Best Rappers of All Time – Billboard
Billboard and Vibe are counting down the best MCs ever in honor of hip-hop's 50th anniversary.
The Greatest of All Time, aka the GOAT. That’s a distinguished — and also contentious — honor when it comes to ranking who or what is the ultimate best, whether you’re talking films, TV shows, restaurants or any other subject.
In early 2023, Billboard/Vibe is ranking the Top 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time as part of our salute to this year’s golden anniversary of hip-hop. (The genre dates back to 1973, when DJ Kool Herc first set up his two turntables to rock a Bronx party.) The rollout begins with today’s (Jan. 11) reveal of the rappers ranked 50-41. Each succeeding week, 10 more rappers will be unveiled as we move further up the list. Then the final top 10 will be announced during the week of Feb. 6.
In determining these rankings, the Billboard and Vibe editorial teams opted first to limit the rap arena to North America. So for example, as estimable as his career is, British rapper Slick Rick isn’t on this list. We also opted not to include the significant contributions of reggaetón and dancehall MCs on this list, just to keep our pool of nominees a little more focused.
From there, the teams took into account the following criteria, not in any particular order: body of work/achievements (charted singles/albums, gold/platinum certifications), cultural impact/influence (how the artist’s work fostered the genre’s evolution), longevity (years at the mic), lyrics (storytelling skills) and flow (vocal prowess).
As is well known, GOAT and similar best-of lists always draw their share of criticism and praise from industry pundits and the public alike. So it took a lot of deliberation and deep discussion to reason our way to what we believe is a well-thought-out, authentic list that reflects hip-hop’s foundational pioneers, evolutionary trailblazers and contemporary mainstays. In addition, that mix also encompasses 50 years of cultural milestones for a genre initially dismissed as a passing fad — and now recognized as the industry’s market share leader.
Let’s reveal Nos. 50-41 of Billboard/Vibe’s Top 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time … and let the debate begin.
50. Rick Ross
Rozay’s “Hustlin’” dreams turned to gold when he rattled the cages of rap’s mainstream with his 2006 summer anthem and pledged his allegiance to Def Jam and its ex-president Jay-Z. Ross demanded attention through his deep gruff-and-grunting ad-libs, colorful street tales and inside looks at Miami’s lavish lifestyle, plus his incredible ear for production — more appetizing than a lemon-pepper Wingstop order. His catalog reigns supreme, especially in the late 2000s and 2010s, as he doled out gems such as Trilla, Deeper Than Rap and God Forgives, I Don’t. Ross has notched 58 Billboard Hot 100 entries spanning three decades, but his legacy doesn’t end there: His Maybach Music Group laid the tarmac for Meek Mill and Wale to take off and become titans in the 2010s.
s.
49. Rev. Run (Run-DMC)
"I’m drivin’ Caddy, you fixin’ a Ford,” Joseph Simmons boasted on Run-DMC’s 1984 breakthrough “Rock Box.” While DMC was the majestic voice and the late DJ Jam Master Jay the heartbeat of the epochal ’80s rap trio, Run was the undisputed star. He led Run-DMC to historic heights, as they became the first hip-hop group to flex B-Boy minimalism to the masses (“Sucker MC’s”), go gold (1984’s King of Rock), appear on MTV, reach multiplatinum status (with 1986’s landmark Raising Hell, punctuated by the boundary-breaking Aerosmith collab “Walk This Way”), headline arena tours and ink a major endorsement deal (Adidas). After finding God, Rev. Run reinvented himself as a reality star in the 2005 MTV series Run’s House.
48. Melle Mel
Before Melle Mel’s game-changing run with Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five, rap was still constrained by its “yes, yes y’all!” park jam origins. Then came “The Message” (1982), hip-hop’s seismic GOAT recording, elevated by the rapper born Melvin Glover and his vivid ghetto portrait. A year later, the first universally hailed God MC demystified the allure of the Big Apple (“New York, New York”) and distilled the crisis of the cocaine epidemic (“White Lines [Don’t Don’t Do It]”) before crashing pop radio with his 1984 appearance on Chaka Khan’s Grammy-winning, No. 3-peaking Hot 100 hit “I Feel for You” — a pivotal early crossover moment between the hip-hop and R&B worlds.
47. MC Lyte
In 1987, MC Lyte bumrushed her way into hip-hop’s boys club with a throat-grabbing voice and dynamic lyricism that seemed well beyond her 16 years. The Brooklyn teen’s opening salvo was “I Cram to Understand U (Sam),” a song that spoke about the perils of falling in love with a crack addict. Even the title of the original queen of rap’s 1988 seminal debut album, Lyte as a Rock, was metaphorically heavy. From battle rhyming (“Shut the Eff Up-Hoe”) to heartfelt storytelling (“Poor Georgie”), Lyte roared into the ‘90s racking up three gold singles — most notably the Puffy Combs-produced “Cold Rock a Party” (1996), featuring an then-up-and-coming Missy Elliott.
46. Jadakiss
Jadakiss’ signature laugh and “ah-ha” squeal have signaled for decades that a lyrical masterclass was on the way. The LOX frontman fostered his hip-hop breakout with a co-sign from The Notorious B.I.G., then stomped his way to prominence with his Timberlands and hard-nosed raps. His lyrical intensity and fearless aggression are battle-tested, as he sparred with the likes of 50 Cent and Beanie Sigel in the 2000s before single-handedly dismantling Dipset in a 2021 Verzuz battle. Jada checks off just about every box as a member of hip-hop’s hall of fame — though a bona fide classic solo album from the Yonkers legend could have vaulted him inside this list’s top 20.
