Best rapper

[The Incredible Hulk]

HOW CAN YOU HAVE A POLL ABOUT WHO IS THE BEST RAPPER WITHOUT NOTORIOUS BIG OR RAKIM, AND YET HAVE LIL WAYNE AND THE GAME?

WHAT IS WRONG WITH THIS WORLD!!!!!!!

[Donoghus]

HOW CAN YOU HAVE A POLL ABOUT WHO IS THE BEST RAPPER WITHOUT NOTORIOUS BIG OR RAKIM, AND YET HAVE LIL WAYNE AND THE GAME?

WHAT IS WRONG WITH THIS WORLD!!!!!!!

Did you even read the poll question?  It mentioned "alive". Thus, no Biggie.

[Roy Hobbs]

HOW CAN YOU HAVE A POLL ABOUT WHO IS THE BEST RAPPER WITHOUT NOTORIOUS BIG OR RAKIM, AND YET HAVE LIL WAYNE AND THE GAME?

WHAT IS WRONG WITH THIS WORLD!!!!!!!

Well...  BIG doesn't really fit under the "best rapper alive" category.  There's no excuse for including Lil Wayne, though.

[The Incredible Hulk]

OK fine... alive?

Lil Wayne does not even rap... He takes a bunch of drugs and says random things in the vocal booth.

How does he make a poll like this?

How does the Game make it either? Considering 50 Cent wrote most of his hits from his first album.

Where is

KRS One

Guru from Gangstarr (a Boston native)

Big Daddy Kane

RAKIM (who is the definition of GREATNESS)

LL Cool J

SCARFACE!

Busta Rhymes

Fabolous

Jadakiss

Raekwon or even Ghostface Killa

ANy of these people deserve mention over Lil Wayne or The Game.

[jaketwice]

Mad Skillz is the best of all time, best living, maybe best ever.

No one is sicker.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URoWEeoLF5c

Listen to the video before you argue.

[CountChockula]

I tried to read as many responses as possibe and its amazing that only one person said MF Doom. Yeah you're not going to hear him on Hot 97 but dude's got skillz, no Mad skillz pun intended For me I love Phonte from Little Brother!

...and take Eminem off the poll, if it was 97' pre Dre Eminem maybe but lately he wines way to much

[EJPLAYA]

It was sure nice when all rappers did was tell everyone why they were the best though. Kind of hard to justify people shouting vulgarities and obscenities and bragging about killing cops and mistreating women as being art. The term "inciting a riot" comes to mind. All those poor kids who look up to these guys and try to emulate them are going to have one sorry life. 

EJ, It sounds like you've never heard any hip-hop outside of the mainstream. Tell me what you think of this video

Talib Kweli

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sGvZ9aXg5Xs

Although I might personally classify this guy as poetry vs. a rapper, it is nice to see him making an attempt at being positive. Unfortunately that is why this guy isn't heard of. If you're not being nasty or violent then you get no play. I am definitely referring to the big guys that throw out this kind of trash, and not guys like this. Unfortunately that is all you hear. I get funny looks when people hear that I grew up loving rap, because what they think is the trash, not the stuff that I listened to. We all remember waiting for the "response album" like Kool Moe Dee and LL going at it. That was creative and good stuff. The beats may still be good, but you need the Karaoke version of it so that you don't have to listen to them.

[JSD]

Thanks EJ,

I appreciate the fact you took the time to hear it out. TP

I agree that mainstream can be deceiving and major record labels are quick to play to impulses of young america. Thankfully, there is a ton of genres out there under hip hop's umbrella but unfortunately it doesn't get radio love.

Talib Kweli is a conscious hip-hop artist and focuses on social issues. Check out more of his stuff on youtube.com

[jaketwice]

Thanks EJ,

I appreciate the fact you took the time to hear it out. TP

I agree that mainstream can be deceiving and major record labels are quick to play to impulses of young america. Thankfully, there is a ton of genres out there under hip hop's umbrella but unfortunately it doesn't get radio love.

Talib Kweli is a conscious hip-hop artist and focuses on social issues. Check out more of his stuff on youtube.com

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02ZML_xPqdg

Man, Kweli is nice, but Skillz is sickest.

[guava_wrench]

I tried to read as many responses as possibe and its amazing that only one person said MF Doom. Yeah you're not going to hear him on Hot 97 but dude's got skillz, no Mad skillz pun intended For me I love Phonte from Little Brother!

...and take Eminem off the poll, if it was 97' pre Dre Eminem maybe but lately he wines way to much

Gimmee some of them rapp snitch knishes!

[MattG12]

i've gotta advertise for my guy...
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[OmarSekou]

Will Smith...he raps happy

Jay Z has been way too hyped, and Lil Wayne hated on. You can't possibly have listened to Wayne's entire body of work and still say he's trash. He's a lot of hit or miss but dude puts out about 5,000 songs a year. What do you expect? How is he hated on for being pop and Jay Z isn't?

I've always been a Mos fan, but to keep things recent I'll say the best right now are Lupe & Joe Budden. Nas, Ghostface, the Roots, and a lot of others are putting out great albums, but those first two deliver on so many levels (production, lyrical content, listenability, genius wordplay, emotionally impact, an appreciation for hip hop as an art).

[boom]

Two things..

First off, it's Joe Budden. There is no "S". It's one of my pet peeves, I'm sorry. Joe Budden. Period. Check out the Mood Muzik mixtapes, pure pleasure the the ears.

People laugh at Will Smith, but seriously he's a great rapper. I mean, he doesn't rap about violence or gangs or even swears, but I'll be [dang]ed if I didn't listen to every album and thorough enjoy most of the songs. I'm talking about everything from Big Willie Style to Lost and Found. Seriously, people should listen to his stuff and take it for what it is, good music.

[boom]

Mad Skillz is the best of all time, best living, maybe best ever.

No one is sicker.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URoWEeoLF5c

Listen to the video before you argue.

The Once a Year Relevant Rapper? I keed I keeeed, I like his end of the year raps. He does have some good stuff, I'm diggin his song with Common right now, I can't think of the name off the dome, but it's getting a lot of play on XM recently.

[kgiessler]

It was sure nice when all rappers did was tell everyone why they were the best though. Kind of hard to justify people shouting vulgarities and obscenities and bragging about killing cops and mistreating women as being art. The term "inciting a riot" comes to mind. All those poor kids who look up to these guys and try to emulate them are going to have one sorry life. 

EJ, It sounds like you've never heard any hip-hop outside of the mainstream. Tell me what you think of this video

Talib Kweli

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sGvZ9aXg5Xs

Although I might personally classify this guy as poetry vs. a rapper, it is nice to see him making an attempt at being positive. Unfortunately that is why this guy isn't heard of. If you're not being nasty or violent then you get no play. I am definitely referring to the big guys that throw out this kind of trash, and not guys like this. Unfortunately that is all you hear. I get funny looks when people hear that I grew up loving rap, because what they think is the trash, not the stuff that I listened to. We all remember waiting for the "response album" like Kool Moe Dee and LL going at it. That was creative and good stuff. The beats may still be good, but you need the Karaoke version of it so that you don't have to listen to them.

Well EJ, just because *you* haven't heard of Talib doesn't mean Talib isn't heard of.

And perhaps you've stopped listening for the wrong reasons.  There are plenty of people getting played that are neither nasty, nor violent.