General Chat / better rapper?

In Order:

1.Talib Kweli
2.Eminem
3.Jay-Z
4.Common
5.Mos Def
6.Nas
7.Jadakiss
8.Rakim
9.Pharaohe Monch
10.Immortal Technique
11.Joe Budden
12.Crooked I
13.Twista
14.Fabolous
15.Scarface
16.Xzibit
17.Royce Da 5'9
18.Lloyd Banks
19.Ras Kass
20.The Game
21.Redman
22.Beanie Sigel
23.T.I.
24.Kanye West
25.AZ
26.Shyne
27.Method Man
28.Black Thought
29.Canibus
30.Paul Cain
31.Styles P.
32.Andre 3000
33.Big Boi
34.Ludacris
35.Busta Rhymes
36.Cam'Ron
37.Grafh
38.Saigon
39.Cormega
40.Peedi Crakk
41.Q-Tip
42.Ghostface
43.Freeway
44.Ransom
45.Cassidy
46.50 Cent
47.Jae Millz
48.Louis Logic
49.J Hood
50.Lil Flip

Rap Groups?
1.Blackstar - Mos Def and Talib Kweli
2.D-Block - Jadakiss, Styles P., Sheek Louch, and J Hood
3.OutKast - Andre 3000 and Big Boi
4.The Triangle Offense - Joe Budden, Fabolous, and Paul Cain
5.G Unit - 50 Cent, Lloyd Banks, Tony Yayo, Young Buck, and The Game
6.Dead Prez - M1, stic., and Tahir
7.Clipse - Pusha T and Malice
8.Bone Thugs N Harmony - Krayzie Bone, Layzie Bone, Bizzy Bone, and Wish Bone
9.Young Gunz - Young Chris and Neef
10.The Roots - Black Thought, Rahzel, and ?uestlove
11.The A Team - Ransom and Hitchcock
12.MOP - Billy Danze and Lil Fame
13.State Property - Beanie Sigel, Freeway, Peedi Crakk, Oschino and Sparks, and Young Gunz
14.D12 - Eminem, Proof, Swifty McVeigh, Kon Artist, Kuniva, and Bizarre
15.Nappy Roots - Skinny Devile, B. Stille, Big V, Ron Clutch, R. Prophit, and Fish Scales

Producers?
1.Kanye West
2.DJ Premier
3.Dr. Dre
4.Just Blaze
5.Timbaland
6.Hi-Tek
7.No I.D.
8.Ayatollah
9.Alchemist
10.The Neptunes
11.9th Wonder
12.Mannie Fresh
13.DJ Quik
14.Salaam Remi
15.Eminem
16.Heatmakerz
17.Bink
18.Rockwilder
19.Swizz Beatz
20.Red Spyda
21.Chad Hamilton
22.Jazze Pha
23.Chucky Thompson
24.Megahertz
25.Pete Rock
26.RickRock
27.Nashiem Myrick
28.Ty Fyffe
29.Six July
30.Scott Storch

Ya'll want anythin else, jus lemme know

1.Blackstar - Mos Def and Talib Kweli
2.D-Block - Jadakiss, Styles P., Sheek Louch, and J Hood
3.OutKast - Andre 3000 and Big Boi
4.The Triangle Offense - Joe Budden, Fabolous, and Paul Cain
5.G Unit - 50 Cent, Lloyd Banks, Tony Yayo, Young Buck, and The Game
6.Dead Prez - M1, stic., and Tahir
7.Clipse - Pusha T and Malice
8.Bone Thugs N Harmony - Krayzie Bone, Layzie Bone, Bizzy Bone, and Wish Bone
9.Young Gunz - Young Chris and Neef
10.The Roots - Black Thought, Rahzel, and ?uestlove
11.The A Team - Ransom and Hitchcock
12.MOP - Billy Danze and Lil Fame
13.State Property - Beanie Sigel, Freeway, Peedi Crakk, Oschino and Sparks, and Young Gunz
14.D12 - Eminem, Proof, Swifty McVeigh, Kon Artist, Kuniva, and Bizarre
15.Nappy Roots - Skinny Devile, B. Stille, Big V, Ron Clutch, R. Prophit, and Fish Scales

No NWA or Public Enemy?

Nice list iris....here are my opinions

1. Kanye West should be in at least the top 20 rappers, but agree that he is the hottest producer right now.
2. Jazze Pha should be in the top ten producers, otherwise I'm in agreement with your top producers list.
3. I agree that Blackstar is the hottest group right now, but think State Property, Young Guns, Nappyroots and Dialated Peoples (not on yours) should be the rest of the top 5 groups. G-Unit would not make my top 15 group list.
4. Good to see Q-tip, 50 Cent and Lil' Flip so low in your list, however I would switch Cassidy(#45) with Fabulous(#14). Ras Kass should be much lower IMO.
5. I would switch Eminem (#2) with Kanye West (#24).
6. Iris, wheres 2Pac?....everyone knows where he goes on my list....must be your 'active' rappers list, cuz B.I.G. is not there either.

The new Talib ablum will probably be the best album of 2004 IMO. You really need to pick this ablum up if you dont have it. The single, "Pullin' Out Tonite", is lyrically the best hip hop track I've heard in a long time. The hook is very solid too. Talib is hot.

good, at least iris likes eminem

My favorite rapper is Randy Savage.

