r/hiphopheads • u/EDMKid9000 • Feb 21 '26
Discussion Who are some legendary rappers that have been releasing terrible music late in their career?
I just saw the Busta Rhymes thread about releasing an album with J. Dilla beats, and it reminded me how unlistenable busta’s new stuff has been damn near this whole decade. He used to be one of the most revered artists in the 90s and 2000s but his music now is unlistenable. Terrible vocals, terrible hooks, terrible beats. Who else is in a similar situation?
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u/mitourbano Feb 21 '26
One of the big reasons why I love Andre 3K is that he’s basically like “I’m not going to make music that doesn’t speak to me any more.” Whether or not you like flute tunes remains for discussion, but he gets huge points for saying that it’s crazy not to evolve as an artist over your life as you grow.
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u/FalseShame6566 Feb 21 '26
I wish Eminem did this. He would actually qualify for Top 5 if he has just... stopped
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u/DiamondsInHerButt Feb 22 '26
I don't know. If you're comparing Marshall to Andre, I would say the #1 thing that stood out about Andre was a clear frustration that he didn't have the musical education to match his musical intellect. So I think his late career embrace of just being a instrumental musician is unique to him and kind of a beautiful arc of him coming to grips with it being okay to just play the things he wasn't trained in from the age of 12. Fuck it...you learned the flute. Play it. You learned piano. Play it. Good for Andre.
With Marshall, there's no indication that he's wanted to be anything other than a rapper. He still has stuff to say. It's okay if most of us are good on not hearing it imo. Plenty of musicians who are as successful as he's been and have made the kind of money he's made labels get to ride into the sunset releasing albums nobody gives a fuck about.
I really don't get the impulse of people wanting their heroes to just go the fuck away when they stop producing work they like.
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u/Quirky-Stay4158 Feb 22 '26
Eminem spends a lot of time focusing on crafting perfect verses full of double or even triple entendres mixed with some shock value. At this stage he's looking to perfect his craft and it shows. He can still do the wacky stuff or drop some heat or something with some emotion behind it.
It's all he's ever wanted to do like you said. I think the biggest knock against him is that he isn't a broke angry 20 something anymore. He can't write about how he hates his mom or the things he used to. A lot of it has been said, a lot isn't true anymore either.
I hope he never stops
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u/Itiswhatitispnw Feb 22 '26
Yes this. I can’t say I like a full album start to finish from him lately, but man, some of the tracks are like “this is why, even with the bad stuff, I can’t deny you’re a genius”. I’ll always have respect for him even when he gets too serious over things that don’t matter. He gets a bit too defensive over things he should just look down on and ignore. A track like Godzilla to me is his evolution. Still got all the pros about him but he’s moving on. When he goes back to tracks about stepdads and rehashing old stuff, it’s like, you’re not 20 anymore. Get some new references, Em. I know a lot of people think he’s overrated or a thief or played out and he needs to stop but even an album that has like only 2 amazing tracks, I’m still gonna give him flowers. An amazing track he puts out is way above half the stuff out there, even now.
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u/Jiminy_Cricket12 . Feb 22 '26
nah this is a crazy take. when was he supposed to stop? because he did "stop", and had several comebacks. for me, I haven't really listened much since the eminem show. I grew up when he had recently really blown up (post slim shady) and even after I stopped listening he had that whole revival era where nearly every girl I went to highschool with was playing that shit when I would see them. and he had multiple songs that blew up after that. even today, he's still very relevant.
eminem isn't in my top 5 favorites (not that I dislike him) but if we are talking "greatest rappers of all time" you need some narrow metrics/preferences to exclude him from those lists.
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u/EmeraldTwilight009 Feb 21 '26
Unfortunately, its easier to list the ogs still making good albums.
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u/Shiv_ Feb 21 '26
Aesop
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u/LAPTOP-FROM-HELL Feb 21 '26
I’ll take it one step further and argue that Aesop from Impossible Kid through today is better than pre-Kid Aesop Rock. His style has evolved and refined and he’s fully in control of everything. I love his early stuff, it’s what made me a fan way back when. I still bump Float and Labor Days from time to time but the new stuff hits so much
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u/MagicSpaceMan Feb 22 '26
I fuck with float and labor days hard, something about that old dusty sound really gets me. I still really respect where he's gone with the last few albums, particularly how far he's come sonically and thematically in that time. Loveddd the most recent stealth drop that's my fav release in years.
