General Chat / better rapper?

I like more then one style of rap.
I understand where your coming from on almost all the rappers you named...except for Xzibit, who's been considered a west coast legend already, with two classic albums down "At The Speed of Life" and "40 Dayz and 40 Nightz".

Let's see....some others.

Joe Budden is incredibly talented. He's probably the most talented one you have on that list. I don't know what you have against Budden, he's a great lyracist, can throw punchlines, and is a good story-telling rapper. Songs like "Walk With Me", "Calm Down", "Dear Angela", and "Ten Minutes" should prove my point. Just cause he's commercial doesn't mean he's not good.

Fabolous and Lloyd Banks are on the list for mixtape work that I highly doubt that you've heard. Are they completely different rappers? No. They are punchline rappers, but they are pretty clever and very good at what they do. I can't stand any albums that Fabolous has put out, but on all the mixtapes I've heard him on (all DJ Clue's mixtapes: Where Ya Hood At, When Animals Attack, Thee American Idol ((and part 2)), they come nicely. Lloyd Banks isn't as good as he was about a year ago when he first broke out and was hungry, and had some incredibly clever punchlines. Now they're getting a bit tired but he's still a talented artist, just one dimensional.

Ludacris is hit or miss for me. Sometimes I can't stand him, but he's really a lot more talented then people give him credit for. "Southern Fried Intro" is a great example of his talent. Who says you can't be funny in rap? He still manages to put rhymes together really well, and I'm obviously not the only one who thinks so...seeing as he's appearing on everyone's album nowadays, including highly respected artists like Cee-Lo Green and Eightball and MJG.

J Hood is in the same category as Fabolous and Lloyd Banks, just not as good. He's a pretty decent punchline rapper. I don't love him as a rapper, but he shows promise so he cracked the top fifty.

Lil Flip basically embodies almost everything I don't like in an artist...but something about him just draws me to him. He's got charisma and swagger, and doesn't try to be anything he's not. He's not much of a lyracist, but I think he's good at what he does. No real good reason why he's on the list, just a personal preference that I can't even understand.

Fifty Cent is not really too great lately, admittingly. His CD was very good, but that was 95% due to the production. Before he ever got his deal he was a pretty talented rapper though, so I still give him some credit for that. I'm sure if I made another update he'd have fallen off by now.

Cam'Ron is a very hit or miss rapper. His lacksidasical flow will turn off a lot of people, and it turns me off a lot too sometimes, but again, something about him is intriguing. Back in the Children of the Corn days he was amazing, and used to run with Big L, then something happened and he gradually got worse. Plus, he always has some of the best production behind him, so I'm always lookin forward to his CD's.

And finally, Cassidy, is probably the least deserving to be on the list. Trust me, it has absolutely nothing to do with his Split Personality album, or any of the girlie shit he's been doing lately. I had heard of him a long time ago, on the mixtape circuit, and he's a very good punchline rapper when he's not trying to sell records. If you've ever seen the tape of him battling Freeway from Roc-A-Fella, that's the best performance of his skills. He's not the best in the game or anything, but he threw some great punches. It all depends on if you like punchline rapping....and if you haven't noticed, battling is 100% punchling rapping for the most part.

As for groups, I see nothing wrong at all with D-Block. You can go to any hip hop lobbyist and they'll support The Lox till the end. They've stayed true with what they do, and they're pretty damn good at it. They're grimey rappers, and that's not your style, but just because it's not doesn't mean they aren't some really talented rappers. The Roots are off and on with me. I love Black Thought, the lead lyracist, and most the time I love the group. I dunno, maybe I have a hard time classifying them as a group, when only one person raps anymore. Clipse aren't the next coming of Blackstar, but they're really not bad. At all. Actually, they're quite good...if they'd expand their subject matter. And finally, D12....well I didnt really have anyone else to put, and I like Eminem and Proof.


And Shyne isn't as innactive as you think. He released a ten track EP from jail entitled "The Lost Son", and has signed a new deal with Def Jam, and has an album coming out this year of material he's released from jail. So I'm not sure where you're coming from on that one.
Q-Tip is still around, you just have to find him. He'll be on lots of Okayplayer-related mixtapes, stuff with The Roots, stuff with Pete Rock, stuff on Soundbombing, etc.
And Sean Carter is still around. The moniker "Jay-Z" is gone. And his album was pretty damn good if I do say so myself.

My favorites, in no particular order... apart from The Roots that is...

The Roots - favorite by far
Talib Kweli
DL Incognito
K-Os
2Pac
Nas
Jurassic 5
Erykah Badu
Mos Def
Immortal Technique

And there's one person that's just a gimmick rapper if you like, but he deserves a mention...