The new Talib ablum will probably be the best album of 2004 IMO.  You really need to pick this ablum up if you dont have it.  The single, "Pullin' Out Tonite", is lyrically the best hip hop track I've heard in a long time.  The hook is very solid too.  Talib is hot.

Is it out officially yet? If so, I haven't been paying attention. I know it leaked, cos Talib bitched and moaned about it leaking (even though he doesn't have the decency to show up to his gigs in Providence and Boston, the prick).

I'm gonna have to try and get that one... At the moment I only have "Rush" and "Get By"

Is it out officially yet? If so, I haven't been paying attention. I know it leaked, cos Talib bitched and moaned about it leaking (even though he doesn't have the decency to show up to his gigs in Providence and Boston, the prick).

Yeah, it leaked....but I was lucky to get it.. ..theres at least 5 bangin' tracks...I would check out "Pullin' Out Tonite"....that track is off the meat hook....but shhh, don't tell Talib...

Yeah, his new album "Beautiful Struggle" has leaked.
One thing though "We Pullin Out Tonite" isnt the first single, it's the B-Side of his first single. The real first single is "I Tried" with Mary J. Blige and produced by Kanye West.

And yeah, it's an active list.

Otherwise Tupac, Big L, Biggie Smalls, and Big Pun would all be in my top 10.

One thing though "We Pullin Out Tonite" isnt the first single, it's the B-Side of his first single. The real first single is "I Tried" with Mary J. Blige and produced by Kanye West.

We Pullin' Out Tonite, lyrically is a much better hiphop track than the Mary J track IMO....Mary J + shitty beat = even shittier song.

Agreed that "We Pullin Out Tonite" is better lyrically, but I definitely don't think the "I Tried" beat is even close to shitty. It's a beautiful beat, but I dont like Mary J on the song.

Iris, I know we can never seem to agree on anything hip-hop related, but just to make for conversation:

The fact that Joe Budden, Fabolous, Lloyd Banks, Xzibit, Ludacris, J Hood, Lil Flip, 50Cent, Cam'Ron and Cassidy appear on your list of fifty is very disconcerting. There are many "semi-talented" people on that list, and it is a list of 50, but those mentioned are just horrible. And you said it was an "active list". Shyne is a great gangster rapper, he actually is a gangster, but he has been on the innactive list for years, and years to come. He's almost been as quite as 2pac. Q-tip hasn't done anything since "Vivrant Thing". As for Jay-Z, his last album was nothing but an inflated ego, and now that he is 'retired', I don't see how he's 'active'.

As for groups, I'll say 'okay' to some of them, but Young Gunz, D-Block, Clipse and D-12? And The Roots behind Young Gunz? EWWWWWWWWW! I'm surprised I didn't see Dipset or St. Lunatics on that. And producers, The Neptunes are seriously overrated, and IMO, so is Kanye.

Just my thoughts, purely to make this topic more intresting

Actually, I agree with Natelox. Half the people on your list, iris, are popular all over the MTV airwaves. Who's 51, Lil Jon?

YEAH!

PS- The Roots are fucking awesome on too many levels to count.

Pac rules everyone. Biggie come next, figures the best are dead.

why do all you people care whether or not someone is "real gangsta"


if anything, it's a detraction from the artform, and it's not exactly respectable.
Infact, I don't equate "gangster" with anything positive at all.

It's an image, and has nothing to with positive associations. The only reason I made that comment about Shyne actually being a gangster is because there is no one else who is, but they all claim to be. 50Cent and the whole G-Unit crew is a good example of a fake-thug clique. It's really easy to tell fake-thugs from real ones. The fake ones are making music and money, while the real ones sit in jail. Nothing positive, but it is the truth.

It's an image, and has nothing to with positive associations. The only reason I made that comment about Shyne actually being a gangster is because there is no one else who is, but they all claim to be. 50Cent and the whole G-Unit crew is a good example of a fake-thug clique. It's really easy to tell fake-thugs from real ones. The fake ones are making music and money, while the real ones sit in jail. Nothing positive, but it is the truth.

I see what you are saying, but why does it matter though?

I could care less about image. Image is always garbage, and has nothing to do with the music.
It's what you HEAR that's important.

Whether that image is a correct depiction of them personally or not shouldn't hold any water.

Tell that to the, what was it, 6 million buyers of 50Cent's, "Get Rich Or Die Trying". Commerically, image is everything. Artistically, it's mostly garbage.

the only thing 2pac was good at was inspiring people. I really dont understand how people concider him "the greatest rapper" To each there own i guess

So nate, they have to be a "real" gangster to be a good rapper? Fuck that! And Shyne isnt a gangster, hes just dumb. And to clear some things up.
1. Q-Tip is a good rapper from with work before his solo (bust) career
2. Shyne is active, he must be since he just signed a deal with DefJam and has a cd coming out soon (im waiting anxiously).
3. "Jay-Z" has retired but S. Carter has not...more albums on the way...with the amount of success that this man has earned, whats wrong with a little ego?

Maybe you should read "active" as "alive"

S. Carter?

You know what I miss? The old days of the family. Puff was hot those days (god he is full of turds these days) and Biggie and Mase or whatever his name was were super cool. They really made some good shit, even if a lot of it was commercial or whatever you want to call it.

I also miss good old school rapping. Rapping like Big Will in the DJ Jazzy Jeff days, that kind of rap. Man those were the days when rap was about awesome beats and total fun.