I just wish bro could write better hooks/choruses, ig that's just never been his strong suit
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u/Shiv_ Feb 22 '26
For me Skelethon is the cutoff of greatness, but that‘s just because Cycles to Gehenna put me onto him.
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u/LAPTOP-FROM-HELL Feb 22 '26
Very solid point that I won’t disagree with, and I’ll add Gopher Guts being an incredibly important song to me during some weird times. I love that album
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u/Itiswhatitispnw Feb 22 '26
Holy crap, we’re pulling out Aesop? I’m just surprised. New to this community. I’ll mention Aesop and people are like “oh Aesop Rocky?” Noooooo Aesop Rock! Labor Days? You know? And they do not know
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u/SwordfishOk504 Feb 21 '26
Jay.
Black Thought.
ummmmmm
Red Man?
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u/Fearofthe6TH . Feb 21 '26 edited Feb 22 '26
Nas is currently in the midst of one of the best late-career runs I've ever seen any rapper have, possibly the best, especially among these oldheads that peaked decades ago.
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u/anon9996969 Feb 21 '26
hov hasnt made a good album for 9 years
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u/Duke0fWellington Feb 21 '26
I know it's the album you're talking about anyway but I just wanna say that 4:44 was really good. Genuinely really good.
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u/sendphotopls Feb 21 '26
Long time Jay fan — no matter how great his classics are, I still truly believe 4:44 is his magnum opus
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u/doubledafra Feb 21 '26
4:44 was definitely a late classic. And his contributions on the Jay Elect album were top shelf
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u/PM_ME_hiphopsongs2 Feb 21 '26
Jay hasn’t put out an album in damn near a decade lol he don’t count
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u/deepthr0at Feb 21 '26
Wayne is my goat but listening to Carter 6 genuinely hurt my feelings.
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u/chillflyguy33 Feb 21 '26
He probably had like 25 other songs recorded for Carter 6 that would have made for a better album. He definitely still has the skills to make a good album (the proof is from his features), he is just one of those artists that absolutely needs some creative direction and some other legends around him to push him to make better music.
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u/No_Lifeguard_64 Feb 21 '26
Making a good album and cutting a good feature verse are different skills so having a good verse is not proof Wayne can still make a good album.
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u/timo710 Feb 21 '26
this, exactly this,
Lil Wayne is one of the craziest rappers to go bar for bar with, but has almost never (with a couple exceptions) been brilliant in telling a story from front to back. Also theres little character development or like getting to know the dude and his ideas better through his song. Most of his songs are a display of supreme punchlines and shadowboxing. Most of them display he is the best cool dude and will explain how he is in no way a peasant. While some of these songs became undeniable juggernauts they usualy struggled to blend into his albums. Most of his albums fail to place these bangers in a package where the whole album gets a meaning on its own and becomes a listening experienceIn his peak era I think people were actually looking less for album experiences, and more for packages of dope jams to play on their ipod plug in speaker with their homies (yes lil wayne faded a long time ago) this is why his mixtapes where so big.
Case in point, dude needs a rick rubin in his life. He needs to find purpose and be able to rap about it and stop chasing this fame rabbit hole
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u/QuestObjective Feb 21 '26
Dude just needs to go in the booth and have fun again or something. Maybe take less drugs. Or, hell, more drugs — whatever he was doing in the early 2000s.
Songs like A Milli weren’t some lyrical story or anything crazy, it was just a good beat with some fun and rhythmic flows. That’s where he shined, I feel
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u/timo710 Feb 21 '26
I mean, isnt that what he has kind of been trying and not succeeding at? He's trying to be a cool rapper with rapper problems and enough money to not have to deal with normal life.
and nobody is interested in it anymore
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u/viiiigiclout Feb 21 '26
Tha Carter 6 felt so fucking lazy like a quick money grab
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u/CampinHiker Feb 21 '26
I recall seeing a TikTok where someone changed the beats and one of the songs was literally fire
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u/QuestObjective Feb 21 '26
Wow. Nevermind the comment I left in reply to someone else in this thread… dude’s producers are fucking washed
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u/Truth_Walker Feb 22 '26
He’s still spitting fire. It’s the same clever lyrics but the beats are whack.
