What a year it’s been. Let’s not state the obvious, but who would have expected what was going to happen back in February last year when I was writing that 2020 was off to a great start music-wise. Despite all the mess, last year turned out to be a good one in rap music with so many releases that this is why I’m only getting around to write about my top 10 bangers of 2020 now in March. So much music in fact that it’s been difficult to keep up and digest. But here are, in no particular order, the songs that I’m still bumping today and that I will probably find myself playing well into this year.
Run The Jewels - Ooh LA LA (feat. Greg Nice and DJ Premier)
The dynamic duo of El-P and Killer Mike released their 4th collaborative album under the group name Run The Jewels in the midst of the social unrest and protests surrounding the shooting of George Floyd. The group’s trademark style of music that is politically charged, heavily engaged and hard hitting was very timely and they actually decided to give away their album for free and raise funds for associations defending the rights of ethnic minorities in America. This song right here features an infectious chorus from Greg Nice that won’t get out of your head while the two trade dope bars that are as memorable as they’re direct: “First of all/Fuck the fucking law/We’re as fucking raw/As steak tartar”.
A-Wax - “Unapologetic”
A-Wax kept the pressure on throughout 2020. Fresh off of releasing his “Demonz N My Bleep” album at the top 2019, he put out 2 full length albums and stepped up his game taking his brand Pie-Rx clothing to the next level releasing new drops almost every other week. Currently waiting for a decision on a court case he caught at the beginning of 2020, he’s not pausing to catch a breath and has already put out another project this year, with another one on the way. “Unapologetic” is taken from the sequel to fan-favorite “Pullin’ Stringz”. Similar to its predecessor the “Pullin’ More Stringz” album features A-Wax rapping solo across over 20 tracks. His troubles have not only fed even more his paranoia and mistrust of others - themes he has explored more than once before - they’ve also made his music so much darker and introspective that it is hard not to take notice. On this melodic gem of low-if rap, A-wax can be heard rapping:
“Started having money that’s what made my partners tweak/Don’t tell me you love me I’ll see right through your dishonesty/My bro survived them shots and got another lease on life/Now can’t no one tell him nothing he always got to keep that pipe/And these weird kind of dreams that make it hard to sleep at night/Don’t know what comes after this leave all that up to Jesus Christ”
Curren$y & Harry Fraud - 90’ IROC-Z (feat. Wiz Khalifa)
Producer Harry Fraud and super prolific rapper Curren$y released a follow-up to their critically-acclaimed “Cigarette Boats” just in time for the summer last year. “The Outrunners” is packed with 9 sumptuously produced songs with hand-picked guest features from Jim Jones, Conway The Machine, Rick Ross and Wiz Khalifa, who drops a verse and handle the hook on this record right here. From the very first saxophone notes to the laidback verses and melodic chorus, this track has so much hit power. This was the summer tune for me and will be on my summer playlist for years to come. A must-hear for sure.
Royce da 5’9 - I Don’t Age
Royce put out a video for this song which comes from his Grammy-nominated “The Allegory” album not too long ago. Entirely produced by Royce himself like the rest of the album, “I Don’t Age” is one of the standout solo tracks on the project, otherwise feature-heavy. The rapper comes aggressive on this hard-hitting beat, basically stating that he’s in a league of his own with his raps. The song is packed with clever punchlines and double-entendres in true Royce fashion as he spits lyrics like “Always on time to collect like the I-R-S” or “The say you are what you eat, but I ain’t never ate dope”.
Freddie Gibbs & The Alchemist - “Frank Lucas” (feat. Benny The Butcher)
Freddie Gibbs has been on fire releasing dope project after dope project. His “Freddie” album in 2018 and 2019 “Bandana” with Madlib are both amazing. Last year, he partnered with producer The Alchemist again for “Alfredo”, a 10-track collaborative effort that earned him his first Grammy nomination. Funnily enough, the Benny The Butcher-featured “Frank Lucas” finds him rapping “My name cocaine they ain’t gone put me in the nominees”. The Alchemist serves up one of his usual dark and tormented beats, perfect for the two rappers to spit gangsta rap gems with Benny shining with bars like “Sold lines to abusers now I abuse y’all with lines” or the track closer “They say hustling is a disease, I’ma die with the symptoms”.
