2020 Year End
Position-Artist-Album Title-Description *Favorite song*
Sleeper- Roddy Ricch- Please Excuse Me For Being Anti-Social- This truly should have been on my list last year, but the December 6 release date didn’t give me enough time to listen to it. This album is a spectacular album that deserves more spotlight from me. It displays not only Roddy’s melodic ability but also his lyrical ability (see War Baby). As such, it is changing the way I do these lists going forward (dubbed the Roddy Rule). Starting in 2021 I will be judging albums dropped in December as part of the following year. My eye is already on Rico Nasty for 2021. *High Fashion*
EP- Drake- Dark Lane Demo Tapes- There were some really great quarantine projects dropped this year, but the 6 God comes through as usual and outshines everybody. I really like the purpose of this ep for Drake. There’s so many sides to Drizzy that his albums can’t always effectively show them. The EP/compilation allows a more laid back drop to show his diversity in sound from Pop to Drill. In looking back at my lists I have consistently under ranked Drake while being a huge fan- I did TWO Drake brackets (albums and singles) with my group chat this year- if I do better maybe one day I can go to the embassy *Losses*
HM- Jay Electronica- A Written Testimony- In a battle for this spot between Jay Electronica, Flo Milli and Westside Gunn… Jay-Z wins. This is basically Watch The Throne 1.75 which is weird to complain about, but Jay Elec-Hanukkah fans deserved more from him alone. After the lengthy intro (which is actually perfect) and the decade old Shiny Suit Theory that leaves 8 new songs on this project, most of which Jay Elec-Yarmulke spits one verse. And he never really gives a satisfying explanation for the wait! But even with all of that said both Jay’s telling me that the Black man is God for 40 minutes could never be said to be bad. *A.P.I.D.T.A (makes me want to cry and is what I expected of the elusive artist)*
10- Conway- From King To A God- An amazing debut from the Machine. If you want bars look no further. The only thing that holds this album back from placing higher is Conway’s performance on other projects. If Conway is a feature on your track he is either going to (a) out rap you or (b) spit better than you. I also prefer a less polished Conway, for that check out his 2020 ep Lulu *Seen Everything But Jesus*
9- 21 Savage- Savage Mode II- Savage is quietly assembling one of the best discographies of his generation. His projects are consistent and on Savage Mode he shows growth, stretching his sound all the way to an early 80’s hip hop song that could feature Roxanne Shante and it SLAPS. This album is so good that it had me questioning why I was listening to it so much during a panoramic. *Glock In My Lap*
8- Boldy James- The Price of Tea In China- Allow me to reach into my back pack real quick. Boldy and The Alchemist (the second project from Al mentioned so far… and not the last) craft a dark and atmospheric album full of bars. This is the type of gritty street hip hop that should make hip hop heads happy: a sample loop and coke bars. Honestly that simple equation will get a listen from me every time. *Pinto*
7. Big Sean- Detroit 2- Moving from one Detroit artist to another should show how good of a year it has been for the motor city- from new Eminem and Tee Grizzley to viral songs from local acts with local sounds like Sada Baby, Bfb Da Packman and YN Jay. Big Sean’s music has recently gotten a bunch of internet hate which is something I never understood, while he isn’t the most consistent artist, Sean be snappin. Jhene’s man doesn’t quite match the heights of the original mixtape, but Detroit 2 shows Sean’s growth not only as a rapper but as a man *Friday Night Cypher or Deep Reverence*
6- Run The Jewels- RTJ 4- This is probably the best project from El-P and Killer Mike, but at first I didn’t like it at all. I think it’s a project that hit me at the wrong time. I was looking for an escape from the craziness that was 2020 and this album is a non-stop in your face political and lyrical diatribe of everything that is wrong with America. RTJ4 is loud, brash and in your face for 90% of the run time only taking a break to pull on your heart strings at the very end. Nevertheless it is an amazing display of lyrics and production *a few words for the firing squad*
5. Lil Baby- My Turn- This was arguably Lil Baby’s year (only competing with Meg and Durk) however it took my back pack ass a while to come around. Once I realized that Baby was actually spitting despite rapping in cursive I fell in love with the album. The only thing that holds this album back is its length, sitting at 20 songs (not including the deluxe version) this is the longest project on my list which I have never been a fan of. However the hits are hard to deny. *Heatin Up*
4- Nas- Kings Disease- Looking back at my lists I realized that I really love legacy Hip hop acts making great projects. Nas and Hit-boy (more Hit projects to come) successfully blend their worlds in the way that Ye attempted. Who knew that I needed a Nas and Don Toliver song or needed a Nas and Fivi collab. Nas remains Nas while sounding refreshed over Hit boy’s beats. *10 Points*
3- Pop Smoke- Shoot For The Stars Aim For The Moon- Unfortunately not the only posthumous album this year giving well deserved recognition to Mac Miller’s Circles. The Woo flexes the star he could have been on this project, rising above New York drill to capture songwriting with much more appeal. This is evident by the album going number 1 and the several viral songs that came from it. The album was so successful after Pop’s death that it made me question what it meant for NY drill. I am happy to say that I think the sub-genre will be around for a while guided by its patron saint- RIP Pop Smoke. *Yea Yea*
2- Freddie Gibbs-Alfredo- Gangsta Gibbs did this project because people were saying he was only good over Madlib beats, so he grabbed another world renowned producer in The Alchemist to create the now Grammy nominated album. Gibbs’ word play and wit shine over Al’s sample heavy production. There’s not much to say here: good raps and good beats. Once again samples and coke rap will always get listens from me. *Babies and Fools*
Before going to my number 1 I have always expressed gratitude to those that read these lists. This year even more so. During quarantine I decided to escape into hip hop as I have done for years, but instead of just talking about it with friends, I began to post to my very own blog. This has been a long time coming and I can only say thank you to those who have been reading my random hip hop thoughts on FB or at lunch tables or in my wife’s case, late at night while in bed. So in a year of so much devastation (RIP Von, Andre, Kobe, Gianna, Chadwick, George, Breonna, Ahmaud, Representative Lewis and all those who didn’t make it to see 2021) I want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart. Now that the gratitude is out of the way… WHERE ARE ALL THE WOMEN?!?! This was a huge year for women in hip hop! I have an upcoming partner piece to this contemplating my own gender biases in crafting these lists.
1. Benny the Butcher- Burden of Proof- I have not stopped listening to this project since it came out. Benny and Hit-boy crafted something special with this. I initially was worried that Hit would add too much polish to Benny’s sound, but much like he did with Nas, he was able to walk the line perfectly. The youngest member of Griselda has a bar heavy approach which should make any hip hop fan excited. I think even the title might be a bar. Benny is a well-known Jay-Z fan, Hov’s debut was Reasonable Doubt which like Benny’s debut is a Burden of Proof. I don’t know whether Im being a conspiracy theorist or a lawyer there, either way Ima slap this album for years to come. *Legend-You have to listen to this riding through your old neighborhood (if you have one yet) it really does hit different*