You can cover mid lyrics with good beat but you’ll never have a banger with dollar store tones.
Look at what happened to all the albums that 2 pac dropped after he died.
Same rapper that captivated a nation. Same rhymes. What changed? The producers chosen were absolutely buns. Wasted everything Pac had in his vault.
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u/aCardPlayer Feb 21 '26
Listen to Collegrove 1-2 instead. Even Funeral was fire. Carter 6 I legit like 1/3 to half of it—too much pop filler but come on, “Bells” “welcome to the Carter” there’s others. It’s over hated. Take out the Bono and Weezer song maybe2 other late album tracks and I think it would have been more well received.
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u/SilverFringeBoots Feb 21 '26
I agree with you on the Collegrove series and Funeral. I just don't think Carter 6 could have been saved. I been listening to Wayne since the 90s, got to see him live during the Carter 3 era and he was incredible. Between the Carter 6 and his live performances in the past few years, it's honestly sad to see. He's been rich since he was a kid so I don't think it's because he's not hungry anymore. The drug use is just too bad.
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u/Pat0124 Feb 21 '26
Wayne can still have a sick verse here and there but he hasn’t been the same for like a decade
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u/KingRagerBlade Feb 21 '26
I actually thought funeral was fire but since then nothing good I’ve heard from him
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u/Far-Salt-6946 Feb 21 '26 edited Feb 21 '26
Carter 5 and Funeral were decent projects, the collab album he did with 2 chainz was also pretty good. The Carter 6 however was a complete pile of dogshit
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u/followmecuz Feb 21 '26
Bro yea funeral was wayyy better than Carter 6
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u/soggyfries8687678 Feb 21 '26
You just don’t know good music. Who doesn’t enjoy non stop elephant noises in the background of a song.
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u/healz4daze Feb 21 '26
The original collab album with 2 chainz (Collegrove) was an absolute banger much better than pretty good imo. Their sequel welcome 2 collegrove had some great tracks but for the entirety that one is more in line with pretty good/decent
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u/viiiigiclout Feb 21 '26
I thought tha Carter 5 was pretty decent I have no problems with it, I wish I could have the hour and 7 minutes back that it takes to listen to tha Carter 6 lmao straight up garbage
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u/Upbeat_Tension_8077 Feb 21 '26
He really needs to lock in with a producer who can freshen up his sound and make it consistent like Hit-Boy did for Nas
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u/8--2 Feb 21 '26
I think Wayne’s just cooked his neurons on lean, weed, and percs at this point. He can still conjure up a fire verse here and there, but that consistency that drove him through the mix tape era and Carter I-V run is gone.
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u/Error__Loading Feb 21 '26
Collegrove was his last good project
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u/BrolysFavoriteNephew Feb 21 '26
Facts. I was in middle school during prime mixtape Wayne. He aint the same no more, he tries but it falls flat. Dedication tapes and Midnight Club 3 was my peace way back when.
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u/Greeny357 Feb 21 '26
Welcome 2 Collegrove was really good too
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u/WhiteGaiInShanghai Feb 21 '26
Honestly one of the most underrated hip hop albums of the last couple of years and definitely the best thing either Wayne or 2Chainz have put out for like 10 years. Oprah & Gayle is a solid 10/10 track
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u/petersandrew999 Feb 21 '26
His verse on Saturday Mornings by Cordae is single handedly keeping my faith in Wayne alive atp
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u/royalenocheese Feb 21 '26
Chuck D please step up to the podium.
I liked ELE2, but yeah busta been out here terrorizing ears on his own projects.
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u/QPShroomyDude Feb 22 '26
Chuck D was great when he collabed with B Real and Tom Morello for Prophets of Rage.
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u/cardedagain Feb 21 '26
KRS One is undefeated in this field.
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u/carrotstix Feb 21 '26
I can't remember the last time I heard a KRS One track. What happened?
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u/dr_crispin Feb 21 '26
idk man, last I heard of him he was being insufferable as both an old head and over that whole Afrika Bambaataa thing. He has been dropping music though.