Busta Rhymes - “Outta My Mind” (feat. Bell Biv Devoe)
Who can do party rap tracks better than Busta Rhymes? Revisiting Bell Biv Devoe’s 1990 hit “Poison”, the track “Outta My Mind” is a club banger reminiscent of the rapper’s early 2000s hits. Busta Rhymes flexes his flow and voice in ways only he knows, over 3 high adrenaline verses, complete with crazy adlibs. This is the perfect track to set the club on fire, if only clubs were open right now.
Trife Gang Rich - John Wick (feat. A-Wax)
This song came out back when Trife Gang Rich was meant to release an album on A-Wax’s Pie-Rx imprint. While branded as a Trife Gang Rich song with A-Wax as a guest feature, Wax dominates the track with a long first verse and also singing the chorus. This seems more like that was his song and Trife was added later on. Anyways, Trife’s solo album on Pie-Rx will probably never see the light of day due to his passing (RIP) and this track ended up being released more as a loosie. It is an awesome song none the less. The melancholic piano loop over sinister 808s drums set the scene for both rappers to drop dark street raps that are as unapologetic as can be, with Wax spitting lines like: “I thought you were real, no one else would ever dupe me/I’ma get it back by taxing bro who introduced me/I be with them shooters but we never had no hoop dreams/Pulled up it was nice but when we left that shit was spooky”.
Big Sean - Deep Reverence (feat. Nipsey Hussle)
Big Sean unearthed this collaboration with the late great Nip to hype up his “Detroit 2” album. This probably was the highest moment in his rollout campaign and is the highest moment on the album as a whole. The guest verse from Nipsey Hussle and the dope production certainly have something to do with it, but this is Big Sean’s candidness and clarity in his raps that make it one of the best tracks of 2020. Sean takes inspiration from his encounter with and the passing of Nipsey Hussle to discuss everything in his verse, from being aware of the pitfalls in our lifestyles (“Most of the girls I know addicted to social media/All the time they put in it they could have written an encyclopedia” or “If it costs you peace of mind then it might be too expensive”) to his struggles with depression (“Then I realized all my setbacks are inside of me/In high school I learned chemistry, biology but not how to cope with anxiety/Or how I can feel like I’m by myself on an island with depression on all sides of me”). Amazing track.
D Smoke - Gaspar Yanga (feat. Snoop Dogg)
So I have to admit I didn’t know of Inglewood rapper D Smoke until I came across a physical copy pre-order offer for his “Black Habits” album and decided to press play on the snippets before hitting “Purchase”. He actually gained notoriety when participating in season 1 of the Netflix music competition show “Rhythm & Flow” in 2019. He went on to release his first album independently last year and earned a Grammy nomination for it. I initially got hooked to this song because of the amazing sample which got used on a classic Bishop Lamont song produced by Focus (“Feel On It”). But “Gaspar Yanga”, which refers to the leader of a maroon colony of African slaves in Mexico who ended up taking charge of the settlement as a free man, is a poignant song in the face of all that has happened in 2020 for the black community. Snoop Dogg adds his larger than life swagger on the hook, making it a song that’s even more worth pressing repeat on.
Eminem - Godzilla (feat. Juice WRLD)
Eminem gave us another surprise album at the very beginning of 2020, in similar fashion as with his 2018 “Kamikaze”, coming out of nowhere. The record featured a great deal of bangers and he even doubled up with a second disc worth of material towards the end of the year. “Godzilla” is Eminem showcasing his out-of-this-world lyrical ability like he did previously on “Rap God”. This time around he’s doing this on a high energy beat and with a catchy hook by the late Juice WRLD, showing he still has a ear for current and new talent. The result is this standout track to add to the already long list of classics from Eminem.
And there you have it, another top 10 bangers. Hope you enjoy these songs as much as I do, and let me know of your top 10s in the comments. Peace out.
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