10 Best Hip-Hop Albums of 2021
Via Griselda Records 2021
2021 was an excellent year for rap music, with so many great albums being released from across the board. In 2021 rap fans were able to get everything from pop-rap to some of the most experimental hip-hop music fans have heard in years. Rappers spent 2021 showing their genuine introspection, which makes sense because the world is going through a pandemic. The music released in 2021 felt more raw and urgent of what was happening in the world. Here is my picks for the best rap albums of 2021.
10. Little Simz, ‘Sometimes I Might Be Introvert’
The British — Nigerian rapper’s fourth studio album incorporated grime, Hip-Hop, Soul, and old-school R&B to create one of the best listens of the year. The Smokey Robinson sample on “Two Worlds Apart” is one of the best-sampled tracks of the year. Simz is a true student of hip-hop because she shows how confident she is by delivering a complex flow with bars that make you think.
9. DAVE EAST & HARRY FRAUD HOFFA ALBUM
When Westside Gunn and Dave East unveiled a Mariella Angela- painted portrait of Dave East as Jimmy Hoffa, many fans were excited for the music that would come from it. Following up his 2020 Album Karma 3, East decided to focus on acting in the Hulu series Wu-Tang: An American Saga, where he portrayed Method Man. The Karma 3 album was good, but at times felt too long even though East was delivering some of the best music he had written at that time. On Hoffa, an entirely produced by Harry Fraud, East positions himself as a boss like the presumed dead union leader. This was the first time that Dave created an album that could be listened to from start to finish. Dave sounds rejuvenated and hungry on the album, and it makes you wonder what comes next.
8. Ye (Kanye West), ‘Donda.’
“Who the busiest loser?” Kanye asks on his 10th album. For the last couple of album releases, Kanye has been more focused on spreading God’s word through his music and not on lyrics and production like in the past. Donda was a 27 track album that at times showed hints of the Kanye that fans once loved. Kanye continues to process his conflicted, grieving, striving, a self-canceling story in grueling real-time. At its best, it’s the work of a man who refuses to let his drama get so dull that we ignore him. Kanye is a wise man, and he knows that people love knowing what is going on in his life.
7. ‘The House Is Burning’ — Isaiah Rashad
Isaiah Rashad’s third studio album, The House is Burning, finds the TDE emcee at a new place in his life and career following the 2016 release of The Sun’s Tirade and the 2014 Clivia Demo. On his most recent project, Isaiah pays homage to his southern Hip-Hop roots while establishing his own sound on the project. The 30 — year old rapper has said in interviews that this album was a chance for him to start over and that this was his comeback album. The House is Burning included crunk, trap, and jazzy production throughout the album that kept listeners wanting each bar of every track. The album is 16 tracks with guest appearances from Smino, Lil Uzi Vert, 6lack, Amindi, Doechii, Kal Banx, Duke Deuce, Jay Worthy, YGTUT, and Top Dawg Entertainment labelmates SZA and Jay Rock, who all add their perspectives. Isaiah Rashad’s lyrical ability and free-form delivery stand out on The House is Burning, and that makes the album a great listen.
6. Drake, ‘Certified Lover Boy.’
When it comes to Drake, he has reached a level where anything he releases will become number one. Is this Drake’s best album? No, but it is still an enjoyable listen with high and shallow spots. Drake has his rap career on cruise control now, and that classic album that fans want from Drake is something that we might not ever get because of him being so comfortable with the music he makes. Drake hits all the familiar notes that have made him one of the most famous artists on the planet, and then some. Certified Lover Boy was an album that allowed fans to know that Drake still can make hits.
5. Megan Thee Stallion, ‘Something for Thee Hotties.’
2021 was a massive year for Megan Thee Stallion outside of music because she graduated with a college degree, which is a huge accomplishment. When Megan announced she was releasing a project, many fans wondered if it was going to be her sophomore album, it wasn’t, but instead, we got a project titled “Something for Thee Hotties, a needed fix for a world now hooked on Megan’s unique ability to transfer her own self-confident affirmations onto listeners. The collection of unreleased freestyles and loosies finds Meg reconnecting to the playful excellence of early mixtapes.
4. Boldy James and Alchemist, ‘Bo Jackson.’
Producer Alchemist and Detroit emcee Boldy James reconnected for the hard-hitting Bo Jackson album, which followed up 2020 “The Price of Tea in China.” Alchemist has been one of the best producers in Hip-Hop for the last five years, and on this album, he proves that by producing tracks like “Double Hockey Sticks” and Brickmile to Montana. Boldy James rapping in this album sounds smooth, and the lyrics hit hard with each word said.
3. Tyler, the Creator, ‘Call Me if You Get Lost.’
Call Me if You Get Lost will be the album that the world noticed how great of a rapper Tyler The Creator really is. On “Wusyaname,” the Grammy-nominated single from Tyler, the Creator’s excellent album Call Me if You Get Lost, YoungBoy Never Broke Again, and Ty Dolla $ign pop into Tyler’s creative world and deliver one of the most memorable songs of 2021. Tyler is confident and manages to tell a story within the album and bring another talented artist along for the ride. The whole album is hosted by hip-hop mixtape legend DJ Drama, proving that Tyler is ready for the next level of success that comes with putting out an album like this.
2. J. Cole, ‘The Off-Season.’
J.Cole took a risk by putting out an album that focuses on letting the world know that he is a great emcee. The Off-Season represents J. Cole possibly at his sharpest. As its name suggests, the album finds Cole in a less-competitive stance, where his catalog has seen him playing in a playoff round of NBA games to get to the championship game. It was refreshing to hear Cole focus more on bars than creating songs to get him radio play.
- Mach-Hommy, ‘Pray for Haiti.’
It’s fitting that in 2021, Griselda Records of Buffalo, New York, would come to dominate the rap subconscious. The independent label founded by native rapper Westside Gunn put out albums on his label by artists who all have their own unique style and background. Westside Gunn served as executive producer on Newark, New Jersey-based Mach-Hommy’s complete masterwork Pray for Haiti. The album offers a lot of emotion that allows the listener to ride with the emcee. The album, at times, feels like a spiritual journey that comes with the audio from an academic discussion of Haitian Creole. Pray For Haiti is the most substantial release from Griselda Records to date, and it will stand the test of time when it comes to the best albums released in 2021.
