In addition, Pac (and Suge) were deep in the middle of orchestrating that bizarre East/West coast beef. Now riding with the infamous Suge Knight and signed to the most dangerous record label of all time, Death Row Records, Pac was geared to drop a classic, especially since he was armed with one of hip hop’s greatest producers of all time, Dr. With this lp, the world was introduced to the “new and improved” Tupac Shakur. What's gully with that? Think about it, if Tupac was such an incredible rap artist and “Juice” was considered to be his movie, why was it that none of his songs made the album? A lot of people bought into it, but I for one didn’t sip the juice.ġ996 was the year “All Eyez On Me” hit the streets. Especially since them dudes from Brooklyn were suspect up until they had a gun in their hand. Since I knew real dudes like that in Brooklyn, I was no types of impressed with Bishop. To me, Bishop wasn't gully, just a Harlem cat suffering from severe mental issues. Knowing how 'Strictly For My N.I.G.G.A.S' was released around the time Pac delivered his “stunning” acting debut in that “Juice” movie, a whole bunch of people probably got caught up in his portrayal of his “Bishop” character and went with the hype. So other than I Get Around, every other song on the album got deleted. Unfortunately, the rest of the album was really really really bad. Production on that song was tight, Pac’s flow improved dramatically, but Shock G stole the show with his classic line “I’m Shock G, the one who put the satin on your panties.” But cool, I'll give Pac the credit.

Being how his first LP was wack, Digital Underground probably decided they would help their lil homie out. Still, I saw that as being a Digital Underground song featuring 2Pac as their up and coming weed carrier. The only song on that album that comes close to being dope is I Get Around, actually the first song by Pac that I liked. I don’t know if the periods embedded in “N.I.G.G.A.S.” is supposed to mean something 'deep', whatever, it seemed dumb to me then. Next up was his 2nd Lp, “Strictly For My N.I.G.G.A.S” released in 1993. Long and short, I decided to give 2Pac a second chance, see what his stans fans were talking about, just in case I had missed something. 5 years ago, I was in the process of going through my digital music collection to see, out of all his albums, which songs recorded by Pac were keepers and which ones were deletable. Truth be told, over the years, all that talk got annoying. Associating all this 'greatest' talk with the kind of sentiment surrounding one’s passing, I was more than intrigued by how Pac has become a legend of rap. I'm just not trying to hear Maya Angelou spit no types of fiyah on the mic. I don't question his talents as a poet, I question his skills as being hailed as one of the 'greatest' rappers of all time. There's been more than a lot of talk about how 2pac was a poet, a leader of our generation and so on. Being that I wasn't a fan of his, I went out and purchased all of his cd’s that I hadn't owned. It’s an homage to the top 10 gems of true rap music, and the pioneering icons who led the way.Like most, I was extremely saddened by Mr. Stream or purchase our curation of iconic tracks on your preferred platform.įrom impeccable production to breathtaking lyricism and guts, this guide features the best hip-hop albums. Whether you’re looking for some schooling on the history of hip-hop or you’re trying to introduce someone to these essential staples, these are sonic works of art that everyone needs on their radar, from old school classics to some more contemporary creative mavens.Īll of the albums that we picked are available on top music streaming services and digital music stores, including Apple Music, TIDAL, iTunes, Spotify, and Amazon Music Unlimited. Today, the world of hip-hop has taken a hard swerve, with Autotune and mumble rap occupying much of the popular music landscape. From inspiring artists today to helping young people on their coming-of-age journey, these hip-hop albums are responsible for shaping our identities today.īeyond music history, these albums have helped us grow up and process our own emotions - something that music itself has helped us do for decades when talking it out just didn’t feel like an option. What exactly qualifies the best hip-hop albums of all time? The answer is complicated and subjective, but there is one thing that most hip-hop heads agree on: certain albums, over the course of time, have undeniably influenced rap’s landscape and have acted as the bedrock of the genre. If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, SPY.com may receive an affiliate commission.

All 2pac albums in case