The best rapper of all time

[Legendary_Undertaker]

So from what I've read so far, its either an east coast rapper, a west coast rapper, or the south. Well I'm from the Midwest so let me at least throw a couple names from here out to properly represent my region.

1. Krayzie Bone from Bone Thugs-n-Harmony- Normally I would include all the members of Bone but Krayzie Bone's flow is so good I had to put him here on his own. He may not have the mainstream attention as others, but compared to the new shit that's out there (I'm lookin at Soulja Boy and Lil Wayne here), he would murder them both in any sort of battle. He's got songs that talk about thuggin and gangsta shit, then he's got songs about struggling, life and death, the list goes on. Plus I think he's one of the fastest rappers that you could actually understand. He's very versatile going from rapid fire spitting to slow laid back harmonizing.

2. Tech N9ne - This dude is straight crazy. I think Tech got into the game at the wrong time. If he was releasing music like he is now back in like '93 or '94, he'd be one of the bigger rappers out there. He's always been underground unfortunately. Tech can spit just as fast if not even faster then Krayzie Bone. What I like about Tech is how solid his story telling is on top of being able to make songs that make you wanna get wild. He's always been on the top of my list for abilities.

Tupac was great, Biggie was great, I love em both honestly. They've always been equal to me so I'm not gonna differentiate between the too. Dr. Dre has never been that great of a rapper, but as a producer, he's on the top of the game. West Coast wise I've always thought 2pac and Ice Cube's old shit were the best. On the east coast its always been Nas, Biggie, Wu Tang Clan, and DMX.

Finally, I noticed someone mentioned Chamillionaire. I agree with you that in the future Chamillionaire will be on top of the game. I think he's tryin to improve his ability at all times which is what I admire about him. Unlike Lil Wayne who actually dumbed down his abilities in order to get popular, Cham is constantly working on his music to be the best it can be. Recently I got Mixtape Messiah 6 and it was damn good. I'm lookin forward to his newest album Venom when that drops. But as of now, the best of the south had to be U.G.K. (R.I.P. Pimp C). Bun B and Pimp C were makin great music before the south even got hot. Think about it, they were on Big Pimpin with Jay-Z when Jigga was on top of the game. That speaks volumes considering I wasn't even in high school at the time of that song.

I apologize for the rant but hip-hop has been a big part of my life and I just wanted to share a little insight on my opinion on the music.

Krayzie Bone, Tech n9ne, UGK.... Hommie I don't even know you but I fucks with you for that. Bone Thugs are my all time fovorite group period. I love Tech N9ne and UGK is the shit period!

 

[Ty Burna]

Krayzie Bone, Tech n9ne, UGK.... Hommie I don't even know you but I fucks with you for that. Bone Thugs are my all time fovorite group period. I love Tech N9ne and UGK is the shit period!

I've always been into artists that I like, fuck whatever the mainstream says. I got tons of artists from the midwest, the east coast, west coast, and the south. Hell you ever listen to any Heltah Skeltah or Immortal Technique? Immortal Technique has storytelling abilities that are above what Slick Rick may have even been able to put out. Heltah Skeltah just destroys any mainstream artists out there. Check out their song The Art Of Disrespekinazation. Then after that check out the CD D.I.R.T. Some crazy shit and it really brings ya back to the old days of rap when it was all hard shit instead of the lollipop shit that's coming out nowadays.

I do have to make a note here however, Three 6 Mafia back in the day was pretty damn good too. Back when they had Gangsta Boo and Project Pat in the mix. Dj Paul and Juicy J kinda sold out in a way that Lil Wayne did. Don't get me wrong though, they still making some banging songs when they aren't meant to be singles.

 

[Legendary_Undertaker]

I do have to make a note here however, Three 6 Mafia back in the day was pretty damn good too. Back when they had Gangsta Boo and Project Pat in the mix. Dj Paul and Juicy J kinda sold out in a way that Lil Wayne did. Don't get me wrong though, they still making some banging songs when they aren't meant to be singles.

