Top 20 Hip Hop Songs of 2010

It's hard to say exactly what 2010 will be remembered for in terms of hip-hop music. There are new feuds, new icons-in-the-making, new joints spinning on the few vinyl turntables that remain in operation. Perhaps, if we look at where we were 12 months ago, we'll get a better sense of where we are now, and what headway was made in the urban music world. In December 2009, Drake was still riding high without a debut album, Nicki Minaj was largely known as a harmless mixtape artist, Kanye West was publicly vilified for what has become universally termed "The Taylor Swift Incident," and Eminem's comeback had more of that flash and bang than substance or longevity. Lil Wayne was preparing to serve his time for weapons possession charges and Jay-Z was getting more spins on pop radio than urban stations.




Now, we fast-forward to the close of 2010 and things look different. A lot different, in fact. Lil Wayne entered prison a guitar-toting pseudo hip-rocker and emerged a hardened hip hop star again. Eminem has followed up his uncharactistically mediocre showing of 2009 with a far more consequential addition to his album catalog in 2010. Drake has gone platinum with his debut album, while Nicki Minaj has secured a special place in the history books of femcees with Pink Friday, not to mention a very public feud with self-proclaimed Queen Bee aka Lil' Kim. Kanye has toasted the fellow "douchebags" of the world with his critically acclaimed fifth studio album, and T.I. has found himself behind bars, again, with an album filled with mea culpas. We could expand on this further but let's get into the best hip hop songs of 2010 instead, right?

20. Aston Martin Music by Rick Ross featuring Chrisette Michele and Drake

Add Rick Ross to an R&B-heavy beat and crooning vocals from Chrisette Michele and Drake, and you get a certified urban smash hit. The "Aston Martin Music" beat is reminiscent of Fabolous's "So Into You" but Ross's authoritative lyricism flows nicely with the rhythmic jam, even though it does make you wonder if maybe Teflon Don can have his sticky moments as well. Chrisette sings with ease, ranging from soprano high notes to contralto low notes, while Drake, though not nearly as vocally gifted, adds a soft touch especially from a major hip hop star of his calibre. This is a track that may not be a club banger, but it will provide a much needed slow jam to bring together Bonnie and Clyde on the dance floor.

19. Up All Night by Drake featuring Nicki Minaj

"Kush rolled, glass full," Drake prefers the better things. Alas, the prince and princess of Young Money collaborate on a track that showboats the party and material lifestyle of the rich and famous. It's a moment of self-idolatry, and against a fresh Boi-1da production, it's a party starter that goes down gently with a glass of chablis or a double shot of Hennessey. Drake's opening verse is unapologetic in its self-righteousness, while Nicki's verse is a pure masquerading of things only a queen is fit to possess. It's the sound of Drizzy Drake and Barbie Minaj chucking humility at the curb to out-pizzazz the haters and elevate themselves above their peers in the hip hop game, and it sounds awfully good.

18. Right Above It by Lil Wayne featuring Drake

If it seems that Young Money has dominated hip hop in 2010, you'd be right, because, well, they have. As required, a Lil Wayne and Drake collaboration has brought exactly what most had hoped for with Wayne's I Am Not A Human Being LP. The self-described best rapper alive comes again with some profundity and his renowned lyrical finesse. Drake opens the song, however, with his own lyrical prowess, addressing the haters, paying homage, and telling how he likes his women: "in twos," of course. It's the first single of Lil Wayne's return to hip hop, and not that we don't like the art of genre-crossing, but Weezy was divinely engineered for southern rap, and this song is evidence of that.

17. Back to the Crib by Juelz Santana featuring Chris Brown

Yes, it's true that since emerging onto the scene with Dipset in 2000 and his solo debut in 2003, Juelz Santana has fallen off the radar. But, at least for a brief period
this past spring, his blip popped back up with a collaboration with Chris Brown. While the song has a more mainstream sound to it than most Santana or Dipset tracks, the lyrical flow is unmistakably Juelz. The trumpet and horn-driven beat commands a presence throughout the track, and the Chris Brown-led chorus is a winning formula. For a song that is about hooking up "back [at] the crib", it sounds fresh, original, and a much stronger song than its chart performance might suggest.

16. Find Your Love by Drake

Upon first listen, I was a bit startled as to who exactly the crooner was that was singing over a Kanye West-beat. Although Drake had always prided himself as full-time rapper and a part-time R&B singer, this urban jam was the first materialization of a rapper-turned-R&B star making his head-first plunge into an urban ballad. Although the song is not interrupted with any rap verses, which may have a few scratching their head as to how it qualifies for a hip hop list, the song is undeniably urban, inspired by hip hop drum machines and the "hey, hey, heys" of Kanye looming in the background. Its vulnerability doesn't come off as cheap and predictable, but rather as heartfelt, a dose of reality hip hop omits sometimes. It's part slow jam, part hip hop, but 100 percent urban, as it should be.

