Top #15 Hip-Hop and RnB Albums of 2017 Pt. III

2017 Album Countdown Pt. I (#5-#1)

In this last post for our 2017 Rap/RnB Countdown, we’ll go through our #5-#1 albums, this is where it starts to get interesting, so let’s get straight into it.

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#5 Joey Bada$$ - ALL-AMERIKKKAN BADA$$

Number 5 goes to the 2^nd studio album from Joey Bada$$ titled ALL-AMERIKKKAN BADA$$. This second album from Joey really puts him on the map for his ability in writing bars and spitting them with passion and flow. We get a chance to hear from Joey’s soul in this album, touching on contemporary America and racism, especially in Land of the Free saying “And the land of the free is for the free-loaders, leave us dead in the street to be their organ doners...still got the last names, of our slave owners”. It’s clear that Joey’s heart is still very much focused on the racism in America, look at the way he spelt AmeriKKKa… Trading bars with Schoolboy Q and J. Cole, Joey pound out spicy bars aimed at American culture. Devastated is a triumphant song, focusing on how far Joey BadaSS has come and saluting his hard times. Other noteable songs on the album include Temptation, Rockabye Babe (feat. Schoolboy Q), and For My People. ALL-AMERIKKAN BADA$$ deserves it’s number 5 spot on our countdown, well down Joey.

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#4 Migos - Culture

At number 4 we have Culture from the rap group Migos, including Quavo, Takeoff and Offset. This chain-rockin’ trio from Georgia bangs out their 2^nd Studio album with Culture, breaking down their lifestyle and history with money, cars and women. With an all-star guestlist, including DJ Khaled, Lil Uzi Vert, Gucci Mane, 2 Chainz and Travis Scott, the album is a glorious victory lap from the reighning months of the south. Hit-after-hit, Migos let loose with this album, banging out some of the best trap America’s ever seen, with songs like T-Shirt, Slippery (feat. Gucci Maine), Culture (feat. DJ Khaled) and Big On Big. Despite Childish Gambino calling out Migos at a golden globe acceptance speech this yeah, Migos really shot back at the game with this album, reassuring us that Migos are bonafide stars.

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#3 Future - Future

Spot number 3 goes to Future, and it was very hard for us to pick which album as he released 2 within weeks of each other, but we’ve chosen Future, the first of the two he released. “Mask off, aye, Mask off”, we’ve all heard it sometime this month, and have had to restrain ourselves from singing it it’s that catchy! The Atlanta artist really reclaimed his spot as the Trap King with this album, every song expressing his flow and lyrical genius, seen in Mask Off, POA, Poppin’ Tags and Zoom. This self-titled album pays homage to Future’s past and vast collectyion of mixtapes, with 808’s to make anyone bob their head. With no guest features on this album, Future makes it clear that he doesn’t need handouts from other artists to make an ill album that makes the whole trap lean!

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#2 Drake - More Life

Coming in hot at second place (and almost taking the top) is Drake’s More Life. The long-awaited record had fans holding their breath as fanpedia released hint after hint at when the album would be dropped, but the Toronto artist had people guessing for months! All we can say is the wait was worth it, with Drakes ‘views’ (get it?) on the album clear that it is some of his best work, saying ‘More time with family and friends. More Life. I still got vibrations to send. More Life’. The 22-piecer album really shows some of Drake’s best work, and features a real juicy line-up featuring PARTYNEXTDOOR, Kanye West, Giggs, 2 Chains, Young Thug, Quavo and Travis Scott (just to name a few). Producing pop-hits like Fake Love and Passionfruit, The Canadian artist shows us that he’s still got it in him. Drake sprinkles a little trap on the record with Portland (feat. Quavo and Travis Scott) and Gyalchester, accompanied by a taste of UK Grime in No Long Talk and Kmt, both featuring Giggs. Drake also revisits his roots with some RnB flows weaved throughout, heard in 4422 (feat. Sampha) and Since Way Back (feat. PARTYNEXTDOOR). More Life also features some Controlla/One Dance similar beats, with the heavy samba drive found in Madiba Riddim, Get It Together (feat. Black Coffe and Jorja Smith) and Blem. The whole album is a testament to Drizzy’s hard work, creativity and song-writing ability, being able to perform so well with such a variety of beats.

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#1 Kendrick Lamar - DAMN

To wrap it up, we’re going to bring you our #1! This goes (without a doubt) to Kendrick Lamar’s DAMN. Kendrick (a.k.a K.dot, King Kunta, or Kung-Fu Kenny) has been a big name in the rap game for years, and this album keeps him up the top for the best rap album 2017 has seen! Selling 353,000 copies in it’s debut week and over 340 Million streams, DAMN deserves its spot at the top of the charts. 

Kendrick lets us really delve into his soul in this album, with raw rhymes and heart-felt lines, we hear hits like Humble, DNA, Loyalty (feat. Rihanna) and Element, just to name a few. 


Here’s Kendrick’s 14 titles on the Billboard Hot 100 dated May 6:

Position, title, weekly U.S. streams
No. 1  (up from No. 3) "Humble." (67.4 million)
No. 4 (debut), "DNA." (51 million)
No. 14 (debut), "Loyalty.," featuring Rihanna (32.2 million)
No. 16 (debut), "Element." (31.3 million)
No. 18 (debut), "Love.," featuring Zacari (29.3 million)
No. 32 (debut), "Yah." (24.5 million)
No. 33 (debut), "XXX." (23.3 million)
No. 35 (debut), "Feel." (22.5 million)
No. 37 (debut)," Pride." (21.8 million)
No. 42 (debut), "Lust." (20.2 million)
No. 50 (debut), "Fear."  (17.6 million)
No. 54 (debut), "Blood."  (17.3 million)
No. 58 (debut), "God." (16 million)
No. 63 (debut), "Duckworth." (14.1 million)

Kendrick shows us with this record that he doesn’t need to feature many artists to make hits, he has the skill and the flow to produce amazing and original rap, changing the game with his songs and music videos. That’s why, DAMN earns it’s spot as the NUMBER 1 HIP-HOP ALBUM OF 2017!




Content Used:
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