Rappers Who Should Be on the 'Best Rappers Alive' List

On a question that's been asked since around 1996, ZS takes time to finally clear up the answers. More after the jump.



So Zilla and I were talking about who "saved" hip-hop and he hit me with that Best Rapper Alive question. I initially told him that the term is wack 'cause it's overused, but he had me thinking who is INDEED the best rapper? Sure there are plenty of B.R.A. lists (pause). And there are plenty of rappers who deserves the title: Rakim, Jay-Z, Eminem, Lil Wayne, give-and-take. But are the ones who aren't accepted as the best rappers alive actually better than the ones who are? Let's see, shall we?

Black Thought



Why he should be on the list?:


Simply because he represents the TRUE meaning of MC'ing and I dare anyone to disagree. ...Thought so. Black Thought, along with his band The Roots, has been through many ups and downs, from being unfamous to famous to back to unfamous and back to famous again! The rhymes of Black Thought, however, never lost its edge ever since he was 15 rapping. Try as you might, you could never find a wack Black Thought verse... ever! And if you do, that'll be on the day you see Satan rockin' a chinchilla fur coat and eating some BBQ pork wings.

Why isn't he on the list?:


Y'know, I honestly couldn't tell ya. Sure, he may be today's rightful continuation to where Big Daddy Kane and Kool G. Rap left off, but for him not to be on the B.R.A. (..Yea I can't acronym it, can I?) list is surprising, yet uncommon. He's often not mention as one of the realest emcees, yet it's nearly understood by everyone that he is, regardless. One could say it's the lack of solo work, but does he really need that? He proved enough with the Roots, so I can't say I know why he isn't there. But I think so.

Classic Verse:

Black master of any trade under the sun
Talk sharp like a razor blade under the tongue
Clear my path and come get your captain hung
Trying to breath like Black'll collapse your lungs
Young chump you could choke off the web I spun
I done cleared 'em out from the threat I brung
You done heard about what set I'm from
My nigga, word-a-mouth lil' rule-a-thumb
Y'all better bow down when the ruler come
I'm a real hood nigga not a hood-a-lum
The way Thought put it down be confusin' some of y'all
cats can't walk while chewin' your gum 'n all
With a keyboard got do with a drum 'n all
School 'em on stage like I'm doin' a seminar
Professional type, I'm adjusting my mic
Go to war kid I'll give you any weapon you like
Give you something to run from, bust off your dum-dum
Stop kid, that hot sh*t you know where it come from
- The Roots - "Web"

J-Live



Why he should be on the list?:

J-Live is an emcee, a producer, and a DJ. Yeah, that may be no big deal, we've all heard Pete Rock doing the same thing. But you oughta know that J-Live is not only great at doing those three things separately, but he can also do all three at the SAME TIME! But even if he wasn't a DJ/producer, J-Live's emcee skills alone can make him on the Best Rapper Alive list. This rapper puts the word "knowledge" in knowledge, son! Don't believe me? Check out any record of his category and tell me you felt as if you've learned something new. He's not the type of emcee to rap with the "spontaneous Uranian, zaniest with my percutaneous radiance with my extemporaneous" rhymes. But it's definitely something you can learn, as well as enjoy.

Why isn't he on the list?:

Because he's not heard of by the masses and he's always been one of the most underrated emcees that the world never listened to. However, those who digs deep through the sugary-coated mainstream world and find some J-Live tracks, it'll be like a bureid treasure discovered.

Classic verse:

(Welcome to my world of...)
Bumps, bruises, scrapes, cuts, aches and blisters
Typhoones, mysoons, earthquakes and twisters
It's the, picture my life fits in
My whirlwind rotates, elevates and transcends
Watch me shine in the streets like some fresh new rims
Watch my enemies retreat as I collect my wins
Every 25 thousand, I start over again
to renew my history, so skip repentin my sins
Here's some words of advice you can share with'cha friends
Tell 'em not to fall victim to the short term ends
Comin up fast, I'm sure you'll impress the skins
But if you're too deep, you're guaranteed to catch the bends
You could spread news: north, east, west and south
My universe will expand WAY beyond New York
You got two ears, two eyes and just one mouth
So look and listen both over before you talk
I'm keepin all my enemies outlined in chalk...
on the blackboard, now did you get the wrong idea?
I suggest you change the currents in your atmosphere
Once you get yourself together, I'll remain right here"
- J-Live - "How Real It Is"

Gift of Gab



Why he should be on the list?:

Gift of Gab will devour your favorite emcee. PERIOD. If you haven't heard of him prior to reading this statement, then you are NOT liable to say otherwise. Everything he spits on, he destroys. Even while his flows may be sometimes very bizarre, it's never sloppy. Gift of Gab has one of the most apt names in the history of rap.

