Best Rap projects of the Decade (2010-present)

Ranking the best rap albums, mixtapes, and EPs of the decade.

We’ve recruited fellow Hip-Hop journalist @CliffHangah aka guru to help us out, giving us 2 lists of the best Hip-Hop projects of the decade

Brief description with each project listed. Did we miss anything?

@CliffHangah’s list

#1 Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (2010)

A masterful piece of work, MBDTF is widely considered to be Kanye’s magnum opus. While he flirts with the ideas of a black man’s place in society, the true underlying theme of this album is a response to his self imposed exile following the Taylor Swift VMA incident in 2009. The indirect response is filled with some of the most glossy, maximalist production of this decade to some of the rawest displays of lyricism in his career.

#2 good kid, M.A.A.D City (2012) – Kendrick Lamar

GKMC found Kendrick Lamar crafting a classic theatrical story, telling his experience growing up in infamous Compton, California. The attention grabbing, layered story telling balanced with radio friendly singles makes this album a highlight of not just the 2010s but of the millennium itself. hvghtdrh

#3 Drake – Take Care

Take Care found Drake really on his square. Not fitting the traditional gangster rap mold, he sought to follow in the emotional, thought provoking footsteps of rappers before him like Kanye and Kid Cudi. Drake truly crafts his own story into an album of reminiscing, regret, and realizing the power this new found fame of his holds, and how it will affect his relationships with women past present and future.

#4 Tyler, The Creator – Bastard

Odd Future brain child Tyler the Creator comes with a debut effort that many would pass off as mindless horror-core shock value rap. While it did have some of these elements, look past the surface and you’ll find an innovative young artist who paints vivid stories of his life and aspirations in a way only his F-bomb heavy vocabulary can. The production goes against the grain and it marked a dawn of a new Era for the 2010s and his group’s future individual careers.

#5 To Pimp A Butterfly (2015) – Kendrick Lamar

The successor of Lamar’s studio debut finds the face of TDE evolving from Rap’s rookie of the year to Global music icon. This album, being heavily funk and jazz influenced finds Kendrick dually holding the mirror to modern society’s racial tension to holding the mirror to his own psyche unearthing heart wrenching problems that had him flirting with the idea of suicide.

#6 A$AP Rocky – Live.Love.A$AP

This debut mixtape accumulated a cult-like following for the Harlem born rapper. LiveLoveAsap takes a dive into the Houston influenced, drugged out world of one of New Yorks rising talents. The sharp, hard-hitting flows has the influential MC showcasing his lyrical showmanship in a way few to none can imitate. The buzz that follows from the whole A$AP Mob crew is a testament to the way the ‘purple swag’ rapper hit the scene

#7 Chance The Rapper – Acid Rap

This sophomore mixtape of budding Chicago star Chance the Rapper finds Chance experimenting with imaginative off-kilter flows, quirky ad-libs, and song themes in a way that wouldn’t be quite as thought provoking if anybody else attempted it. The production is addicting, creative, and a breath of fresh air.

#8 Joey Bada$$ – 1999

The heralded debut of the Pro Era frontman finds Joey Bada$$ bringing back slick boom-bap 90s-styled bars, while still implementing his own unique sound. These raps are over infectious instrumentals handled by some of hip hops most praised producers (MF Doom and J Dilla) and more. This project foreshadowed the impending rise of one of the 2010s most influential hip-hop collectives, Pro Era.

#9 Chief Keef – Back from the Dead

This break out mixtape from Chicago rapper Chief Keef placed Chicago back on the map for music (last person being Kanye really) and provided a new sub-genre of rap to be explored. Although Waka Flocka can be credited for his head banging rendition of the impending drill movement, it’s Chief Keef’s emotionless, cold, nearly soulless delivery of these violent rhymes that made him a poster child for the drill movement. His lifestyle had invaded pop culture with phrases like 300, Bang Bang, O Block, Lamron, etc. Many Chicago rappers thrived from Chief Keef’s success off this tape including Lamron affiliates Fredo Santana, Lil Reese, King Louie, Montana of 300, Lil Durk, and more.

#10 Earl Sweatshirt – EARL

Coming from the Odd future collective, the unofficial second in command found Earl Sweatshirt flirting with the same shock value raps his cohort Tyler the creator did. But the similarities stop there. In this debut mixtape effort, the extremely young MC crafts several rhyme patterns reminiscent of underground legend MF DOOM. Despite the content of these lyrics being heavily x-rated and controversial, the tape finds Earl performing verbal acrobatics even people twice his age would have a hard time accomplishing.