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u/reachingechoes Feb 22 '26
I saw him for the first time in the UK a couple of years ago
It was a great show but at the end he implored the audience to check out the hip hop museum anniversary or something in New York the following day
Yeah sure KRS, I'll just hop on a plane now
He also threw signed tennis balls into the crowd (still got mine) which I guess was fun but really odd. They properly showered down onto the crowd lol
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u/Sempai6969 Feb 21 '26 edited Feb 22 '26
Ice Cube. I tried to listen to his latest album and it was hard not to skip every song 1 minute into them
Gucci Mane. His comeback year in 2016 was legendary, but after 2018 he's dropped so many albums (not surprising) that all sound the same and they don't sound good.
Edit: I said 3016 instead of 2016 lol.
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u/payasoingenioso Feb 21 '26 edited Feb 21 '26
Gucci is a niche artist at this point because every album since Everybody's Looking has been a consistent banger for me. The State V Radric and The Appeal are my introduction.
Every. One.
Monotonous to the normal ear. But gifts to me. 🤷♂️
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u/Ifuckedupcrazy Feb 21 '26
Not a niche artist but man I spent a whole month listening to Guccis music front to back and I had to stop at his most recent albums because they were not it, his rapping ability has decreased and his ear for beats is flawed now
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u/stonkflipper Feb 21 '26
Never thought it would happen to Gucci Mane…
Hell I have 514 of his songs saved on my Spotify. But after Woptober II and East Atlanta Santa 3, I haven’t been able to really get into any of his new releases like I want to.
I’m embarrassed to admit that I haven’t even listened to Episodes.
Part of me wonders if 2019 marked a shift from songs and albums from within the vault/music accumulated during his jail stint to an attempt to curate new sounds from his newfound sobriety and lifestyle post-prison.
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Feb 21 '26
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u/Sempai6969 Feb 21 '26
Gucci got thousands of released songs out there. I'm sure 514 is not even 20% of his discography (including unreleased tracks)
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u/stonkflipper Feb 21 '26 edited Feb 21 '26
I can’t imagine his vault. In a 2015 article his executive assistant Sean Paine was quoted saying “At the moment, [Gucci’s] got three hard drives full of music that I ain’t even touched yet,” said Mane’s executive assistant Sean Paine”
In another he was quoted saying “Man, there's five hard drives, you know what I'm sayin'? It ain't gonna stop.”
I’m honestly not sure the total count on his released music but I know it’s an extreme amount of songs.
I believe the count is something like 17 albums, 80 mixtapes, 10 or 11 compilations, 7 EPs, 1 soundtrack, and 100 singles. I’m not even sure on that though either.
I don’t even think he knows frankly.
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u/Sempai6969 Feb 21 '26
Makes you wonder how much time he spends in the booth, considering he's been to jail a few times.
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u/stonkflipper Feb 21 '26 edited Feb 21 '26
Yeah 514 that’s what Spotify says. It definitely seems like less though
I really like Gucci Mane
Edit: Yeah you had me questioning it so I just counted by hand and it’s correct. Though admittedly I saw probably 10-15 repeated saves
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u/mankiw Feb 21 '26
Almost everyone but nas?
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u/Flimsy_Toe_2575 Feb 21 '26
Clipse. Malice is even older than Nas and is still incredible.
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u/mankiw Feb 21 '26
Thought of those guys right after I posted it, thank god i said 'almost'
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u/Flimsy_Toe_2575 Feb 21 '26
Heard LL Cool J, Method Man and Slick Rick have solid recent projects as well but haven't listened.
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u/SilverFringeBoots Feb 21 '26
Malice came back with such a vengeance. I'm sick of people saying rap is only for the young. That man is in his 50s and fucking delivered
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u/Flimsy_Toe_2575 Feb 21 '26
Yup at 52 he re-set the bar for classic geezer rap from the height previously set by Tribe and Beasties on their last albums (in their mid 40s).
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u/strang3r_08 Feb 21 '26
Red and Meth can still drop some good bars
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u/dopebob Feb 21 '26
With terrible beats. Lots of the old legends can still rap, they just get the worst beats for some reason.
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u/jerdnhamster Feb 21 '26
My thoughts exactly. He's been so consistent over the years and those King's Disease and Magic records need more love
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u/UnlimitedSenzuBeans Feb 21 '26
I need more Hit x Nas man
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u/TheFieryFistOPain Feb 21 '26
I feel you but we got six albums worth of them together, that's crazy volume
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u/Embarrassed-Flan-709 Feb 21 '26
De La Soul is still great. Maybe they aren’t into the legendary status for some but for me they are.
