Illegal Foreign Object

It has become almost impossible to find top-shelf hip-hop on the radio. Lyricism and message have given way to incoherent mumbling. Yes, my age is showing here, but you’re free to make your own list. This one is mine, and the following artists didn’t walk up and smack me in the mouth the way Public Enemy, Ice Cube, Big Daddy Kane, KRS-One, and Rakim did before them — I had to wade through murky waters that were fraught with unlistenable swill to find them. I’m happy I pushed ahead because these 12 albums offer proof that really good hip-hop is still out there (as long as you’re willing to dig).

One of hip-hop’s most prolific artists, Westside Gunn appears to be an endless source of lyrical and artistic exploration. This time, he brings a hip-hop who’s who with him, as multi-platinum stars Rick Ross, Ty Dolla $ign, and Jeezy all make appearances (in addition to regular contributors in the Griselda crew). And Then You Pray For Me is the album that infuriated many of Gunn’s more close-minded fans — personally, I like hearing Gunn spread his wings.

Required listening: “Mamas PrimeTime”, “Kostas”, “Ultra GriZelda”

If you like Oddisee, you probably dig everything he’s ever released. He doesn’t break new ground with To What End, but he doesn’t need to, especially when his brand of jazz, funk, and D.C. go-go is so damn pleasing to the ears.

Required listening: “The Start Of Something”, “Many Hats”, “More To Go”, “All I Need”

If you’re relying on radio for your hip-hop these days, you’re gonna miss out some amazing underground artists doing some important work. McKinley Dixon is one such artist, and Beloved! Paradise! Jazz!? is a terribly beautiful album that infuses plenty of soul, jazz, and poetry into its short 29-minute runtime.

Required listening: “Sun, I Rise”, “Run, Run, Run”, “Beloved! Paradise! Jazz!?”

Killer Mike is so lyrically gifted. With MICHAEL, he gets autobiographical, looking back at times of feast, failure, and faith.

Required listening: “SCIENTISTS & ENGINEERS”, “DOWN BY LAW”, “TALK’N THAT SHIT!”, “DON’T LET THE DEVIL”

Polo’s gritty boom bap mixed with Torae’s coherent, high-caliber lyricism is a joy for old school hip-hop fans who remember a time when this level of excellence was the norm (not the exception).

Required listening: “The Return”, “Makin’ Up”, “Oh No”

This might be the hip-hop album I listened to the most in 2023. ITS is Aesop at his most accessible — his flow now more communicative and less word salad acrobatics.

Required listening: “Mindful Solutionism”, “Infinity Fill Goose Down”, “100 Feet Tall”

Appropriately named, Maps is a sort of travelog from the ever-expanding mind of rapper billy woods and producer Kenny Segal — 17 tracks that tackle the highs, lows, good, and terrible of being on the road.

Required listening: “Soft Landing”, “Rapper Weed”, “Bad Dreams Are Only Dreams”, “As The Crow Flies”

Lyrically intimate Black Thought may be the very best version of the man (and that’s saying A LOT).

Required listening: “Glorious Game”, “Grateful”, “That Girl”

It took me a few listens to get it, but once I got it, I couldn’t get enough of it. MIKE muses dynamically, tightrope walking cocky and heartfelt with aplomb.

Required listening: “Zap!”, “U think Maybe?”, “Mussel Beach”

billy woods makes his second appearance on the list! This time, he’s arm-in-arm with Armand Hammer partner Elucid. We Buy Diabetic Test Strips is an unsettling listen — an abstract, disjointed push/pull that might be the most challenging hip-hop album of 2023.

Required listening: “Woke Up And Asked Siri How I’m Gonna Die”, “When It Doesn’t Start With A Kiss”, “Trauma Mic”

If there’s one thing I’ve always loved about Atmosphere it’s his apparent indifference to trends. He just does his thing (and his thing usually results in some easily digestible hip-hop). That might read a little weird, but it’s typed with love. With Atmosphere, Slug and Ant comprise one of the most consistent duos in the game. Oh, and “Okay” is arguably the most reassuring song of the year.

Required listening: “Okay”, “Dotted Lines”

I’ll listen to anything DJ Muggs puts his name on. Additionally, I have all the time for Madlib and Meyhem Lauren (who I learned of back in 2017 thanks to his killer DJ Muggs collaboration Gems From The Equinox). Champagne For Breakfast is as raw as you would expect — Madlib takes “Midnight Silk” by the throat, Action Bronson joins the brawl on “Szechuan Capital”, and “Big Money” is the kind of beat that’s kept Muggs relevant for 35 years.

Required listening: “Fresh Out Of The Water”, “Big Money”, “Midnight Silk”

That’s all for today, hip-hop heads! Come by tomorrow for a few dreamscapers and dystopian hellriders!