Why isn't he on the list?:

Gab may be simply too good for good, unlike too good for his own good. Many of his rhymes come at such rapid pace that even Twista would tell him to slow down. Plus Gab's high usage of diverse vocabulary brings more rhymes than the average ice-ice-ice, swag-swag-swag, gimme yo' bag-bag-bag. Maybe that's why people don't pay attention to him because he's such on an advanced level of rhyming, people will just attach the "nerdy" tag to it and dismiss it. Their loss.

Classic verse:

Back on the journey again, tool is the pad and pen
Cool is the fan as the wind, soothin' you after I send
True inter vision risen and driven while givin' you my
Isms of intuition while niggas is livin' a lie
Syllables spill and I fly, high as a pittacle rhyme
Not to belittle a fool, but try to get into you my -
Lyrics inherited form awareness somewhere in the sky
Clearly you'll give 'em merit and cherish 'em better wit' time
There is none ever and on like rivers, so clever I shine
Verbal ambassador travel in this endeavor of mine
Never a anti-gangster, the ghetto is still on the mind
If I was not rappin', a nigga might be up inside
All of your terraces, stealing wallets and necklaces, I
give hella gratefulness for the blessin' share this and fly
Everywhere people outside the culture now try to define
What it is, but it is mine, such it is, love with blind
Vision but no division is vivid we livin' inside
Vicious vindictive and mental prisons from within the mind
I sit and find stillness from minutes is written the rhyme
Gettin' you smitten wit' it, particularly if you're a prime
Listener, listen up, twist it up like the lyrics was lime
Vintage is instant, so give it up when you hear it recited
Recite it at attention, relivin' tension and bendin' yo' spine
Sendin' you signals to get yo' internal system aligned"
- Blackalicious - "My Pen and Pad"

Pharoahe Monch



Why he should be on the list?:
Ask me that twenty years ago when he was with his group Organized Konfusion and I'll ask, "Why he SHOULDN'T be?" Ask me that ten years ago, when the world was still blastin' his 1999 hit "Simon Says", and I'll ask, "Why he SHOULDN'T be?" Ask me that now, when his latest record W.A.R. (We Are Renegades) certainly will make it to the Top 10 Rap Albums of this year (at least mines), and I'll ask the same thing. Monch has been around for over two decades, yet he's just getting started. His style is never dated, yet always sounds ahead of its time. Monch is one of the illest and to not put him on the Best Rapper Alive list would guarantee the revokal of your hip-hop card IMO.

Why isn't he on the list?:

I don't know, really. Maybe the people thought his single "Clap (One Day)" would be about a stripper clappin' her big booty cheeks for one day or somethin', I'onno. But Monch have always stayed below the radar even when he had a hit or two on the Billboard charts. So that means that the people either missed him completely or wanted to stick to their comfort zone of their Jay-Z/Eminem playlist on thier iPod. And it's cool if people go with the latter, it's their right to. However, no one can deny the incredible skills Monch have that no rapper can even attempt to bite. Maybe that's the reason why he isn't on the list, because you can have a million Jay-Z clones, but never a million Monch clones.

Classic verse:

So phenomenal with mics I don't like myself
Sadomasochist MC, I bite myself
(OWW!) - but not Cameo though, there's no Grammy to show
for the love that people hand me on the street, now overstand
Grade school mathematics examining thugs
They discuss Bloods, Crips, techs jammin, and drugs
I speak of world peace, war, famine, and flood
Watching Pan's Labrynth while I'm unraveling bud
Gambling on the next rapper to die in the hood
If God shall choose that artist to be me
Let one verse of a song be a reflection of a pedigree
Better than your back catalogue recipe
The legacy by which the entire world remembers me
Quote, do NOT edit me; let it be said
I'm Top 5 all TIME, alive or...
Ha, we know that's misstated and so overused
So here's a overview of why I'm 6 feet over you
and a million fans think this statement is so overdue!
And pardon if it sounds a little +wheezy+
Not Wayne, motherfuckers, I got asthma, it's not easy
Shotgun lyrical - cock back, squeeze me
Women +Case+ my anatomy - touch me, tease me
Please seize the moment in the struggle against Lucifer
Renegade 13 the Executioner
Spit with a crucifix, so that you can expect
the rant from Pharoahe Monch like Mucinex
Get used to it, get used to wisdom
Get used to usage of a backward euphemism
- Pharoahe Monch - "Evolve"

Aceyalone



Why he should be on the list?:
If you look up the word "freestyle" in the hip-hop dictionary, you should see a picture of Aceyalone next to the definition. It may be apt to note that his first group is known as Freestyle Fellowships. And whether you get Aceyalone solo or in a group, you'll get nothing but the best. And I say that with no understatement, because Aceyalone brings you the 100% hip-hop that gains support from the real heads whether or not he has support from the mainstream labels.