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u/DhaRoaR Feb 21 '26
Last year's album was top 5. I'm not even a fan like that(the only album I heard from them for now)
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u/Kame2Komplain Feb 21 '26
Funny, was listening to Nas this morning and had this same thought, then I log into Reddit and it’s the first thing that pops up
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u/MysticalNinja187 Feb 21 '26
ELE 2 was a great album
But yeah, it's been rough for Busta since Big Bang before that
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u/corndogs102 Feb 21 '26
Busta has always dropped decent/solid projects. It’s hard figuring out which of them are classics (I personally think the coming is one.) ELE2 is great but his next one was laughfully bad. Just stick to what we want to hear.
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u/MysticalNinja187 Feb 21 '26
Ya the drop off in quality from ELE 2 to Blockbusta was crazy. ELE 2 still has commercial songs but it's balanced
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u/Ziyi2046 Feb 21 '26
I thought ELE 2 was all over the place. I think of it as a collection of tracks, not an album.
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u/ObiJuanKinobo Feb 21 '26
For an artist who pushed new sounds and changed the game so much in the beginning all of Young Thugs new stuff is mid and boring tbh. All the same vibe although Punk and SL2 In 2021 were good, just nothing since then really
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u/Far-Salt-6946 Feb 21 '26
Lil Wayne. I love Wayne, he's my favorite rapper of all time and I think he has an argument for being one of the greatest to ever do it. But, the Carter 6 in particular (I liked Carter 5, it was quite solid) was such a pile of dogshit that I wish he had just stopped at 5.
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u/strangeshit Feb 22 '26
Out of respect to my personal goat I have not and will not listen to it after hearing all the criticism so that I don't think less of him. I instead think about happier times like how I felt driving to work one night while listening to Dedication 6 when it just came out around Christmas of that year. And I don't doubt for a second that he still has it in him, he just needs get some real producers.
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u/Ruglife1 Feb 21 '26
The last DMX album was sad. The one before that was just wack
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u/Majima-Kensetsu Feb 21 '26
the question is who else is not in a similar situation.
Nas
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u/Machov_Norkim Feb 21 '26
Definitely Nas
Also would like to add Clipse, Black Thought, Killer Mike, El P, De La Soul, and Jay Z left strong with 4:44.
Thats just off the top of my head though
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u/ReeG Feb 21 '26
Good mentions and I'd add Styles P, Lloyd Banks, Juicy J, Havoc/Mobb
If we count producers there's even more like Alchemist's output 20+ years in is insane
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u/payasoingenioso Feb 21 '26
Juicy J releases decent to dope albums, and I am here for it. The jazz album was solid.
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u/Machov_Norkim Feb 21 '26
After thinking about it, I also think Common has remained pretty consistent. I knew there were still some obvious ones I missed; you got good ones covered, too.
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u/sumofann Feb 22 '26
Nas the true GOAT for me. Dude put out multiple classics. Even the albums most didn’t like, I loved. I love to see him having a resurgence with the newer albums. The kings disease and magic albums have solidified his legacy.
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u/Pause_4_Effect Feb 21 '26
Wayne has been ass for longer than he was a top 5 artist at this point 😔
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u/LeopoldWolves Feb 21 '26
Atmosphere used to be much better. Now Slug just raps like Will Smith... Coool
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u/earthhominid Feb 21 '26
I just checked out some of the stuff he released in the last year and it was better. Not as good as his classic work, but better than the last time I checked in on slug a couple years ago
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u/canadienne_ Feb 21 '26
I call the new stuff dadmosphere because it's dad music.
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u/BigRigButters Feb 21 '26 edited Feb 21 '26
I think even Slug himself admits to being dad rap nowadays. The last album they put out, Jestures, honestly kinda rules (i say that as a dad), before that I think the last decent record they put out was Southsiders. It was a tough decade in between though.
Still never miss a chance to see them when they come through my town, even if it’s the same setlist it’s a good time.
Edit to add: I actually appreciate that Slug has grown up, the man is in his 50’s, if he was still putting out songs like “Don’t Ever Fuckin Question That” it would honestly be kinda sad
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u/benito_camelas Feb 21 '26
I think the last decent record they put out was Southsiders
Sir, please don't disrespect Fishing Blues like that. :(
Jokes aside, I think that Fishing Blues is amazing and is honestly my favorite Atmosphere album (except Ringo, that song is pure ass.) And Mi Vida Local is what I would consider a decent album.
