It's time to say it......Kanye West is in the same discussion at Big/Nas/Jay/Pac

[choppa_style]

People have been arguing over what makes an album classic for forever without agreement because they don't take in the one factor that transcends all of the other things- nostalgia factor.

All the rappers considered legends or who have classic albums are weak in one of the areas consistently brought up, be it flow, content, creativity, or lyrical skill. But nostalgia is the one element that describes them all the best.

For instance, none of those characteristics could be used to describe All Eyes on Me, Paid in Full, and Get Rich or Die Tryin'. Some would argue that AEOM isn't lyrical, or that Paid in Full didn't sell a lot, or that Get Rich isnt' creative. But I bet most would agree that those albums evoke fond memories for them and are the most well known albums of their time.

Now using that criteria, let's rank the best known rappers of today and see where Kanye stacks up:

Nostalgic Albums:

Jay-Z: 3 (Volume 2: Hard Knock Life, Blueprint, The Black Album)

Nas: 2 (Illmatic, Stillmatic)

Dr. Dre: 2 (The Chronic, Dre 2001)

B.I.G. 2 (Life After Death, Ready to Die)

Jadakiss: 0

Eminem: 3 (The Marshall Mathers LP, The Eminem Show, Recovery)

Kanye: 2 (The College Dropout, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy)

Conclusion: Yes, Kanye is in the same discussion as other well known rappers throughout hip-hop

 

[CMac]

I gotta say yes, he isn't as talented lyrical or flow wise as those top rappers but his music is gonna be played years from now. I still be bumping College Dropout, his production value and what he brings to music is what makes him a top rapper.