FUCK THREE SIX MAFIA!!!! I hated those guys when they went at bone thugs but i goot admit they kinda grew on me after the beef was over. The Dropped solid underground music then they lost EVERYBODY. but they were still able to put out there best LP to date (mot known Unknowns) but I stopped fucking with them after they fucked over crunchy Blacc, Lil Whyte, Frazier boy and even project pat!! FUCK THREE SIX

 

[Ty Burna]

FUCK THREE SIX MAFIA!!!! I hated those guys when they went at bone thugs but i goot admit they kinda grew on me after the beef was over. The Dropped solid underground music then they lost EVERYBODY. but they were still able to put out there best LP to date (mot known Unknowns) but I stopped fucking with them after they fucked over crunchy Blacc, Lil Whyte, Frazier boy and even project pat!! FUCK THREE SIX

See and the funny thing is I never even knew Three 6 at the time was even going at Bone Thugs. Hell I hadn't even heard of Three 6 back then. Their underground music was damn good, but lately all their new music is just copying whats mainstream now. Do I even need to say anything about Lolli Lolli? Old Three 6 was way better especially on their Da Unbreakables album.

Lil Wyte and Project Pat are fucking awesome. I think Lil Wyte is probably one of the best white rappers out there if not the best. I know everyone says Eminem, but I've always had a strong dislike for him. Why? I don't know, there are some songs of his that are bangin, but usually its when he's got D12 or Dre, Snoop etc on it.

I don't think Three 6 is fuckin over Lil Wyte, Frazier Boy or Project Pat though. They're promoting the hell out of all three of them and are even using them on their new albums to give them exposure.

 

[BigLeagueG26]

Biggie Smalls is the best rapper of all time, the man was off the top of his head never wrote anything down on paper now 15 years later its the shit not to write, nothing against Lil Wayne or Jay-Z but Biggie was the man when it came to that.Notorious B.I.G is the best rapper of all time!

 

[Sean Valjean]

As far as pure lyrical skill goes, it's hard to give it to anyone except Rakim. Rakim used to KILL it on the mic, he had such a great flow and the sickest methaphors. He made it look so easy with his fierce yet silky smooth deliverary. I might have to edge him over Tupac as the best ever, not by much though. I don't think anyone ever mentions AZ, he's really sick on the mic as well, almost to Rakim's level at times.

Tupac, Biggie, Nas, and Jay-Z are up on my list as well. Common and Talib Kweli too. Lupe Fiasco is my favorite newer artist and I'm glad he's getting the attention he deserves.

 

[HHHDiedForOurSins]

Nas. Illmatic, It Was Written, Stillmatic, The Lost Tapes and Untitled are all classics, even his weaker albums are better than most other rappers (except Nastradamus, which was terrible). I've probably got more Nas songs on my iPod than any other artist, so many great songs: One Mic, I Gave You Power, N.Y. State Of Mind, Nas Is Like, Represent, Fetus, The World Is Yours, It Ain't Hard To Tell, Ether...

 

[DD84]

Nas. Illmatic, It Was Written, Stillmatic, The Lost Tapes and Untitled are all classics, even his weaker albums are better than most other rappers (except Nastradamus, which was terrible). I've probably got more Nas songs on my iPod than any other artist, so many great songs: One Mic, I Gave You Power, N.Y. State Of Mind, Nas Is Like, Represent, Fetus, The World Is Yours, It Ain't Hard To Tell, Ether...

I agree. His latest album was a classic. He is the best alive. He is far better than Lil Wayne. Nas is the greatest ever.

 

[xtremetony]

My choices are Rakim, Snoop Dogg, Royce Da 5'9" & Too Short.

Rakim lyrically talented, and nobody comes close.
Snoop has that slow & melloe flow that I like.
Royce has the vicious lyrics & is virtually unbeatable in Battle Raps.
Too Short just keeps it real.

 

[Fizzy]

Ok I brought myself to post in this thread as a former rap fan. The answer is simple. Eminem. I'm most likely going to get put on spot for saying this, but look at the facts.