Best Rappers of All Time – Billboard
Billboard and Vibe are counting down the best MCs ever in honor of hip-hop's 50th anniversary.
The Greatest of All Time, aka the GOAT. That’s a distinguished — and also contentious — honor when it comes to ranking who or what is the ultimate best, whether you’re talking films, TV shows, restaurants or any other subject.
In early 2023, Billboard/Vibe is ranking the Top 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time as part of our salute to this year’s golden anniversary of hip-hop. (The genre dates back to 1973, when DJ Kool Herc first set up his two turntables to rock a Bronx party.) The rollout begins with today’s (Jan. 11) reveal of the rappers ranked 50-41. Each succeeding week, 10 more rappers will be unveiled as we move further up the list. Then the final top 10 will be announced during the week of Feb. 6.
In determining these rankings, the Billboard and Vibe editorial teams opted first to limit the rap arena to North America. So for example, as estimable as his career is, British rapper Slick Rick isn’t on this list. We also opted not to include the significant contributions of reggaetón and dancehall MCs on this list, just to keep our pool of nominees a little more focused.
From there, the teams took into account the following criteria, not in any particular order: body of work/achievements (charted singles/albums, gold/platinum certifications), cultural impact/influence (how the artist’s work fostered the genre’s evolution), longevity (years at the mic), lyrics (storytelling skills) and flow (vocal prowess).
As is well known, GOAT and similar best-of lists always draw their share of criticism and praise from industry pundits and the public alike. So it took a lot of deliberation and deep discussion to reason our way to what we believe is a well-thought-out, authentic list that reflects hip-hop’s foundational pioneers, evolutionary trailblazers and contemporary mainstays. In addition, that mix also encompasses 50 years of cultural milestones for a genre initially dismissed as a passing fad — and now recognized as the industry’s market share leader.
Let’s reveal Nos. 50-41 of Billboard/Vibe’s Top 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time … and let the debate begin.
50. Rick Ross
Rozay’s “Hustlin’” dreams turned to gold when he rattled the cages of rap’s mainstream with his 2006 summer anthem and pledged his allegiance to Def Jam and its ex-president Jay-Z. Ross demanded attention through his deep gruff-and-grunting ad-libs, colorful street tales and inside looks at Miami’s lavish lifestyle, plus his incredible ear for production — more appetizing than a lemon-pepper Wingstop order. His catalog reigns supreme, especially in the late 2000s and 2010s, as he doled out gems such as Trilla, Deeper Than Rap and God Forgives, I Don’t. Ross has notched 58 Billboard Hot 100 entries spanning three decades, but his legacy doesn’t end there: His Maybach Music Group laid the tarmac for Meek Mill and Wale to take off and become titans in the 2010s.
s.
49. Rev. Run (Run-DMC)
"I’m drivin’ Caddy, you fixin’ a Ford,” Joseph Simmons boasted on Run-DMC’s 1984 breakthrough “Rock Box.” While DMC was the majestic voice and the late DJ Jam Master Jay the heartbeat of the epochal ’80s rap trio, Run was the undisputed star. He led Run-DMC to historic heights, as they became the first hip-hop group to flex B-Boy minimalism to the masses (“Sucker MC’s”), go gold (1984’s King of Rock), appear on MTV, reach multiplatinum status (with 1986’s landmark Raising Hell, punctuated by the boundary-breaking Aerosmith collab “Walk This Way”), headline arena tours and ink a major endorsement deal (Adidas). After finding God, Rev. Run reinvented himself as a reality star in the 2005 MTV series Run’s House.
48. Melle Mel
Before Melle Mel’s game-changing run with Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five, rap was still constrained by its “yes, yes y’all!” park jam origins. Then came “The Message” (1982), hip-hop’s seismic GOAT recording, elevated by the rapper born Melvin Glover and his vivid ghetto portrait. A year later, the first universally hailed God MC demystified the allure of the Big Apple (“New York, New York”) and distilled the crisis of the cocaine epidemic (“White Lines [Don’t Don’t Do It]”) before crashing pop radio with his 1984 appearance on Chaka Khan’s Grammy-winning, No. 3-peaking Hot 100 hit “I Feel for You” — a pivotal early crossover moment between the hip-hop and R&B worlds.
47. MC Lyte
In 1987, MC Lyte bumrushed her way into hip-hop’s boys club with a throat-grabbing voice and dynamic lyricism that seemed well beyond her 16 years. The Brooklyn teen’s opening salvo was “I Cram to Understand U (Sam),” a song that spoke about the perils of falling in love with a crack addict. Even the title of the original queen of rap’s 1988 seminal debut album, Lyte as a Rock, was metaphorically heavy. From battle rhyming (“Shut the Eff Up-Hoe”) to heartfelt storytelling (“Poor Georgie”), Lyte roared into the ‘90s racking up three gold singles — most notably the Puffy Combs-produced “Cold Rock a Party” (1996), featuring an then-up-and-coming Missy Elliott.
46. Jadakiss
Jadakiss’ signature laugh and “ah-ha” squeal have signaled for decades that a lyrical masterclass was on the way. The LOX frontman fostered his hip-hop breakout with a co-sign from The Notorious B.I.G., then stomped his way to prominence with his Timberlands and hard-nosed raps. His lyrical intensity and fearless aggression are battle-tested, as he sparred with the likes of 50 Cent and Beanie Sigel in the 2000s before single-handedly dismantling Dipset in a 2021 Verzuz battle. Jada checks off just about every box as a member of hip-hop’s hall of fame — though a bona fide classic solo album from the Yonkers legend could have vaulted him inside this list’s top 20.
Best Rappers of All Time – Billboard
) even on this list? KRS ain’t top 20? Rakim ain’t top 10?
