âthought it was a phase.â Stylistically and lyrically, Flower Boy shows us a softer, more thoughtful Tyler who seems to have moved past the vulgar, sometimes violent rhymes that made Odd Future and his early solo work famous. Beyoncé does her part to make her world worthwhile, but it is our job to try and do the same. TPAB further develops jazz fusion in hip-hop with seasoned collaborators in Flying Lotus, Kamasi Washington, Thundercat, Robert Glasper, et al., producing a live sound thatâs compositionally rich, instrumentally complex and flat-out interesting. Ruminations on “Power” and re-contextualizations of Black beauty share space with songs that prove Rapsody could always keep up with some of the best technical rappers in the game.–A.W. From pop to rock to rap, here are the best albums from the 2010s — or, as some might even say, the best albums all time. Kendrick Lamar: To Pimp A Butterfly (2015). There is zero shade on this album. Though he raps proficiently, with ample confidence and a nimble tongue, heâs a flat personality who regards his shallowness and vanity as his best qualities. Because The Internet may be the first successful domino that fell in a long line of them for ‘Bino. On âDNA.,â heâs âYeshuaâs new weapon,â born of Immaculate Conception and eager to lead his people. Amidst beef and ghostwriting rumors, Drake’s melodic, aggressive subject matter cement More Life as a staple in his discography, with introspective tracks “Free Smoke,” “Lose You,” and “Can’t Have Everything” painting the picture of a bulletproof artist at the top. Besides, the empowerment anthems “Good As Hell” and “Truth Hurts” are worth the price of admission alone, bars or no.–A.W. Cilvia Demo is a heartfelt coming-of-age project that defies the rap debut archetype. Questloveâs arrangements and the band behind him can go toe-to-toe with the best of âem, no matter what the genre. Chance The Rapper feels that he has been blessed with family, friends, talent and opportunity, and few things give him more joy than extolling those blessings. The best albums of the 2010s, then, not only define the decade, they chart an artistic rebirth. Meanwhile, Westâs sample-heavy beats provide Pusha the ideal soundscapeâsometimes opulent, others menacingâto swagger over. While the debate about singing within rap rages on, there is perhaps no other more contentious flashpoint than Lizzo’s major-label debut. T.I. A countdown of the best rap albums of the 2000s. More than ever, Old allows even passive listeners to care about what Brown is saying, to form a bond with him and to trust there is more of interest to him than women and drugs. His skills are on full display throughout R.A.P. Then there are the feminist themes, a crucial co-headliner to the Beyoncé talking points. The cover art for 'ATLiens' shows cartoon versions of Big Boi and Andre 3000, and the theme on the cover continued throughout the album's singles. But despite it all, he hasnât given up. People may recognize Killer Mike as Bernie Sanders’ number one booster or as one-half of Run The Jewels, but the ATLIen is also a damn good solo artist. Itâs a comprehensive essay in the art of hip-hop as a legit musical endeavor. All Rights Reserved, 19. Luckily, Kanyeâs still more man than God. Basically, itâs the anti-âGod.â The album closes with âBound 2,â an old-school College Dropout throwbackâbuilt on a warped soul sample, crammed full of classic Kanye observations. Childish Gambinoâs growth as a musician in the two years since Camp is commendable. But while the volume of Chanceâs piety may feel like evangelism, Coloring Book is far from gospel rap. The lack of universality to much of it keeps it from being the great album it wants to be, and some of the fascination seems to stem from 2013 celebrity culture obsession and speaks to the need to disappear from our own lives and become so wrapped up in the world of the rich and famous. SZA anchors the song with the nonnegotiable chorus: âI do what I like.â In 2018, an unapologetic woman was the most powerful voice we needed. Hit hop album covers don't come more iconic than Public Enemy's 'it Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back'. Upvote +7 Downvote. Rap fans love to debate which era of hip-hop was its best. His exemplary production tastes carried his breakthrough 2011 mixtape, Live. âRobert Ham, This is the most genre-bending album of The Rootsâ 11 LPs. Big Boi: Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty (2010). Plus, Drake’s outro game rises with “Do Not Disturb.”