Top Five Hip Hop Albums I’ve Heard for 2011

People who know or correspond with me on a regular basis know that I’m a huge fan of music. I listen to all types of music, but hip hop is probably my favorite. 2011 has been a very fulfilling year for hip hop music. It’s also been a learning process for me. I’ve gained knowledge about new artists this year that I’ve come to like. Much of the music that I listen to is underground music. They mainly include artists that you seldom hear on the radio, if at all. You don’t see them on popular networks like MTV, VH1, or BET. I try to spread the word about lesser known artists that I like, so I decided to write this article. In this article I’m going to give my top 5 hip hop albums that I’ve heard this year. This is strictly my own personal list, so it’s an opinion article. I hope you enjoy.

#5. Stic “The Workout”: I actually wrote an article about this album earlier this year. It’s titled Stic.man “The Workout” Album Review”, so feel free to check it out. The main reason why this album makes the list is because of it’s message. This album is strictly about health, fitness, and positivity. It also helped that Stic, who is one half of one of my favorite groups “Dead Prez” made this album. The production on the album is ok overall. It’s better on certain songs that others, but the lyrics and the message carry this album. Definitely an album for those who want to improve their health, or just need music to workout to.

#4. Phonte “Charity Starts at Home: Phonte is a rapper/singer known for this work with the groups; Little Brother, and The Foreign Exchange. Phonte formed Little Brother along with former members Rapper Big Pooh, and producer 9th Wonder. The group was active from 2001-2010, but 9th Wonder left the group sometime in 2006. Phonte also formed the group “The Foreign Exchange” with Dutch producer Nicolay in 2002. You can read more about their first release “Connected” here. Phonte has never officially released a solo album, so Charity Starts at Home is his first official solo release. This album mainly featured Phonte doing something that he has strayed away from in recent years; rapping. Phonte goes back to hip hop roots on the majority of this album. There are a few songs where he sings, but overall it’s a hip hop oriented album. This album also features Phonte and 9th Wonder settling their differences, as 9th Wonder produced several songs for this album. I wrote an article earlier titled “Former Little Brother group members Phonte and 9th Wonder reconcile”. That article gets more in depth on Little Brother, and the Phonte and 9th Wonder feud. Phonte is one of the most talented artists in the game right now, and Charity Starts at Home doesn’t disappoint.