Mount Rapmore

I would just put the entire cast of Krush Groove on the Mount Rapmore.

OK maybe not Sheila E. Or Blair Underwood.

The Fat Boys, though? Hell yeah. "Disorderlies" was the "There will be Blood" of its time. A dark, brooding reflection on man's greed.

 

Absolutely phenomenal song. (Honorable mention for Everlast, though? Really?)

For me, I'm putting Rakim (who didn't need Eric B., btw), Chuck D, Tupac on Mount Rapmore without a doubt. Number four is a little tougher to come up with. Biggie is among the best, but I agree with others who say his body of work is too small. I would probably go with Jay Z, Ice Cube, Dr. Dre or LL Cool J in the fourth slot, but it's tough to pick one. The first three I mentioned stand considerably above the rest, I think.

Nas, I think, is incredibly overrated. Illmatic was a classic, but I really haven't gotten him since then. "I Am" was pretty bad. I haven't heard the latest album.

 

LL was an innovator. He (regrettably) was the first one to put out a rap love song, "I love you, girl." I think that was the title. After that, every rap album for a while had to have a slow, ballad rap. Yuck.

On a more positive note, "Going back go Cali" was amazing. I remember the first time I heard that. I had no idea what it was. It was unlike anything else out there. That was the first kind of "alternative" rap song that I heard.

 

Although he fizzled, his first CD is among my top five rap CDs of all-time. If I put it on, I still know the words to every single song on that album...even Super Soul Sis.

My Rapmore, in no particular order:

Dre - NWA was huge, but The Chronic changed everything and put the West Coast on top for a good while.
Nas - My favorite lyricist ever. To me, though many will argue, he's the best storyteller. He makes me understand.
Rakim - Changed the game forever.
Nate Dogg - Not as a solo artist, but any song that has a Nate Dogg hook is the shit. Lends instant credibility.

Honorable mention
Tupac - Nobody can rap like him.
KRS-One - Another great lyricist.
Ice Cube - The Steve Yzerman of rap. Always solid.
Jay-Z - Has grown on me through the years.
Eazy-E - Not as influential as Dre, but damn strong.
Chuck D - I think a better storyteller than rapper.
Eminem - Not a big fan, but I can't deny his talent.
Biggie - Overrated like some say, but damn I miss his voice. He's the reason I bought a goddamned Gorilla Black CD...it sounded like him.
Method Man - Wu Tang as a whole is incredible.
Lil' Kim - Queen Latifah and MC Lyte set the stage, but Lil' Kim can flow.
Too Short - Nobody is more unique in their subject matter.
E-40 - Don't care for him now, but before he became popular, he had a crazy flow.

I'm sure in five seconds, I'll think of more.

 

Because it's influence as rappers, not producers.

If I weighted producers and rappers alike, Dre would have been the first person listed. But the original question is what rappers would appear on Mount Rapmore, and while he's created some classics, his work as a rapper isn't near what it is as a producer. And before you jump all over me for saying that, consider this ... what makes Dre singles and CDs so memorable?

What made "The Chronic" so great? Snoop had some of the most memorable lines over Dre's beats.
What made "The Chronic 2001" so great? Snoop and Eminem had some of the most memorable lines over Dre's beats.

As a rapper, Dre was smart enough to spit some rhymes, then step aside and focus on the beats while his proteges stepped into the limelight. Ice Cube, on the other hand, was a rapper top to bottom. His CDs didn't have near the cameos as Dre's; he was a strong enough rapper that he didn't need it. That's why I went with Cube to represent N.W.A. on my Mount Rapmore as opposed to Dre.

 

Want a hit single? Have Nate Dogg sing the hook. He's perfect in that niche, and I'm glad someone made sure to mention him because he definitely showed the genre how hooks ought to be done.

 

I'll third that. I was just thinking about his voice the other day when I heard a song on the radio. The guy can carry a tune. I haven't heard him on much since he did 21 Questions with Fiddy, though.

 

Not for nothing, but 3 pages, a lot of discussion about Dre and no mention of George Clinton? Dre is sh*t without P-Funk (sort of the same way Diddy ain't sh*t without Biggie). Sampled by everybody from Wu-Tang to Red Hot Chili Peppers. He's not really a rapper, so maybe he doesn't belong here. But LL has to be on top of the list. ONLY rapper in the game since before 19-84 who's still making records. Not Big Daddy Kane, PE, or anybody else.

KRS-One has to be on the list. He was involved in the first hip-hop beef. (see South Bronx, in response to the Bridge by MC Shan.

Party people in the place to be KRS One attacks,
You got dropped off MCA cause the Rhyme you wrote was whack.
So you think that hip-hop got its start out in Queensbridge,
IF you popped that junk off in the Bronx you might not live (chorus)

How can y'all be hatin on Biggie? Things Done changed, Juicy, Warning, Ten Crack Commandments. I agree that his death is a "What if," but Diddy is still making $$ from all the stuff he recorded.

Rakim for the above mentioned reasons.

Any list for Producers-rappers, whatever that doesn't include the RZA, well I don't want to live in that America.

 

Dre always was and always will be a producer who raps a little. Everybody talks about NWA, but he was making beats for the World Class Wreckin' Cru before that.

 

I would be remiss in not also mentioning Guru of GangStarr.

 

I forgot about Percee P