Top 10 Best Rap Albums of the 21st Century

Rap music has become one of the most influential and popular genres of music in the 21st century. It's evolved from its roots in the African-American communities of the Bronx and Brooklyn in the 1970s to become a global cultural phenomenon. Over the years, rap music has produced some of the most iconic and groundbreaking albums in music history.

In this list, let's identify the top ten best rap albums of the 21st century. These are the albums that represent the pinnacle of creativity, innovation, and cultural impact within the rap genre. They're albums that will continue to be celebrated as masterpieces of the art form.

Let's celebrate the incredible artistry and impact of rap music in the 21st century, and pay tribute to the artists who have shaped the genre into what it is today.

The Top Ten

  1. The Marshall Mathers LP - Eminem

    I love 2000s Eminem. He was controversial, spitting bars against every special interest group in the country, including white people.

    This album is filled with all of that, plus storytelling in songs like "Stan." This also holds a special place in my heart as the first rap album I listened to.

    Definitely the best rap album of the century, and there won't be a better hip-hop album than this one.

    Say what you will about Eminem in more recent times, but in 2000 he was epic.

  2. My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy - Kanye West

    An understated masterpiece. People fail to realize the effect this album has on hip hop culture, and even more so the homage it pays to the music community through its intricate production, samples, and pop culture references.

    Why is Recovery here? That was a terrible album. It was pop music. This is the greatest rap album of the 21st century by far.

    This album was music at its recent finest. The title track was perfect! The album was like a rap version of Prince's Purple Rain album.

  3. Good Kid, M.A.A.D City - Kendrick Lamar

    This album is amazing. The beats and lyrics are incredible, and the themes on this album are varied and interesting.

  4. The Eminem Show - Eminem

    This album allows you to have one solid run-through and have every track be amazing.

  5. To Pimp a Butterfly - Kendrick Lamar

    Greatest rap album ever. One of the best albums in any genre of music. Should be first.

    The best hip-hop album of the 21st century, by some margin too.

    This is the greatest rap album of all time after J. Cole's 2014 Forest Hills Drive.

  6. Recovery - Eminem

  7. Relapse - Eminem

  8. The Blueprint - Jay Z

    It's very simple. This is the blueprint of rap music. This is how it should be done. This is HOV at his very best. The best rap album by the best rapper ever, is it even a question?

  9. Graduation - Kanye West

  10. Paper Trail - T. I

    11. The Newcomers
  11. ?

    A Beautiful Disaster - Jelly Roll

    Maybe Jelly's best album to date, and the best album I've heard so far this year.

    Another album I can see myself actually going back to many times in the future, which is not something that happens a lot with albums nowadays.

  12. ?

    Lil Wyte - Lil Wyte

    Lil Wyte's most mature album to date. Those who say that Lil Wyte only raps about drugs need to listen to this.

    Songs like Go Up, Slave to Pain, and Keep Going show a different side of Wyte and will definitely be getting play for years to come from me.

    13. The Contenders

  13. Doubt Me Now - Lil Wyte

    One of the best albums to come out of Memphis, as well as southern rap albums period. The production and rapping are on point for almost the entire album, and most of the songs are classics. You can play them over and over without ever getting tired of them.

  14. Hell: The Sequel - Bad Meets Evil

  15. 2014 Forest Hills Drive - J Cole

    Honestly, one of the greatest pieces of hip-hop legend. It shows J Cole as an individual artist who can tell a story so well in an album that flows from start to finish with not a single rhyme out of place.

  16. Lupe Fiasco's the Cool - Lupe Fiasco

    It's a disgrace that GKMC and Kanye's overrated trash are higher than this.

  17. The Documentary - The Game

  18. Watch the Throne - Jay-Z and Kanye West

  19. Below the Heavens - Blu & Exile

  20. Encore - Eminem

  21. The Marshall Mathers LP 2 - Eminem

  22. Tha Carter III - Lil Wayne

    Best Lil Wayne album by far, and this was when Wayne ruled the game.

  23. Relapse: Refill - Eminem

  24. The Blueprint 3 - Jay-Z

  25. Bad Azz - Lil Boosie

  26. B.O.B Presents: The Adventures of Bobby Ray - B.O.B

    This is a Grammy-nominated album from one of the most underrated rappers in the world. The combination of rapping and singing works out amazingly on the tracks. There are also three top-10 singles on this one album, along with features from T.I., Bruno Mars, and Eminem.

  27. Flower Boy - Tyler, the Creator

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