9. Clipse "Til' The Casket Drops"
Clipse are what some call "The Kings of Coke Rap". One thing I'm sure of is Clipse are in a league of few artists that don't put out an abundance of material and stick to their roots. When I heard "Kinda Like A Big Deal", I felt good about the
possibilities. The one thing this album lacked though was diversity. They still stuck to their Neptunes chemistry set so to say. I was hoping to hear them on at least more than three sets of producers. Either way, the album produced hits like
"Showin' Out", "Door Man" and "Footsteps".
8. Kid Cudi "Man On The Moon"
Cudi had a better mixtape than album. I will say that off the bat. But this album was still pretty damn good. "Soundtrack to My Life" is a top ten song of the year. "Day N Nite" is a definite song you'll hear randomly five years from now. The reason this album ranked high is because it had one thing most of the ones below did not have a lot of. Emotion and serious songs filled with stories.
7. Joe Budden "Padded Room"
This was the long awaited sophomore effort from Joey. I met Joe a couple months back and he treated me like kinfolk. So the internet jerk hype he gets, I don't follow at least not on this night. But back to the album, it produced three songs I think stood out more than a lot of the singles on albums that came out this year. "In My Sleep" is one of my favorite songs this decade, let alone this year. "Exxxes" is an amazing story that I still don't fully understand & "I Couldn't Help It" might be one of the best acoustic songs ever. This album was decent on first listen but after sitting on it, it's a excellent album.
6. Tech N9ne "K.O.D."
Tech N9ne released two albums this year. He & Joe Budden are the only two artists to have released two full albums and both made the list. Crazy thing is Joe had two solos and a group album make the list. K.O.D. features one of Tech N9ne's best singles to date, "Leave Me Alone". But it also contains more heat as usual. Songs that stand out are, "Low", "Hunterish", "Demons" and a couple others. The title track also is one of my favorite songs and just flows so well with the rest of the album. So many rappers could learn from the so-called devil worshipper. At least he makes top ten list worthy albums.
5. Slaughterhouse "Slaughterhouse"
This group is the best group in the business right now. Why? Because eventhough none of them are very young, they all have the most potential out of all the groups out right now. This album was a minor disappointment but still had some really amazing songs. The single was the best rock-rap collab Wayne never stole the beat for. "Not Tonight" is in my top ten songs of the year. "Lyrical Murderers", "Sound Off" and "Cut You Loose" are perfect examples on why this group is a force to be wreckoned with. Crooked's verse on "Rain Drops" is also one of the best verses of the year eventhough I feel it could've ran a little longer.
4. Jay-Z "Blueprint 3"
Most magazines and websites will probably label this rap album of the year. Well, I don't agree. At least not when it first came out. I liked four or five songs when the album first dropped but the one thing about this album is it has many hits. Most albums don't have hits. "D.O.A." was a wake up call and while others like it much more than I do. "Run This Town" was a hit that cemented Jay's album as being something to look forward to. But "Empire State of Mind" is one of the biggest songs in the last few years and Jay really hasn't had any songs like that since "The Black Album". Three months after the fact, I like most of the album sans the horrible song with Jeezy. Hence why Jay ranks in the top 5.
3. Asher Roth "Asleep In The Bread Aisle"
This album probably made one list besides mine and it's a disappointment. Asher put out an album so much more put together than most artists and he crafted an album with a unique sound that meshed through the whole album. Maybe four or five artists did that this year and that's almost an honest statement. "I Love College" was an amazing one-hit wonder and I hope that statement doesn't hold true. "La Di Da" was such an awesome song that sounded nothing like a Don Cannon beat. "Be By Myself" just sounded perfect for Cee-Lo to sing on. "Sour Patch Kids" is just a ridiculously awesome song. But the two key songs on the album are "His Dream" and "Fallin". The stories, the music, the lyrics and the choruses on these songs are just so utterly perfect for an album in a post-music destruction era. Asher deserves every ounce of support he's ever gotten.
2. Drake "So Far Gone (Mixtape)"
I really wonder if Drake knew this mixtape was going to be pretty much #1 on almost every list. I don't need to talk about the songs. They speak for themselves. But Drake brought something that makes artists like myself feel real good about. Emotion and proof someone talented can actually make it these days. He didn't get big off "Best I Ever Had" cause it was a girl song. He got big cause it was so well put together. I do agree there was too much singing on this tape but I love hearing Drake sing. (No homo). He is the true future of this industry so I guess we just got to hope he doesn't run out of gas too fast. As he says, "You just gotta hope that it lasts".
1. Eminem "Relapse"
I will tell you straight up and down that I only started persuing rap as more than a hobby because of Eminem. The back-up inspiration was 2Pac or Lil' Wayne. But the fact that a white rapper could make it so far and be so good made me actually get serious about my writing. But I hated "Encore" and everything Eminem was becoming. I figured it was over to be honest. "Crack A Bottle" leaked and I still wanted to get over it and move on. He finally released the single early April and I was even more ready to cut my head off and never hear him again. "3AM" still didn't convince me. It was better but just wasn't what I needed. Well, when I finally heard the album, I was completely shocked. "My Mom" is a flashback to Marshall Mathers LP and I just lost it by some of the lyrics. "Insane" is a little much but the hook reminds of "The Eminem Show" and that's a definite improvement. "Hello" is a song that should stand the test of time in his catalog. "Same Song & Dance" is another one of my favorites. "Stay Wide Awake" might be the most lyrical mainstream song of the year. But the true gems lie in "Deja Vu" & "Beautiful". When he drops the accent, gets serious and spits the true story is when Em is at his best. I understand the talk of him not wanting to talk about it as his kids grow older but it's what made him a household name. Not the shock value, it's the fact that he was ridiculously good at using rap as a way to release his anger. The album was easily the best of the year.
No comments:
Post a Comment