Tupac was good. Maybe even great, but he is only considered the greatest rapper ever because he was killed. Nobody in here can tell me otherwise. Maybe he would be considered ONE of the best, but not the best, and same goes for Notorious B.I.G.

Eminem is not like other rappers. He raps about his real life problems, not just woman, money, drugs, and pimping, he raps about his actual life and the obstacles hes overcome. He has actual problems with his wife/ex wife (can't remember whether their divorced or not) his daughter growing up with a mom like that, and the problems hes had with his mom. He does not stop rapping for getting criticized by everybody because hes white, he loves what he does, and none of that will stop him.

So to me Eminem will always be the greatest rapper of all time simply because he doesn't rap about all the stuff the others do he raps about real life, and is still good in doing it.

 

[Richard]

I don't pay attention to the whole rap scene because it's not my thing really but whenever I listen to the radio and you hear the popular rap artists of today, I really can't get into them. The only rapper who I've been able to really get into is Eminem.

Fizzy pretty much hit the nail on the head. I think calling Tupac a legend is a bit extreme because I don't think he deserves his 'legendary' status in the rap or music world in general and he only got that status because he had died, if he was still alive today, I think his legacy would be incredibly different and his popularity might even be different as well.

Back to Eminem. I enjoy most of his work, from his comical rap to the more serious stuff like When I'm Gone. I do enjoy a lot of his older stuff as well like Without Me, which is one of my personal favourites from him. I just think he has more to offer in the meanings of his songs rather than singing about bitches and hoes and you can tell from his songs how much he loves and cares about Hailey too. So yeah, Eminem would be my faveourite rapper because he raps about real issues and his songs have a decent beat to them too.

 

[King Patrick Star]

This topic has been discussed over and over again, and I must say, every time I see it, my answer changes every single time. As of right now, Lil Wayne is pretty sick. The thing is, you have to get over the sound and listen to the lyrics. He’s a pretty deep dude. I think right now, “Swagger Like Us” or S. L. U. has the Top 4 rappers today. It’s hard to judge a “G. O. A. T.” for rappers for the simple fact that it’s not a, for a lack of a better term competitive sport or a sport for that matter. It’s not like you can take two rappers and have them do the exact same song and judge them in anyway. In any event, I think the Top 4 right now, in no order, is Mr. West, Mr. Carter, Mr. Carter, and Mr. Harris.

 

[HEEL Blazy]

I'm gonna have to say T-Swizzle I mean come on Taylor Swift was awesome in the rap she did with T-Pain and she was flowing pretty good. Plus she is my favorite country singer lol. Also she looked pretty good as a gangsta.

But if you won't accept that then I'll pick Eminem because he got some tight songs. This coming from someone who barely can stand rap. My favorite Eminem song has to be Lose Yourself. Its pure win. I also like Cleaning out My Closest.

 

[GDouble6]

Chamillionre. With Mixtape Messhiah 5-7 He has truly proven that he is the king of Texas and the best in real and nothing less in his dreams. His Swagger like us was without a doubt the best version and he is showing that mixtapes are amazing. Chailtry will get back on the radio soon but his mixtape 7 should truly be a lryical masterpeice with the end of the Nerds and much more freestyles to warp around.

 

[X]

Tupac was good. Maybe even great, but he is only considered the greatest rapper ever because he was killed. Nobody in here can tell me otherwise. Maybe he would be considered ONE of the best, but not the best, and same goes for Notorious B.I.G.

That's the biggest load of bullshit I've ever read. Listen to the verses in this song by Tupac, and fucking TRY to tell me that he's only considered great because he was killed:

[youtube]br7k98t_Vko[/youtube]​

His use of illiteration in that song is astounding, and puts pretty much every other rapper of his time to absolute shame.

Clearly you haven't listened to very much of Tupac or Biggie, because if you had then you'd know god damn well they are two of if not THE two greatest rappers to ever enter the game. To even attempt to debate this is fucking ridiculious and shows an astounding lack of hip hop knowledge on your part.

I like you Fizzy, but you just don't know what you're talking about here.