Why isn't he on the list?:

Have you heard of Aceyalone? No, I'm really asking you if you've heard of him before reading this list. Because I've had plenty of people who I discussed "real hip-hop" with, then I'll say something like, "Yeah, but that rapper Aceyalone is crazy, too!" Then all I see is a confused face as they blurt out, "WHO?!" Aceyalone may be the most underated UNDERATED rapper we've (never) seen thus far. Yet, he's been gaining props from MTV, as they've played his tracks on plenty of shows (Yeah shocking, I know) and numerous of video games, such as 2K Sports games, which got a blogger like this one open to other tracks Acey has to offer. Maybe when the world wakes up, he'll be on everybody's list. But until then, check the quote below if you don't take my word for it.

Classic verse:

Now maybe I should WARN you, before I storm on you some mo'
Disarm you, reform you, don't wanna harm you or alarm you
but nobody's LEAVING here 'til they stop breathing and CHOKE!
Ever since I was a child teeeethin', and able to speak I spoke heathen
Under this tent's the greatest show ever seen ever heard
from the evergreen to the Neverland Ranch you never dreamed
but you slept -- and I witnessed it
It's over your head, it's way out of your grasp now
You're outta weed, outta cash, outta gas, and you're outta style
Outta place and you're outta time and you're outta touch and you're outta line
and you're outta turn, outta tune, and you're outta wind
and you're one out of ten who MUST be outta their goddamn minds
I'm outta reach, I'm outta you're element outta the ordinary, outta sight
I'm a outsider, it's outta my hands I'm outta this WORLD on the mic
And this is the greatest show on earth, it's the greatest show in the world
Gotta pocket full of DIRT and rocks, but I'm tryin' to give you this pearl"
- Aceyalone - "The Greatest Show on Earth (Bar9 Remix)"

MF DOOM



Why he should be on the list?:
Okay, so DOOM may be on many people's list already, but some may dismiss him because he rocks a mask...and they can't think of any other excuse to omit him from the list. The mask actually represents the tragedy of his brother Subroc's death in 1993 and the mental scars the industry left him during his happy-go-lucky days, when he was known as Zev Love X in his group K.M.D. (Kausing Much Damage/a positive Kause in a Much Damaged society). Ever since then, X turned to DOOM with a style that can only be described as "drunken master style in a rap." DOOM may sound impassive in his rhyme, but trust that he's in no way lackadaisical. No matter how old DOOM gets, his style will still be dope.

Why isn't he on the list?:

Probably because his style is so below ground, folks who only listen to the radio will call his style wack and, to me, it's a shame. DOOM may be the biggest underground hero in hip-hop, yet above ground he'll almost always be ignored by the masses. Yet he has one of the biggest fanbase with no help from airplay that you can call the whole group DOOMANIACS (including all caps, as well). Or maybe his drunk flow isn't everyone's cup of Nestlé, who knows? Either way, his skills dominate, yo.

Classic verse:

"There is only one beer left
Rappers screaming all in our ears like we're deaf
Tempt me, do a number on the label
Eat up all their MC's and drink 'em under the table like
It's on me, put it on my tab kid
However you get there - foot it, cab it, iron horse it
You leaving on your face forfeit
Of course, the mic holder, like the heat he might toss it
Told 'er tell 'em they stole it, he told her he lost it
She told him get off it, and a bunch other more shit
Gettin' money, DT's be gettin' no new leads
It's like he eating watermelon, stay spittin' new seeds
[...]
They call on Super when they need some back or plumbing fixed
How there's only one left? The pack comes in six!
Whatever happened to two and three?
A herb tried to slide with four and five and got caught
Like, "What'chu doin', G?!"
Don't make 'em have to get cuttin' like truancy
Matter fact, not for nothin', right now: you and me
Looser than a pair of Adidas
I hope you bought your spare tweeters, these emcees sound like cheerleaders
Rappin' and dancin' like Redhead Kingpin
DOOM came to do the thing again, no matter who be blingin"
Madvillian - "One Beer"

These are just ten emcees that came out of thought. Certainly, there will be enough emcees for me to give you part two to part ten, at least, of well-deserving emcees who aren't getting their well-deserved attention. Not to mention that I didn't even mention one female rapper and don't worry, the femcees have the category of their own to be the best rappers alive, also. Did we get it right? Wrong? Who would you add or subtract? Drop a comment!