Rahzell - best beat box ever...

Wow iris, we have a lot of similar opinions of rappers....you pretty much named all my least favorite rappers there and accurately described why they suck, nice job there....you obviously know your rap....anyway, here would be my top ten worst rappers list:

1. Q-Tip
2. Fabolous
3. 50 Cent
4. Ras Kass
5. Lil' Flip
6. Common
7. Shyne
8. J Hood
9. Joe Budden
10. DJ Clue / DJ Kay Slay (for being so fucking annoying...)

However iris, I think Cassidy deserves more credit than you gave him. His album was above average of most other solo rapper releases IMO. There were some very catchy songs there.

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Top 5 worst rap groups:

1. G-Unit
2. D12
3. N.E.R.D. (newest album blew)
4. Cypress Hill (also because of the new ablum, man did it suck... )
5. The Triangle Offense


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Top 5 rappers
best chorus skills:

1. Nate Dogg
2. Cee-lo
3. DMX
4. Snoop Dogg
5. Dr. Dre

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Top 5 disappointment albums of 2004 so far:

1. N.E.R.D. - "Fly or Die"
2. Cypress Hill - "Till Death Do Us Part"
3. Turk - "Penitentiary Chances"
4. Ghostface Killah - "The Pretty Tony Album"
5. DJ Kay Slay - "Streetsweeper, Vol. 2: The Pain from the Game"

Jkay, you suck, you hate like, all the bands that the majority of the population like, except nate dogg, but hes only good cos he did the chorus of eminem's song, 'till i collapse

oh, and N.E.R.D do suck 100%

Jkay, you suck, you hate like, all the bands that the majority of the population like, except nate dogg, but hes only good cos he did the chorus of eminem's song, 'till i collapse

oh, and N.E.R.D do suck 100%

Dude, chill....how can you say I suck based solely on my opinions....if I dont like your opinions can I call you an ass muncher??....everyone's allowed to have opinons....and trust me, I've been on the rap scene long enough to back up my opinions...

I am 100%'n with MiCool.

I used to listen to old school rap, such as Puff, and many, but when I heard the stuff they call 'rap' now I turned to listening to Rock and Metal, mind, i do do have an open mind about Hip-Hop and R&B, and new rap, it's just that i wouldn't buy a CD of it.

Jkay, you suck, you hate like, all the bands that the majority of the population like, except nate dogg, but hes only good cos he did the chorus of eminem's song, 'till i collapse

oh, and N.E.R.D do suck 100%

Dude, chill....how can you say I suck based solely on my opinions....if I dont like your opinions can I call you an ass muncher??....everyone's allowed to have opinons....and trust me, I've been on the rap scene long enough to back up my opinions...

ok but 50 cent doesn't suck

ok but 50 cent doesn't suck

I beg to differ....iris pretty much nailed down my feelings about 50 Cent.....he's just so commercial it makes me sick, and he's really not that talented in my eyes to create as much hype as he does.....

I like N.E.R.D. - Lapdance and She Likes To Move (the only tracks I know) are really great!

Turtle - Rahzel! Yeah! Look up Killa Kela too - he's amazing!

I like N.E.R.D. - Lapdance and She Likes To Move (the only tracks I know) are really great!

I would stick with those tracks then, cause you ain't missin' much man....the only track I remotely liked was "Rock Star" from their first album, other than that blah to them....

Well I might be borrowing the first album from a mate, so we'll see

If I check out some of these US rappers you're all talking about, will you promise to check out Wiley? He's a dude!

Well I might be borrowing the first album from a mate, so we'll see

If I check out some of these US rappers you're all talking about, will you promise to check out Wiley?  He's a dude!

Wiley?....i guess so...is he a European rapper?

British, man, British! He inspired Dizzee Rascal (if you know who that is) and has just released his album - Treddin' On Thin Ice.

Tracks to listen to - The Game, Wot Do U Call It?, Goin' Mad, Treddin' On Thin Ice.

Roots Manuva is also good, if you like that British stuff.

I think its funny that I haven't seen anyone mention Nelly or St. Lunatics after all the commercial success they've had...

Nelly's music is nice to dance to sometimes, so I guess his production is ok.
And his voice is unique.
(I could rap that well.)

Jkay, I don't understand how you can say Common or Ras Kass suck, when they are two of the best lyracists of all time.
Period.

I think its funny that I haven't seen anyone mention Nelly or St. Lunatics after all the commercial success they've had...

Maybe its cos Nelly and the St Lunatics suck nuts?

haha, Moon, I couldn't have said it better

I like Ludacris and Missy Elliot just because its more fun to listen to. I love all the crap they put in there with the stressed and unstressed syllables..