Eminem is not like other rappers. He raps about his real life problems, not just woman, money, drugs, and pimping, he raps about his actual life and the obstacles hes overcome. He has actual problems with his wife/ex wife (can't remember whether their divorced or not) his daughter growing up with a mom like that, and the problems hes had with his mom. He does not stop rapping for getting criticized by everybody because hes white, he loves what he does, and none of that will stop him.

So you think Eminem is the only rapper to rap about real life problems? That's been done by literally HUNDREDS of rappers long before Eminem even picked up a mic. De La Soul was rapping about family members being addicted to crack years before Eminem uttered a syllable. He was hardly the first white rapper, or even the first massively popular white rapper (did you forget about the Beastie Boys?)

Eminem is good and all, even great, but greatest of all time? No fucking way. Tupac, Big, Rakim, KRS-One, all of them put him to absolute shame. Eminem is so overrated it just astounds me, the man hasn't released a great album in nearly a decade (Marshall Mathers LP). Everything since that album has been mediocre, with every once in a while a great song thrown in here and there. Overrated as fuck.

So to me Eminem will always be the greatest rapper of all time simply because he doesn't rap about all the stuff the others do he raps about real life, and is still good in doing it.

Eminem raps about money, women and drugs just as much as any other rapper, you can't even pretend that he doesn't. He's hardly the first or the best rapper to write about real life problems either, KRS-One, Rakim & De La Soul were all doing that long before Eminem ever was, and doing a much better job at it.

Further more, you listen to a Tupac song like "Keep Ya Head Up" (which I will include here) and its a far more poignant and intelligent song about real life issues then any "serious" song that Eminem has ever put out, ever.

[youtube]JlQcJAjYxaI[/youtube]​

For me, the greatest rapper of all time does come down to Tupac, Nas, and Biggie. While guys like KRS-One, Rakim and Chuck D are high up there, nobody ever lit the rap game on fire like those three, no one. All three of them had such complex and flawless flows, and they all wrote lyrics that would have you scratching your head trying desperately to understand how the fuck anyone could ever come up with something so good.

Some of the choices I'm seeing in this thread are just pathetic. I like Chamillionaire as much as the next guy, but he doesn't even crack the top 20 MC's of all time, let alone the best ever.

In the end, I'm going to go with Nas. Tupac is probably better technically, but I've always preferred Nas. Illmatic IMO is the greatest rap album EVER. His flow is smooth and flawless, his lyrics put an overrated hack like Jay-Z to total fucking shame, he's everything that a rapper should be. While his latest stuff may not have the same NY feel to it that it used to in the 90s, his new albums are still better then 99.9% of rap music being released today (Hip Hop Is Dead shits ALL OVER anything Lil' Wayne has ever done).

To end this post before it goes on to long, I'm going to include my favorite Nas song ever, the one that got me instantly hooked to the man from the very first time I ever heard it. Greatest song in the history of hip hop if you ask me.

[youtube]UKjj4hk0pV4[/youtube]​

 

[Razor Blade Dream]

In the end, I'm going to go with Nas. Tupac is probably better technically, but I've always preferred Nas. Illmatic IMO is the greatest rap album EVER. His flow is smooth and flawless, his lyrics put an overrated hack like Jay-Z to total fucking shame, he's everything that a rapper should be. While his latest stuff may not have the same NY feel to it that it used to in the 90s, his new albums are still better then 99.9% of rap music being released today (Hip Hop Is Dead shits ALL OVER anything Lil' Wayne has ever done).

I have to agree. Nas is fuckin flawless. I will give Jay-Z credit though when it comes to the American Gangster album. While it wasn't THE best hip hop album ever, it wasn't, I just like the old 70's soul sound he had going and the song "Pray" has a nice flow to it. Other than that Nas is one of the best of all time.

Anyway, I really cannot get into Lil Wayne at all. I think his voice irks me just as much as that fuckin accent Eminem does now. If I can't get past how a rapper's voice is I generally shut it down, and this is coming from someone who loves the Beastie Boys.