In fact, yes, there was rap before P-Diddy, Jay-Z, Ludacris, and all the rest. Rappers may now be more concerned about showing off their "bling" in the club, but there was a time when "keepin' it real" was more than a tired cliche. You may not believe me, especially if I were to tell you that, at this time, rappers wouldn't be caught dead in furs and armani suits, unlike today. No one can argue that rap reached it's apex in the mid-nineties, when the likes of Dr. Dre, 2Pac, the Wu-Tang Clan, Ice Cube, Notorious B.I.G., Snoop Doggy Dogg (the one with three words in his name) ruled the genre. And not a drop of Courvousier was to be found. Here are the top titles from this era.....


1.) Dr. Dre The Chronic (1992)

- The Alpha and Omega. Unlike the boastings of every other rap album, this one actually DID change the game.



2.) Notorious B.I.G. <Product Not Available: B0000039PW> (1994)

- Makes you wonder what Biggie would have done, had he been famous for more than 3 years. Hopefully, there would be a few less Puff Daddy songs.....



3.) Tupac Shakur All Eyez on Me (1996)

- More accomplished than it was infamous, if that can be believed. This was 2Pac's first album after getting out of prison, and jumping to Death Row. Back in the day, some considered the move to be Hip Hop's version of Benedict Arnold. No matter what side you were on, you must admit it may have been his best work.



4.) Snoop Doggy Dogg Doggystyle (1993)

- Certainly a guilty pleasure, but Snoop did prove that his work on The Chronic was no fluke, and launched arguably the most popular rap career of all time.



5.) Wu Tang Clan Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) (1993)

- I dedicate this spot to the Ol' Dirty Bastard, may he finally rest in peace.



6.) Ice Cube The Predator (1992)

- If you listen to this from start to finish, you may be surprised how politically charged it is. The Predator went where Public Enemy couldn't, or wouldn't (which is no slap to Chuck or Flava).



7.) Busta Rhymes The Coming (1996)

- A fun album, and I like to think it helped pave the way for many of the "Dancehouse" rap songs that have come since.



8.) Naughty By Nature 19 Naughty III (1993)

- Maybe it was because I was a 14-year-old white kid from Seattle, but when I heard Hip Hop Hooray, I did, in fact throw my hands in the air, and proceeded to wave them like I just didn't care....



9.) Tupac Shakur Me Against the World (1995)

- Funny thing is, 2Pac was releasing new albums every 6 months, it seems, and all of them were really good. I probably should go with 2Pacalypse Now in this spot, but this LP had "Dear Mama" on it, which is a personal favorite of mine.



10.) De La Soul Stakes Is High (1996)

- Another personal choice. Although not a critical or popular favorite, I think this is the best of the East Coast Conscious rap of the mid-nineties. De La showed they were more than the Ivy League rappers that came up in the late eighties, and delivered an LP that was very enjoyable from top to bottom. My apologies to KRS-One.