After weeks of deliberation, the 2007 Rap List is finally upon us. 25 hip-hop critics were asked to pick up to 10 of their favorite ’07 releases. Points were then awarded to the nominated albums in descending order. As you might expect, the overwhelming favorites were Graduation and American Gangster, with 22 votes apiece. And, no, Curtis didn’t make anyone’s list.
Without further ado, here are the 25 Best Rap Albums of 2007 According to Hip-Hop Critics…
1. Kanye West – Graduation (Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam)
Score: 168 (22 Votes)
If hip-hop were college, Kanye West would be the mildly irritating senior — acing Psychology, kicking it with that sexy young English instructor, and spewing self-righteous jazz in the parking lot. Scratch that. Hip-hop is college in Kanye’s world. And Graduation is a class act. — Rizoh
2. Jay-Z – American Gangster (Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam)
Score: 149 (22 Votes)
Sure, it was a thinly veiled attempt to regress to Reasonable Doubt, pre-Yawnsay & 40/40 ways of content. But it was just as good as the first time. — John Gotty
3. Lupe Fiasco – Lupe Fiasco’s The Cool (1st & 15th/Atlantic)
Score: 145 (17 Votes)
In a year that was rife with contrived concept albums, Lupe Fiasco’s The Cool stood taller than Yao Ming on a court full of six-footers. Lupe limits the concept to five songs, but the rest of the album is loaded with random gems that showcase his versatility. From the smoothed out vibe of “Paris, Tokyo” to the frenetic delivery on “Hello/Goodbye,” the ever shifting themes ensure that the listener never gets too comfortable. By crystallizing his divergent interests into one bold work of art, Lupe proves that the elements of progressive hip-hop — eclecticism, zaniness, swagger — don’t always have to be mutually exclusive. — Rizoh
4. Talib Kweli – Ear Drum (Blacksmith/Warner)
Score: 93 (17 Votes)
Ear Drum‘s diversity is what makes the album so great: not only as a hip-hop album, but as a testament to pure, musical creativity. It offers an incredibly rich array of progressive hip-hop, both in its lyrical content as well as style. — Ivan Rott
5. Common – Finding Forever (Geffen)
Score: 76 (12 Votes)
Finding Forever picks up where Be left off (a friend calls it Be 2.0), with Common unleashing some blistering social commentary and Kanye supplying the gentle soulfulness. But it’s the “conscious n***a with more mac(k) than Steve Jobs” attitude that keeps things varied and interesting here. — Rizoh
6. Pharoahe Monch – Desire (SRC/Universal)
Score: 72 (12 Votes)
What sets Desire apart from Monch’s solo debut Internal Affairs, is that much of the dark sounds of the latter are traded in for a soul, gospel-infused soundscape. On Desire, Monch continues to dazzle with his use of clever metaphors and multi-syllabic rhymes, but more importantly, his versatility is on full display throughout the project.
– Samir Siddiqui
7. UGK – Underground Kingz (Jive)
Score: 62 (12 Votes)
Underground Kingz is a crash course for those UGK fans who were still in diapers when Too Hard to Swallow became a hip-hop staple. The album kicks off with the catchy “Swishas & Doshas” and leads into the year’s most memorable rap song, “Int’l Players Anthem.” Listening to this album again serves as a bitter reminder that Pimp C’s riveting hooks and production prowess will be sorely missed. — Rizoh
8. Little Brother – Getback (ABB)
Score: 61 (12 Votes)
Simply put, one the best albums to buzz under the mainstream radar…but in constant rotation for the Average Joe fan. Lose a band member? Leave your label? No problem. Just release a stellar album to quiet any potential naysayers. — John Gotty
9. Ghostface Killah – The Big Doe Rehab (Def Jam)
Score: 41 (6 Votes)
If I haven’t said it before, I’ll say it now: Ghostface Killah is one of the Greatest Of All-Time. Seven solo albums, five group albums, side projects…it doesn’t matter. Whatever Ghost touches has an excellent chance of turning into gold. Not many artists have a track record as great as Ghost’s. Since I got a hold of the album, Big Doe Rehab has not left my whip. Ghost is on point with the lyrics, his storytelling, and his selection of beats. The only thing left for him to do is to patch up this nonsense with RZA and make one final classic Wu-Tang Clan album. Is that too much to ask? — Enigmatik
10. Blu & Exile – Below the Heavens (Sound in Color)
Score: 31 (6 Votes)
The star of the show, Blu, utilizes a strong flow to deliver his wordy raps, and his silent confidence on the mic is mighty impressive- nothing is forced, and he displays no external vulnerability. As it is, Blu knows his songs are interesting, and the portrayals of his internal self-doubts, contradictions, and realizations are indeed worthy of praise. Each song works off the quality of the one before it, and “Narrow Path” and “In Remembrance of Me” are among the several excellent cuts. This duo is capable of great things, and here’s to hoping they get down for several more collaborative efforts.
– Samir Siddiqui
The Rest…
11. Wu-Tang Clan – 8 Diagrams (SRC/Universal)
Score: 29 (5 Votes)
12. Black Milk – Popular Demand (Fat Beats)
Score: 25 (3 Votes)
13. Brother Ali – The Undisputed Truth (Rhymesayers)
Score: 24 (5 Votes)
14. Freeway – Free At Last (Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam)
Score: 23 (7 Votes)
15. Joel Ortiz – The Brick: Bodega Chronicles (Koch)
Score: 23 (4 Votes)
16. Joe Budden – Mood Muzik III (Amalgam Digital)
Score: 20 (3 Votes)
17. Sean Price – Jesus Price Supastar (Duck Down)
Score: 19 (5 Votes)
18. El-P – I’ll Sleep When You’re Dead (Def Jux)
Score: 19 (4 Votes)
19. Consequence – Don’t Quit Your Day Job (GOOD)
Score: 18 (3 Votes)
20. Devin the Dude – Waiting to Inhale (Rap-A-Lot)
Score: 16 (6 Votes)
21. Prodigy – Return of the Mac (Koch)
Score: 13 (4 Votes)
22. Marco Polo – Port Authority (Rawkus)
Score: 13 (3 Votes)
23. Blue Scholars – Bayani (Rawkus)
Score: 13 (2 Votes)
24. Busta Rhymes + J Dilla – Dillagence (mickboogie.com)
Score: 11 (2 Votes)
25. Statik Selektah – Spell My Name Right (Brick)
Score: 11 (2 Votes)
Much thanks to everyone who contributed to the 07 Rap List:
- Shannon
- Ivan
- Renato
- Joey
- Wes
- Ian
- Gotty
- Ketchums
- Jarret
- Samir
- Randy
- J to the AAP
- Aaron
- Alex Parks
- Scott
- Markus
- Demeari
- Goat
- John
- Enigmatik
- Andrew
- Dave
- Tauwan
- B.R.
[Extra thanks to Ivan for the art work.]
UPDATE: For the sake of clarity, I’d like to point out that this list does not represent every album on the ballot. Human the Death Dance, Saison 5, Caltroit, El Abayarde Contraataca and many others were nominated, but they didn’t garner enough votes or points to make it into the Top 25.