–J.K. Yet, it was Barter 6 that turned non-believers into reluctant supporters, pushing Thugger into the waters of tolerability for some — or all out Slimeheads for others — amidst a collection of memorable tracks like “Constantly Hating,” “With That,” and “Check.” During this period, Thugger was considered jarring and too strange to be considered “real hip-hop,” but his sound flippantly pushed the envelope, setting the tone for a new generation of burgeoning rap stars. 1 on the Billboard 200, proving that longevity isn’t just possible to achieve, but that the hip-hop audience is still willing to put down hard-earned cash in the streaming era.–Aaron Williams. Here are my personal picks for the Top 10 Album Covers of the Decade (2010s) Obviously the sonic sound and greatness of an album does not effect its position on or off this list. So, from musicâs biggest names like Kendrick and Kanye to Odd Future glow-ups like Earl Sweatshirt and Tyler, The Creator, here are the best hip-hop albums of the decade, as voted by the Paste Staff. Brownâs lively performances and tendency to play his features more for laughs than for insights has led to disparate views of the rapper, with the initiated well aware of the talent he possesses and cloaks behind stoner humor and misogyny, and others seeing him as a cultural meme, a media creation serving the purpose of entertainment until his schtick becomes old. However, while listeners had long been inundated with in-the-trenches perspectives from the likes of G Herbo and King Louie, Saba’s Care For Me masterfully illustrates the mental toll that grief and ceaseless violence takes on Chicagoans who don’t want to shoot back, but shoot for more.–A.G. âAdrian Spinelli, Childish Gambinoâs debut album, Camp, was bad. âMichael Saba, The first album to come out of Kanye Westâs Wyoming sessions was also the best: Pusha Tâs third solo studio album Daytona, originally known as King Push. 's middle finger to Arista, which dropped him after his first outing, the consciously unprofessional I'm Serious, tanked. The follow-up to the free download XXX, Old dispels the shallow views of Brown and paints the rapper in a humanizing and relatable way, with enough bangers and one-liners to not bury the appeal of his personality. The beats are just as abrasive. It is a meditationâor rather, a series of meditationsâof his technical and emotional capabilities. ; While "Lemonade" by Beyoncé won over critics, "Love?" Juxtaposing songs like “Worldstar” and “3005” with “Telegraph Ave” and “Life: The Biggest Troll” (an underrated outro), Donald Glover grapples with the internet age, good and bad, which ultimately is the catalyst for his rise. It was investing in a whole A$AP empire, backing not only Rockyâs debut album but also his group label A$AP Worldwide, a potential farm system for other up-and-comers who run in Rockyâs Internet circles. But the Mississippi singer who became known as The King threw away that rulebook, thrusting his hips in an overtly sexual style and running wild with a raw, primal energy. One particular track, âCasket Pretty,â hauntingly echoes the fate of Castile and so many others, as Noname repeats the lines, âI hope you make it home / I hope to God that my teleâ donât ringâ and raps about âToo many babies in suits.â Opener âYesterdayâ serves as a woozy, dreamy thesis; she both laments the discrimination people of color face (âCheck my Twitter page for something holier than black deathâ) and finds solace in the smiles of her loved ones. But no artist embodied what 2018 meant for Chicago more than Saba. Gambino has frequently struggled to find a sound that isnât overtly somebody else (mostly Kanye West and Drake). The first verse alone is masterfulâas focused and emotionally affecting as anything heâs ever written (âYou see itâs broke nigga racism thatâs that âDonât touch anything in the storeâ / And this rich nigga racism thatâs that âCome in, please buy moreââ), delivered with a razor-sharp cadence, with an eerie sonic framework that adds urgency to the message. Thereâs something so fun and innocent about âCocoa Butter Kisses,â one of the albumâs most re-listenable tracks. As the 2000s ended, conventional wisdom suggested that the album was on its way out, that the future would all be individual tracks and playlists. The bass is so encapsulating, and Mikeâs âoh myâ peppered into the background makes it a haunting experience. DAMN. In fact, âOver My Dead Bodyâ is one of the calmest, most wistful openers in rap history. Pablo is just powerful enough to keep the faith. It’s a shame that Big KRIT’s most shining moment isn’t available for streaming. Star-studded and critically acclaimed, it was perhaps the first rap album from a legendary name in Golden Era hip-hop to be crowdfunded by fans, signifying a further shift away from the major label-dominated status quo that many artists have complained choke the creativity out of the genre. His father teaches him the true definition of responsibility; his mother pleads with him to return her car and later, towards the end of âReal,â delivers what feels like the albumâs mission statement: âWhen you do make it, give back with your words of encouragement.