15-The Roots:And Then You Shoot Your Cousin-The dark Roots comes in over the competion below it.(Albums that didnt quite make this list.) That includes, Game's Year of the Wolf, Mobb Deep's The Infamous Mobb Deep, Twista Dark Horse, and Joe Budden's Some Love Lost.
14-Eminem & Shady Aftermath-Shady XV-I originally had this album higher up, but its a great compilation album. Ironically Eminem had the #1 album last year with Marshall Mathers LP 2. Em's solo songs are good here, Yelawolf and Slaughterhouse also do well. 50 Cent's songs dont really belong on the bonus disc. D-12's songs are good, but not the new song.
13.Ab-Soul-These Days...-This album didn't really surprise me. Its actually tied with #14 and #13. Ab Soul's lyrics are promising, and i like most of these songs. He is kind of like Nas imo...but obviously not as great as the Queens Bridge Mc. I cant say this is better than his first album, but this was a stand out earlier in the year.
12.School Boy Q-I really like this album, but its not really superior to Ab Soul's. The beats are hot and varied, but some songs are too similar. This album was in heavy rotation for me earlier in the year. He is kind of like a West Coast Raekwon imo. I didnt really care much for SBQ till i heard this album.
11.Dilated People's-Director's of Photography-You shouldnt be shocked this is up here. Its a semi-dark, lyrical rap fest. I want to listen to more music from them. I really liked this album....even though i dont know who's who yet lol.
10.Jeezy-Seen It All:The Autobiography-Now the albums get really good. I wasn't crazy about this album at first, but then it really grew on me...in fact its one of his best albums.Jeezy's lyrics are faster than in the past, and he saved the guest spots for the back of the album...which actually was a good move.
9.Pharoahe Monch-PTSD-Post Traumatic Stress Disorder-I am a semi big fan of PM's, and this album was an improvement over 2011's WAR album. His lyricism is very good, and there's not many guest spots, and honestly, he didnt need many. The song with Black Thought really shines.
8.T.I.-Paperwork-T.I.'s ninth solo album is great. My complaint is that the album isnt all that cohesive. Other than that everything else is solid. This is a major improvement over Trouble Man; his 2012 album. There a lot of guests...but they are all well used for the most part. It has all the makings of a great T.I. album.
7.Nicki Minaj-The Pinkprint-Okay so if you weren't shocked...you are now. This is her best album...hands down. Her lyricism is good this time around. I really like her punchlines too. There's a good amount of guests...sometimes theres 3 on 1 track with Nicki(Chris Brown, Drake, and Lil Wayne). This album is very personal, which was lacking from Pink Friday Roman Reloaded....
6.Vince Staples-Hell Can Wait-Okay i meant to do a review for this album, but its only 7 songs. The albums from this point on in the list were very very good, with few flaws. Vince doesnt keep my attention too long, but the production helps out. His rhymes are creative as he paints various pictures...
5.Logic-Under Pressure-Logic is the rapper to watch going foward. His razor sharp flow makes this album very good. The production was good and fairly simplistic. Its got a 9 minute title track that goes by quickly due to how good it is. The album is dope.
4.;J.Cole-2014 Forest Hills Drive-I didnt expect Cole to drop another album this year. I'm glad he did though. This is his best album. Its very introspective and personal. He raps about a variety of topics including: Him losing his virginity, him being a rap juggernaut, and white people stealing the culture. He sings more here, but it works....His time is now. Cold World!
3.Big K.R.I.T.-Cadalactica- I'm causal fan of BK, but this album was FIYA. Its smooth as butter at times, then it hits hard. Who is making better music in the south than BK? NOONE. KING OF THE SOUTH....naw its still T.I. But when it comes to this year, BK is killin it. The album is just so creative.
2.Common-Nobody's Smiling-Common would be upset. He ties score wise for album of the year again. (Game's Red Album in 2011). Its another dark album on the list. Yes Common made a very dark sounding album compared to his past works. The album has no real flaws except for maybe creativity. I really thought Common would take the top spot. This was the first great album of 2014 for rap music.
1.Killer Mike & El-P(RTJ)-Run the Jewels 2-This album is dope as hell. Its better than the first one(even if u didnt think that was possible.) It hits harder yet flows together smoother. Killer Mike and El-P leave the mic scorching from their hard hitting rhymes...The album is complex as well. You've got to listen more than once to really soak it in. RUN THEM JEWELS FAST!!!
Okay so if you agree with the list or don't let me know. What rap albums make your top list of 2014???