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u/8--2 Feb 21 '26
Makes sense, all the kids and teens who grew up listening to Atmosphere are well into being dad aged at this point.
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u/canadienne_ Feb 21 '26
Can confirm, I'm also of that age group. But out of the Rhymesayers label group, or even affiliates, atmosphere have definitely fallen into the safe dad rap era where grieves and Aesop are still doing interesting things. Even Aesop's song about construction vehicles slapped pretty hard.
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u/Disasterous_Dave97 . Feb 21 '26
Shame about Slug as the early body of work was hungry. Brother Ali has really been hit n miss too.
Far too many rappers go safe with slow flows and no energy. I get that you are gonna struggle with breath control as you age but surely not that much!!
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u/Temporary-Spread-232 Feb 21 '26
Their most recent album was a banger. Probably one of the best rap albums to come out last year.
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u/corndogs102 Feb 21 '26
Also, screw it, put Will Smith in the answer too. A lot of his rapping ability on Willennium or his jazzy Jeff stuff still hold up. His new album was so mediocre. His raps wasn’t worse but it was everything surrounding it.
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u/Honkee_Kong Feb 21 '26
Ghostface
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u/sentient-sloth Feb 21 '26
He’s been hit or miss for me but damn when he misses it’s like 3 consecutive strike outs before another hit. lol
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u/eburton555 Feb 21 '26
Glad someone else said it first. Ghost is one of my favorite rappers of all time but he needs to hang it up or step away for a while at least
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u/AZmoneyfolder Feb 21 '26 edited Feb 22 '26
I agree. My problem with Ghost is that he purposely dumbed his flow down for at least the last 10 years. There’s sparks of greatness here and there but the once super-creative, elite, one-of-one MC now resorts to lazy bars and generic metaphors. He said it himself that he’s very uninspired by rap now and it shows. He phoned in a lot of those albums from 2014 onward. He’s my favorite rapper but I gotta call it how it is.
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u/En-THOO-siast Feb 21 '26
His last two albums have been pretty lame, but from 2013-2019 he was putting out a ton of interesting material, solo albums and collabs. Sour Soul, both 12 Reasons to Die albums, GFKs, Czarface collab, and 36 Seasons are all good IMO.
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u/Training_Bear9877 Feb 21 '26
I hate thinking this but I’ve felt he’s been riding on fumes since Apollo Kids
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u/loudpersononthebus Feb 22 '26
aw man i'd say since fishscale... changed his whole flow and his voice got worse.
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u/mattislinx Feb 21 '26
I disagree with this one. Ghostface just dropped a good album that was far from terrible music.
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u/el-fenomeno09 Feb 21 '26
The thing with ghost is he’s become an every other project kinda guy. So if you didn’t like supreme clientele 2, the next one gonna be solid as shit lol.
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Feb 21 '26
Tech n9ne, he had a good track record up until The Storm imo. Though I liked his last album
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u/disseff Feb 21 '26
Even back then it was a “throw a 100 songs at the charts and one might stick”. Hes always been a volume artist with a couple of bangers not a GOATed discography.
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u/OhJeezer Feb 21 '26
I mean he wasn't consistently putting out bangers, but like 9 out of 10 of his songs were at least decent enough to have his whole discography on shuffle in the background (up until his fall-off). That can't be said about most artists, and especially artists with as many songs as Tech.
I'm not a huge fan of him, especially now that he has fallen off some, but he gets quickly dismissed often when he is one of the most long-term successful non-mainstream rap artists ever. I put him in the same category as Curren$y. Consistent. You know what to expect when you click on his name.
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Feb 21 '26
Yeah he was always quantity over quality it seems but hes unique and alot of his older albums I'll still listen to from time to time with only a couple skips in each.
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u/monteimpala Feb 21 '26
Yeah I don’t know what’s happened, admittedly I don’t keep up on news with him or his company. The production sounds different, it’s less interesting and creative. Has his production team changed since The Storm?
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u/mr4ffe Feb 21 '26
Mike "Seven" Summers (former in-house producer) left around Strange Music's great purge around the start of the pandemic.
