Rep is a relatively young musical genre but firmly rooted in modern culture, having spawned dozens of heroes. They are a constant, and they are not going away. It is pretty hard to choose some of the best singers from the hip-hop scene, but we'll risk presenting the top ten, which included our contemporaries and representatives of the old school. How to understand which rapper is cooler? By the ability to weave a rhyme or a lethal flow? In addition, maybe, by the number of holes from bullets in the body or Grammy on the shelf? Alternatively, the indicator is touring or selling in iTunes? Perhaps, here everyone will have his or her own measures of perfection, fame, and popularity. Which is cooler: East Coast or West Coast? The Notorious B.I.G or 2pac? We are not going to get into hip-hop disassembly between the coasts, figuring out which style is right. Simply collected the 10 best in our opinion rappers of all times in this article.
Snoop Doggy Dogg
For the first time, we heard his voice in Dr. Dre's album called The Chronic. In fact, we did not know anything about him until his debut solo album, Doggystyle 1993, was released, which today is considered one of the canons of the G-Funk. The Gin and Juice track perfectly illustrates the brutal and bloody side of the Los Angeles Gangsta rap, showing what happens when the work is completed, the tools are laid aside and the party begins. The tracks 'Murder Was the Case' and 'Lodi Dodi' show Snoop as an excellent storyteller who skillfully and uniquely combines humor with bold statements. The rap music icon is also better known by collaborations and joint tracks with other well-known rappers and such tracks, as 'Young, Wild and Free' with Wiz Khalifa and Bruno Mars, 'Still' and 'The Next Episode' with Dr. Dre
2Pac, Tupac Shakur
one of the most famous and most successful American rappers, which became legendary after death. The Library of the US Congress selected his song Dear Mama from the album Me Against the World to list 25 entries that will be kept in a special fund of cultural heritage. The rapper’s life is filled with many ambiguous events, as well as musical activity. However, it is absolutely certain that the skill of the rapper cannot be argued, which caused great envy and strife with other prominent representatives, such as Notorious B.I.G. Rumor is Notorious B.I.G. itself was the culprit in the death of 2Pac in 1996, but no one knows for sure. Nevertheless, 2Pac remains an icon of the rap music, and its albums continued to be released until 2006 (there used his previous voice recordings).
Jay-Z
Jay-Z - American rapper, had an equity of more than $ 500 million as of 2012. And all his albums were marked on the top of the Billboard 200. This is an absolute record among all solo performers and the second place in the history after The Beatles, whose 19 albums climbed to the first place in the US. Moreover, Jay-Z is a multiple winner of the Grammy Award. Particular attention is paid to such albums as The Dynasty: Roc La Familia (2000), The Blueprint: The Gift & the Curse (2002), Magna Carta Holy Grail (2013).
Notorious B.I. G.
Notorious B.I. G. also was known as Biggie, was the king of the east coast hip-hop. Early death prevented him to become number one, but he remains a remarkable legend. He is one of the most influential hip-hop performers of all time. His debut album Ready To Die was released on September 13, 1994, had a stunning success. The first single, "One More Chance", became platinum in a few weeks, and by the end of the year, the album was three times platinum. "Juicy" was in the top five of the rap singles chart Billboard. In the spring of 1997, in Los Angeles, Wallace was killed by an unknown in a road shoot-out. His double studio album Life After Death was published 16 days after his death; subsequently, the album received a diamond certificate.
Eminem
Eminem was led to the big stage by Dr. Dre led him, and then everything was done only by his exceptional talent, and manner of singing. During his career, he released 10 albums that ranked 1st in the Billboard 200 and five singles on the Billboard Hot 100, which also crashed it in first places. After his debut album Infinite (1996) and Slim Shady EP (1997), Eminem signed to the label Dr. Dre Aftermath Entertainment. As a result, he gained great popularity in 1999 with the release of The Slim Shady LP, which brought him the first Grammy Award for his best rap album. His next two releases: The Marshall Mathers LP (2000) and The Eminem Show (2002) became globally successful, each of them receiving diamond certification of sales in the US and also won the Grammy in the same category, which made Eminem the first singer who won this award three times in a row. Last year, he released his ninth studio album Revival, which only strengthened the rapper's reputation as one of the best.
Ice Cube
Ice Cube is considered one of the greatest rappers of all time. He started as a member of the N.W.A. band, becoming the author of most of their songs, and then continued his career as a solo artist. The first solo album under the title AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted immediately became a hit, becoming his bar, below which he never dropped.
LL Cool J
The representative of the old school of rap, which became a symbol of the 80 hip-hop scene, and his song ‘Mama Said Knock You Out’, became a real classic. LL Cool J was not only a talented rapper but also a good actor, TV presenter and businessperson owning a brand of his own clothes, co-owner of several record labels.
Kendrick Lamar
Kendrick Lamar Duckworth is a successful hip-hop artist whose collaborations with such eminent artists as Busta Rhymes, Snoop Dogg, Lil Wayne were highly appreciated by both the public and critics. The latter, by the way, call him the new King of the West Coast, which justifies his presence on the list of "top rappers of all time". The most successful was the third album titled To Pimp a Butterfly. The release was on the first place in the list of the best albums of 2015 The New York Times and Rolling Stone. In addition, during his career, the artist managed to get 7 Grammys.
Nas
Nasir Bin Olu Dara Jones - considered the most successful and outstanding artist of the hip-hop genre, the world community even awarded his album Illmatic the title of the greatest in history. Releases of the artist sold around the world in more than 25 million copies. It is noteworthy that Nas for a long time had a conflict with Jay Z, who claimed that his songs were fake. However, in 2005 celebrities announced a truce, and Nas signed a multimillion-dollar contract with Def Jam Records under the management of the same Jay Z.
Dr. Dre
Dr. Dre - has become an integral part of the rap culture and his songs have become part of billions of listeners. Andre Romell Young - one of the most successful beatmakers in rap music. He is considered to be the most important figure in popularizing Gi-funk - one of the styles of rap music, which appeared in the mid 80's in Los Angeles. He began his career as a producer, opening the world such names as Snoop Dogg, Eminem, The Game, 50 Cent, Kendrick Lamar, many albums of which became multi-platinum.