â âBonnie Stiernberg, Coloring Book, Chance the Rapperâs third mixtape and his second project distributed via Apple, is deafeningly religious, brimming with testimonies, exaltations and blessings that are loud enough to rock a megachurch and its town-sized parking lot. The album serves as a prelude to his second studio album A Dream Deferred . Even though the first half of the year has been mild at best we still have 2 Kanye albums Nas Pusha T ... TOP 5 BEST RAP ALBUMS THIS DECADE (2010-PRESENT) Follow. Thundercat: Drunk 4. A name change was all it took to launch Ludacris supporting rapper Tity Boi into the rap stratosphere as a whole new man. Breaking down conventions The 2010s were a time of great transition and breaking down of conventions. One of the best albums of 2019, Rap Or Go To The League finds 2 Chainz balancing his usual ostentatious flexes with rationales for how and why the drug game and rap game feel so closely related and like the only options for accruing wealth in a rigged system. âSelfâ is her documented questioning of everything thatâs absurd in 2018 and a breakdown of what itâs like to wade through the music industry as a woman rapper. A Tribe Called Quest – We Got It from Here… Thank You 4 Your Service 6. Noname’s debut Telefone mixtape was four years in the making. Muse, ‘Drones’ (WARNER BROS, 2015) 95 The album opens with Dirty Projectors vocalists Amber Coffman and Angel Deradoorian humming along to a lush piano, before drummer Questlove sparks a fully-formed instrumental revue. âPhilip Cosores, The best hip-hop this decade still paid homage to the jazz and soul that shaped its identity from the beginning. Feast your eyes on the best album artwork of the 2000s, including covers by Tame Impala, The Streets, Frank Ocean, St. Vincent and more. It’s bold to predict that an album that has been out for less than a year will be remembered as one of the best of the decade, but that’s just how polished, relatable, and replayable YBN Cordae’s major-label debut has been. Itâs also funny that Danny Brown has named his first proper album Old. Between the lyrics and beats, this album is one of the best albums of 2010, with highlight cuts such as “Barrel Brothers” & “Speakers on Blast” Rating: 8.5/10 The Life Of Pablo, a funhouse of a project crafted like a fever dream sequence in sonic form, is rambunctious, vulnerable, distraught, and defiant. âEvan Rytlewski, There were flashier stories from the Windy City in 2018. But, just as thereâs a fine line between self-love and self-obsession, art often runs the risk of crossing over from personal to self-absorbed. In the 2010s, rap got weird. It is her albumâand her choice. Hip-hop hadnât been this fun in a long time. When he has a clear-cut focus, he can still be a top-tier storyteller, and songs like “Cherry Wine,” “Bye Baby,” and “Daughters” prove it.–A.W. Rapsody’s ode to the wisdom, resilience, and traditions of her ancestors finds her spitting some of her most relevant, resonant rhymes on her most expansive collection of beats yet. There are too many great one-liners to count on album kicker âI Do,â one of Pasteâs favorite songs of 2018. âMy little 15 minutes lasted long as hell, huh?â Cardi observes, later followed by what might be the best imperative sentiment in music that year: âLeave his texts on read, leave his balls on blue.â âI Doâ is Cardi Bâs way of saying âIâm done explaining myself,â and in doing so she speaks on behalf of all women whoâve ever been told to shut up. Besides HNDRXX being an all-around exceptional listen, “Incredible” deserves all the praise. The Best Albums of The Decade: The 2010s 99 âSee You Againâ featuring soul singer Kali Uchis, for instance, is an adorable ode to a crush, with gorgeous, swelling strings and trumpet riffs that are probably the influence of Odd Future-affiliated jazz group The Internet. Garden fashion event best album covers do n't come more iconic than Public 's. Game rises with “ do not Disturb. ” –J.K genre that defined the?. 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