In honor of hip hop celebrating it’s 50th anniversary this year, Billboard and Vibe magazine jointly came up with a greatest rappers of all-time list but, as such lists do, it’s attracted quite the pushback.
Who ranks where will always be debated, considering that music is extremely subjective, so we’ll focus first on what Billboard/Vibe actually, objectively got wrong, before we dive into our own subjectivity.
1. Making the list at all
The first mistake Billboard made is even making such a list. Although Billboard magazine has been around since 1894, it didn’t become almost exclusively music oriented until several decades later. Even though they publish many articles, including opinion pieces, it’s accurate to say that they are best known for their weekly Billboard Chart.
Recently, thanks to YouTube and other free services where anyone can access music, Billboard was forced to change how their chart rankings are determined. In the age of digital streaming, it would no longer be fair to rank entries based entirely on record sales, but Billboard came under fire for their new formula to determine chart position, since it rewards certain “sales” over others. They became much more transparent in 2020, after rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine claimed that you can technically buy your way into the top spot if you purchase a sufficient number of digital units in the allotted time used to determine chart position. Tekashi even went so far as to suggest a record company would employ this very tactic if, based on chart predictions leading up to the deadline, they could ascertain how many units would need to be sold to take the No. 1 spot.
Billboard’s response did not directly refute Tekashi’s claim.
Billboard has made themselves the go-to domestic hit-ranking metric in the industry, and their objectivity is all but imperative in maintaining their reputation. So, perhaps making subjectve lists that rank the “greatness” of artists — especially those still active on the Billboard charts — given credible accusations of favoritism against Billboard, is not the smartest idea.
2. The criteria
The primary criteria that determines the “greatest rapper” is the lyrics that rapper writes, and the rapper’s vocal ability to deliver said lyrics. Of course, flow and melody are revealed in that delivery, so the combo of lyrics and delivery is the ultimate bar to determine who the best really is.
Billboard mentions those two aspects as just a part of their criteria, though they mention them last. They claim their criteria are listed in no particular order, yet they choose to start it off with “Body of work/achievements,” followed by “cultural impact/influence,” and then “longevity.”
There is no real issue with adding the above three elements, especially when it’s clearly explained, but it does indeed distort who the greatest truly is, since the artist with the highest sales is not necessarily the best, especially considering that music sells not just for the lyrics and vocal performances. Most rappers do not create their own music, so this criteria benefits a good rapper who happens to lay down vocals on exceptional music tracks, while penalizing a great rapper whose music, created by someone else, may not be quite as exceptional.
It’s mind-blowing to read an entire article that ranks the 50 Greatest Rappers, writes about each one’s accomplishments, and cites a grand total of five lines of lyrics. Yes, only five actual lines of writing appear in the entire article, despite covering 50 artists. And some of the lines chosen are head-scratching,
This further suggests that Billboard “greatness” is neither a celebration of lyricism, or of vocal delivery, but instead a celebration of a rapper’s popularity. However, popularity does not equate to skill.
3. The rankings contradict the explanations
Producer extraordinaire Dr. Dre is ranked on the list at No. 40. Billboard/Vibe explains, “Dr. Dre would be the first to tell you that he is not a traditional MC. During his 30+ year career, the global best-selling producer, often cited as hip hop’s GOAT behind the boards, boasts a treasure trove of lyricists who have written for him.”
Notice that Billboard admits that Dre is not really a great MC by saying he is not a “traditional MC,” then adds that others have written lyrics for him. As they note, he is one of hip hop’s greatest producers of all time, but that’s not even close to being the same as one of the greatest rappers of all time.
Furthermore, they later add that he was the lead MC on the N.W.A. album Straight Outta Compton. By “lead MC,” do they mean that he is usually first on the mic? Because if they’re suggesting that he is their best — which is what “lead MC” truly means in the rap game — then it’s a straight-up Billboard dis to Ice Cube.
Speaking of Ice Cube — who is, rightly, ranked higher than Dr. Dre at number 18 — he is praised by Billboard/Vibe. They even state, “He wrote brilliant and incisive verses for his N.W.A. groupmates and himself on Straight Outta Compton, the group’s classic 1988 debut.” Does that not make Ice Cube the lead MC for two reasons? Also, Eazy-E was a far better rapper than Dr Dre — so was the D.O.C., for that matter — and D.O.C. wrote songs for both Dre and Eazy-E.
Nothing is more humorous on the list then ranking Dr. Dre at 40, while ranking Melle Mel at 48. Imagine believing that Dr. Dre is a greater rapper than Melle Mel, whom many still claim is the greatest single rapper to ever live. Mel is a lyrical genius with an outstanding delivery and his overall abiltiy, for all intents and purposes, is unmatched to this day.
We’re also wondering where Kool G Rap would rank on this list but, no surprise, Billboard and Vibe left him out. At his peak, Kool G Rap was considered close to untouchable, thanks to both his lyrics and his lisp-sprinkled flow.
4. Number 1 doesn’t even write all of his own lyrics
Topping the Bilboard/Vibe list is a someone who most commonly refers to himself as a businessman; Jay-Z — who on the mic can only be considered Lay-Z — comes in at number 1.
Don’t get us wrong — Jay deserves to be ranked as one of the most popular rappers ever but, again, that should be a different list.
Jay is often criticized for rapping other artists’ lyrics. He gets away with it (sometimes) by later claiming that by using other rapper’s lyrics, he’s bestowing a “shout out.” If Jay Z is allowed to get away with using hundreds of lines of lyrics from other songs — just ask hardcore Biggie fans who are sick of him shouting him out — then surely those lines need to be eliminated from assessing whether he is the greatest rapper ever. Moreso, if he is the greatest rapper, then he wouldn’t need to use other rappers’ writing.
Another major problem is that the average listener is unaware that some of Jay Z’s lyrics are actually just quotations older rap songs. There are countless examples of it from Jay Z’s work, but perhaps the best example is “99 Problems.”
Back in 2004, Jay Z recorded “99 Problems” and it became a major hit. Rolling Stone even later ranked it as the second greatest song of the decade of the 2000’s.
Ice-T regularly performs the song when in concert, prompting one fan to ask him why he’s doing a version of a Jay Z song. Ice T had to explain to this so-called fan that “99 Problems” is originally an Ice-T song from 1993. In fact, it’s a collaboration with Marquis from the 2 Live Crew, whom Ice T credits as mostly coming up with the line from the chorus. Jay Z’s chorus is exactly the same, in lyrics and delivery. He changed the verses so he can claim it as his song.
Furthermore, Jay Z never even asked Ice T or Marquis if he can use the entire chorus and song title, he just went right to the publisher to get rights to the song. He never even shouted out Ice T at any point, or say thanks for it. Nope. In typical Jay Z style, the struggling lyricist needed an idea and some lyrics, so he bought them.
The problem with Billboard is they have to either be ignoring all the above info about Jay Z, buying into his explanation of just saluting artists, or are completely ignorant to it. We wouldn’t be surprised if it’s the latter, sadly.
Clearly, whoever anyone thinks the greatest rapper of all time is, most people agree that it should be someone with an exceptional ability at writing original lyrics and delivering those lyrics in entertaining and original ways. Jay Z, practically by his own admission, is more of an entrepreneur than a rapper, and this list deserves to be topped by pure rap greatness. Billboard and Vibe have accomplished one thing, however: They have people talking about their head-scratching list.