EDIT: So originally I intended on making a Top 10 sort of list, but i came up with 18 songs that I felt like everyone should hear. Enjoy.
Here is Part II, Part III, and Part IV
NOTE: Clicking on the links will open up the song (
- Break Bread- Asher Roth & Nottz: I know you're probably thinking 'Why did Sam post the I Love College guy?' Don't worry, Asher has come a long way from his 2008 hit. He and Nottz (who has worked with some of the biggest names in Hip Hop such as B.I.G., Snoop, Kanye, etc.) recently released a five track EP entitled Rawth. The song is about fake friends and how they go hand in hand with the money. Nottz lays down one of my favorite beats of the year and puts a solid verse over it. Asher comes in with his usual laid back flow, saying "When all you homies wanna do is hit the club/Hopping bottles, living up, but you’re paying for the bub."
- Good Enough- Big K.R.I.T.: Big K.R..I.T. is one of the best out of the South in the game now. Aside from the strong accent, the Mississippi native's flow wouldn't remind you of a typical Southern rapper. The song opens up with K.R.I.T. talking to God, saying "Lord I ain't your best son, I ain't been to church in a while but on that liquor I confess something/I missed a couple blessings, wasn't ready. I was counting money but I swear I'll catch the next one/ I did some dirt to be the fresh one/I lost some friends over ends, but I guess that's what I get, huh/Chasing dreams that I could barely see/shooting for the stars, when that's something I could never be." K.R.I.T. doesn't hold anything back in his raps.
- Forest Whitaker- Brother Ali: This is an older song. Brother Ali, hailing from Minneapolis, is albino. Granted, as a friend of mine said, "he was slapped with the ugly stick one of two times." But that doesn't take away from the quality of his rhymes. In this song, he addresses his looks and pretty much says "Fuck You" to everyone who talks shit bout him, saying "I'm not mean and got a neck full of razor bumps/I'm not the classic profile of what the ladies want/You might think I'm depressed as can be/But when I look in the mirror I see sexy ass me/And if that's something that you can't respect then that's peace/My life's better without you actually." Still not sure why the song is called Forest Whitaker though...
- Dear Hip Hop- Chip tha Ripper feat. Naledge & 6th Sense: When I say "Name a rapper from Cleveland," who comes to mind? I bet 99.9% percent of people think of Kid Cudi. Since Cudi came on to the scene, Chip has taken a backseat (I think Chip kills everyone else in The End on Cudi's new album) to Mr. Mescudi. On this track, Chip, along with Naledge (of Kidz in the Hall) and 6th Sense take the listener through their childhoods and how growing up with Hip Hop made them. I was especially drawn to Naledge's verse and his ability to throw classic album titles into his verse. Check out a good breakdown of the classic references here.
- Samsonite Man- Fashawn feat. Blu: Fashawn's debut album was produced exclusively by Exile. Known for his dope sampling, Exile doesn't fail to live up to his reputation, especially in this song where he rips a smooth Billy Paul sample. In an album about Fashawn becoming a man, this song encapsulates that theme completely, saying "On the map now, they tell me sit in the throne/I tell ‘em I'm not concerned with the crown or the robe/Just wanted to meet the world, become a man on my own/And I did, now the name’s household, Santiago/CA get hot, as I ran I hit Chicago/It’s the heart that guides me, my mind just follows." Then Blu, who I believe is one of the most underrated rappers out right now, lays down a solid verse as well.
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