Vibin' to the
Black Album today in the whip, I noticed something that's been bugging me for a while about hip-hop lately - no one cares about lyrics anymore. Today it's all about hooks and beats, while lyrical content has been sacrificed as the music expands to a mass audience.
Now don't get me wrong, I love wildin' at the bar to some guilty pleasures (Ying Yang in this thang!). Plus, today's music serves a purpose - dumbed down lyrics mean it's easier for more people to get down.
But, aficianado that I am, I want to bring the focus back to rhymes real quick. So here it is, dom corleone's look back at 10 of hip-hop's most exquisite, tongue-flippin' displays of diction.
Here are the first five and explanations - Feel free to comment and add to this list!
Jay-Z - LuciferLyricsDownload AudioThis is the one that sparked this list. When Jay starts from the jump with "
Lord forgive him, he got them dark forces in him/ But he also got a righteous cause for sinnin," his bargaining with the Creator to understand his actions instills chills. Continuing "
On permanent, hi-atus as I skate/ In the Maybach Benz flyer than Sanaa Lathan" a slightly younger Hov shouts out my future wifey AND car in the same line - props!
The Kanye-produced chorus complete with signature sped-up, scratchy sample leads into Jay rockin' again "
Spread love, to all of my dead thugs/ I pour out a little Louis, til' I head above/ Yessir, and when I perish, the meek shall inherit the earth/ 'Til that time, it's on and poppin, church." Jay's swag and flow is unmatachable. Threatening lines like "
The more you talk, the more you irkin us/ The more you gon' need memorial services/ 'The Black Album' second verse, is like/ Devil's pie, save some dessert for us" alongside tributary momentos to his fallen friend "
Curse the day that birthed the bastard/ Who caused your church Mass, reverse the crash/ Reverse the blast and reverse the car/ Reverse the day, and there you are," reveal why this Brooklyn boy-turned-mogul is a definite top 5 G.O.A.T.
Outkast - ATLiensLyricsDownload AudioNot only could I have picked material from any 'Kast album, but almost any track on Andre 3000 and Big Boi's most consistent disc
ATLiens (okay, maybe
Aquemini too). I went with the title track on their '96 rap classic for two reasons - first, it's got two of the smoothest lines ever and secondly, the Atlanta duo's fast-paced wordplay showcase their inherent lyrical prowess, way before the shine.
The aforementioned rhymes are as follows: Big Boi's "
Well it's the M - I - crooked letter, ain't no one better/ And when I'm on the microphone you best to wear your sweater/
Cause I'm cooler than a polar bear's toenails" is laced with ultra swagger. 3Stack's "
Now, my oral illustration be like clitoral stimulation/ To the female gender, ain't nothin' better" shows an unusually structured speech pattern that flows like lava - the perfect compliment to Sir Luscious Left Foot's country-fried pimp game.
Raekwon ft. Nas & Ghostface - Verbal Intercourse
Lyrics Download Audio
On their own, these three lyricists are among the best. United, the product is epic. Nas rips into the mic early with "
Through the lights cameras and action, glamour glitters and gold/ I unfold the scroll, plant seeds to stampede the globe/ When I'm deceased, by then the beast arise like yeast/ To conquer peace leaving savages to roam in the streets" and finishing it off with street scripture
, "From the womb to the tomb, presume the unpredictable, Guns salute life, rapidly, that's the ritual."
Rae's Staten Island imagery then comes to the front, as he rhymes "
Police questioning, rooftop cats invested in/ Tradin' in they Lexus' GS's, sendin messages/Two and two makes four, Cristal's crazily pour/ Gun wars, my crew phantom like swords."
Ghostface's bugged-out, dust-laced rants dazzle, like "
What I strive for is what I live for/ Infatuated by material things, and it's wild like for war/ Like somewhere over the rainbow, I see a big pot of gold/ Future stacks, yo, I hold." All in all, you can't ask for much more.
Big Punisher ft. Black Thought - Super LyricalLyricsDownload audioThis one's a no-brainer - hence the name. The undisputed lord of Latin-American hip-hop was in the upper echelon as far as lyrics were concerned.
It's no wonder he recruited Roots leadman Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter for a guest verse on debut LP
Capital Punishment, track #3.
The tandum didn't disappoint. The ever-proficient Pun pushes the limits of verbiage with "
Just call me Baby Jesus cuz lady niggaz be praisin' me/ Just for the way I blaze the beat crazily, tape to CD lasery/ It pays to be amazingly flavery/ Daze 'em to my rhymes that basically hypnotize you occasionally."
Tariq ices the cake as he schools his peers, rapping , "
My instrumental's the Renaissance, no resem-ba-lance/ To nothin' you come across, lyrical holocaust/ The crowd pleaser emcees freeze then catch seizure/ They praise the Lord of rap thesis, true believers." 'Nuff said.
Notorious B.I.G. & Bone Thugs & Harmony - Notorious ThugsLyricsDownload AudioChristopher "Notorious B.I.G." Wallace was arguably the best lyricist to ever hop on a mic. With a combo of street narrative, fierce battle raps and existential poetics, Biggie was a natural. Teaming up with Bone Thugs-N-Harmony on this lead track from
Life After Death disc 2, Frank White transcends first with, "
Armed and dangerous, ain't too many can bang with us/Straight up weed no angel dust, label us Notorious" and effortlessly maneuvers through "
Fuck the luck shit, strictly aim/ No aspirations to quit the game/Spit yo' game, talk yo' shit/Grab yo' gat, call yo' click/Squeeze yo' clip, hit the right one/Pass that weed, I got to light one/All them n*ggaz I got to fight one/All them hoes I got to like one/ Our situation is a tight one/Whatcha gonna do, fight or run?" Whew.
The fellas from Bone Thugs hold their ground in the great one's shadow, creating memorable verses. Bizzy sounds off with "
Test me now, contender never no surrender, no pretend/Pick up my pen, in my hand/One of my trusted friend friend, hey/Open it, let's see if we're real, we all suited/Beg my pardon to Martin, Baby we ain't marchin we shootin" and Krayzie eases the stress with "
Now let me get done with the grime/Gotta go purchase a dime/Put in a state to get done with the crime/Smokin the reefer to ease my mind."
But, rarely does anyone out-rhyme the best that ever did it and this here is no exception.
Stay tuned for Part II, coming soon to a theater near you!
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