20. Curren$y & Alchemist – Continuance
It makes us always happy to hear the collaborations of these two artists. The Alchemist delivered a cold, foggy production on which Curren$y flows and gives them life with his mumbling flow, and the results are pretty good. All of his bars are falling perfectly into place like pieces of a big puzzle, and we think that you will love this refreshing mixture. This type of dusty sound might not be for everybody, but we think that this album is basically flawless.
Support artists: Shop I, Shop II
Album: Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal
19. Da$h & SonnyJim – Between The Lines
Earlier on our list, you read about the album White Girl Wasted, where you could catch SonnyJim behind the mic. Here, he took on the responsibility of the producer and delivered beats with dirty drums and beautiful samples. The combination of these two, at first glance, completely different elements, makes the album an original project, and on top of those, rapper Da$h brought his dark atmospheric stories, which before never sounded better.
Support artists: Bandcamp
Album: Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal
18. Boldy James & Real Bad Man – Killing Nothing
Real Bad Man created a really rough, raw gangster-like production, evoking an almost paranoid atmosphere that will make you feel like you are on the run from something while Boldy James shows off his experience with his cold and monotonous delivery. Both artists will pull you into the life perspective of a criminal, which for a regular listener will be haunting, maybe even a little traumatizing, but for Boldy it is just day to day life. Really great work here, guys.
Support artists: Shop I, Shop II
Album: Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal
17. Action Bronson – Cocodrillo Turbo
Last year, chef, wrestler, and rapper Action Bronson came back on the scene with his album Cocodrillo Turbo and once again delivered an album with his own special essence. Bronson has a very personified style of humor, which you can hear in each of his tracks. Productions have been taken care of by The Alchemist, Daringer, Mono En Stereo, Roc Marciano, Yung Mehico, and Bronson himself. Between the guests, you will find Conway the Machine, Hologram, Meyhem, Lauren, Roc Marciano, and Yung Mehico. The whole project feels like a perfectly balanced dish, cooked with only the best possible ingredients.
Support the artist: Shop, Bandcamp
Album: Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal
16. Mach-Hommy & Tha God Fahim – Duck CZN: Tiger Style
Duck CZN: Tiger Style is a follow-up to the 2018 DUCK CZN: Chinese Alphabet project. We can again expect minimalistic sampled beats, unusual lyrics, and perfect flows from both rappers. Their mutual chemistry and personal rap do not have any competition. Beats were taken care of by the talented SadhuGold and Nicholas Craven.
Support artists: Shop, Bandcamp, Shop II
Album: Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal
15. YL & Zoomo – In Memory Of
Finally, we have arrived at the destination where the best project of the rapper YL placed itself. Producer zoomo knows how to show the strong sides of a rapper, so the collaborations with him are a breath of fresh air. It is rather obvious how much of their lives these artists spend absorbing all the Hip Hop they can, having now masterfully caught the intimacy of New York rap. YL brings the experience of life in the metropolis very authentically, like not that many rappers can.
Support artists: Bandcamp, Bandcamp II
Album: Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal
14. Theravada – Strange Voice
The charismatic music magician born in Greece, Theravada, is not just a rapper but a very skillful producer as well. The artist produced, wrote, mixed, mastered, and recorded the whole album himself. There are no guests on this album. Sampled loops are beautiful, and Theravada brings one creative beat after the other. His original lyrics are opening the gates to another world—a world where you will feel like you cannot leave until you explore every single inch of it.
Support the artist: Bandcamp
Album: Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal
13. Benny The Butcher – Tana Talk 4
Member of Griselda Records, Benny The Butcher, follows up on his album from 2018, his best album so far. Tana Talk 3 belongs in between the most significant projects of the whole Griselda, so the expectations were high, to say the least. Benny did not disappoint, and Tana Talk 4 offers exactly what we expected: tough and bone-chilling beats by Alchemist, Daringer, and Beat Butcha combined with Benny’s authentic stories from the streets. The whole project is massive; the tracks are very colorful and sound pretty amazing. In between the guests are J. Cole, Diddy, Stove God Cook$, Boldy James, and 38 Spesh.
Support the artist: Shop
Album: Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal
12. Fly Anakin – Frank
Fly Anakin took the best parts of his talent and poured them over this album, and it shows in all of the aspects of the project, starting with his lyrics and continuing with productions by the giants of the scene like Madlib, Evidence, Jay Versace, and more. Listeners will be teleported to the underground world with its abstract atmosphere and melodic environment. Frank, without a doubt, belongs among the best projects released last year, and you cannot miss it because it is pretty much perfect.
Support the artist: Shop, Bandcamp
Album: Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal
11. Nicholas Craven & Boldy James – Fair Exchange No Robbery
We do not even have to debate that Fair Exchange No Robbery is an absolute gem. Nicholas Craven belongs among the best producers of the current scene, and we love his sampled loops, while Boldy James does not seem to be able to release a bad project. The artists put together the whole album in about 24 hours. Nicholas Craven and Mike Shabb came over to Detroit, where Boldy picked all the beats, wrote down the lyrics, and together with talents from Canada, created this project.
Support artists: Bandcamp
Album: Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal