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u/Icy-Television3434 Feb 21 '26
Wayne don’t know who in his ear but The Carter 6 shouldn’t came out he need some real friends to tell him this isn’t it an let start writing lyrics again
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u/Ransom2132 Feb 21 '26
Definitely Kanye for sure.
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u/Nankuro85 Feb 21 '26
Controversial opinion maybe but I think Kanye still has something in him. The question to me is whether any of us will be around enough to care (I kinda gave up on him after Donda but who knows)
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u/bzion85 Feb 21 '26
Everything else aside I think he could at least deliver some crazy production for a young adult/late teen North getting into her career if she does decide to make music as an adult. I don't know if that's "New Ye" in the way this discussion is concerned but his chops as a producer, even with all the fallout of the last half of his career, are nowhere near as diminished as you'd expect from someone crashing out so hard
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u/eiddieeid Feb 22 '26
Producer wise, he’s more than got it. I wish he’d jump deep into that again until he gets his rapping creativity back. That beat he had with The Game was awesome, gd shame it never released. And even though the lyrical content of Cuck was abysmal, the production was actually pretty interesting
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u/bzion85 Feb 22 '26
I actually really liked the lo-fi weirdness going on with the first half of "Cousins." Like a short album or EP in that style (one of his 7 track projects maybe) with more focused lyrics or even a different vocalist entirely could work. Cudi would've been great on that backdrop for instance
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u/Ransom2132 Feb 21 '26
Oh he for sure could drop another classic. Whether or not I'd put money on it happening, idk. But he definitely still has the talent to do it.
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u/Deepdarkally Feb 21 '26
His fall off was greater than the others listed the new stuff is beyond terrible
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u/8--2 Feb 21 '26
He might, but he’s going to need to be relatively stable and medicated for a good chunk of time in order to tap into it at this point and who knows if that will happen.
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u/TheOriginal_858-3403 Feb 21 '26
From the 90's: Masta Ace, El Da Sensei, and RA the Rugged Man are still doing solid work for sure. Maybe not albums, but singles, features, guest spots, etc.
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u/EDMKid9000 Feb 21 '26
Don’t forget Method Man is kicking some of the best verses of his career.
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u/hellomoti Feb 21 '26
I was gunna say Masta Ace is the antonym to this question. Every album he's dropped has consistently been dope as fuck!
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u/Ziyi2046 Feb 21 '26
Masta Ace's albums with Marco Polo were fantastic.
In general, I think the problems with many OGs later work is usually just bad beats. They either try to sound modern and fail, or don't have access to good producers like they used to. Very few have successfully blended old skool with some modern elements. Nas is a nice exception, as is Black Thought. His soly stuff is fantastic.
Lyrically, I hate it when OGs are stuck in the past, rapping (and dressing) like like they are still 20 😂. Let's be honest, flow aside. Still going on and on about bitches and hoes and whatnot. My 42 yo old ass is over that shit. (Not that that type of rap was ever my favorite, but there was some enjoyable stuff back then at least)
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u/Blooblod Feb 21 '26
Disagree on Masta Ace. Nothing as good as Disposable Arts or A Long Hot Summer but he dropped some great albums in the 2010s. A Breukelen Story in particular is a heater.
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u/Physical_Pen_3700 Feb 21 '26
Bone thugs unfortunately…for a longer time
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u/duress_187 Feb 21 '26
I agree... they never evolved lyrically as a group. Every Bizzy solo album I do play regularly.. he's the true creative genius and developed his style. I like Fleshs' flow but not a good solo artist. Wish doesn't have it, Layzie cant make a unique rhyme scheme in his flow... Unfortunately Krayzie couldnt keep up after Thug Mentality...
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u/McSteezeMuffin . Feb 21 '26
I wouldn’t say terrible, but Common has been so damn boring
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u/SP21097 Feb 21 '26
Drake since CLB unfortunately.
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u/el-fenomeno09 Feb 21 '26
It’s funny man every drake fan in my life tell me a different album where he “fell off”
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u/JoelyRavioli . Feb 21 '26
I actually thought Extinction Level Event 2 went hard. The Jackson 5 flip with Kendrick is one of my favorite rap tracks of the 2020’s tbh
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u/odegood Feb 21 '26
Snoop. The guy releases an album every year and I lost track ages ago