15. Fancy by Drake featuring T.I. and Swizz Beatz

Drake is the gentleman type that can overlook even the most troubling traits of a woman. In "Fancy," off of his debut album, while he recounts the obsession of his missus with superficial perfection, he still shows her love just as a gentleman would. The song is produced by Swizz Beatz, which is almost immediately identifiable (a good thing), and T.I.'s smooth flow over the east coast beat enhances the song's pull. The breakdown for the third verse allows for Drake to unleash his sing-songy rapping skills, something the Toronto-born rapper utilizes quite frequently in his music. No complaints here, however, because this so-called newcomer has had a remarkable 2010.

14. Your Love by Nicki Minaj

If you can sample Annie Lennox's "No More I Love You's" and get away with it, you are by default guaranteed one of the best hip hop songs of 2010. Nicki Minaj's kinda, sorta first single ("Massive Attack" had originally been released months earlier but it's lack of success has airbrushed the song out of Minaj's debut album) is an R&B/Hip Hop fusion, a hybridity that is complemented with handclaps, soft electronic overtones, and just the right amount of auto-tune. Rather than the personality-morphing spitting skills or fast-paced rapping we normally associate with Nicki Minaj, this song introduces a softer side. With this song, the first stepping stone was laid on the path of femcee domination for the Queens-raised Trini with the pretty face and a nice a... well we'll keep that to ourselves.

13. All I Do Is Win by DJ Khaled featuring T-Pain, Ludacris, Snoop Dogg & Rick Ross

The critics of hip hop often point to the arrogance of the genre as the source of their disapproval. And while that's not always the case, the songs that do tend to showboat are often worthy of it, and one song in particular is a "win"ner. The DJ Khaled produced "All I Do Is Win," featuring T-Pain on the chorus, and verses by Ludacris, Snoop Dogg, and Rick Ross, is brash, abrasive, and downright obscene with its winning attitude. But the overtly embellished production that has become Khaled's trademark, with T-Pain's "hands up" and "win, win, win" chanting works perfectly. Add to that, Luda throws in his fast-tempo lyricism, Rick Ross spits with command, and Snoop's adds his mellow flow to complete this great self-fulfilling prophetic track.

12. B.M.F. (Blowin' Money Fast) by Rick Ross featuring Styles P

Upon the first synthy beats of the southern-styled production and Rick Ross's introductory groans, "B.M.F." sets itself up for great things. Firstly, the initials of the song are identical to the initials of the Black Mafia Family, a Detroit-based drug trafficking mafia headed by the song's oft-mentioned Big Meech, and its simplicity but undeniable grime authenticates this parallel. It's a gangsta/southern rap admixture that tries extremely hard to airbrush Ross's stint as a C.O. at a Florida correctional facility, and does its job successfully. It is probably the most explicitly egotistical song of this year's hip hop catalog, as Ross not only compares himself to some of recent history's most notorious black gangsters, but rhymes with complete disregard to the law or gangsta decorum. Styles P puts in some lines as well, but he is overshadowed and outpaced by Rick Ross on this one, as he flies past his enemies in his "Rolls Royce, triple black."

11. Beamer, Benz, or Bentley by Lloyd Banks featuring Juelz Santana

It's only natural that Rick Ross's "B.M.F." and Lloyd Banks's "Beamer, Benz or Bentley" would hover near one another on this list, since both share that I'm-the-illest-look-at-me boastfulness. Like its predecessor, the song relies more on lyrical flow and content than production as the Prime-produced track is minimalist, but effective. Lloyd Banks swagger on the track is untested, and even including all of the remixes of the song, he has the strongest command. The six syllable chorus has arguably been the most hijacked chorus in hip hop this year, with remixes titled "Revolver or the Semi," "New York, Jersey, Philly," "Nissan, Honda, Chevy," etc. But these remixes are a testament to how catchy and current the song is. Add a stack of lines from Juelz Santana, and it's an anthem any tri-state BMW, Mercedes-Benz, or Bentley dealership can rally behind.

10. Runaway by Kanye West

If you're gonna dedicate a song to anyone, it only seems appropriate to dedicate it to those like you. That's exactly what Kanye West did in a half self-congratulatory, half self-deprecatory way when his performance of Runaway stole the show at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards. A song that can dedicate with such bullish confidence a toast to the douchebags, assholes, scumbags, and jerkoffs in the chorus, yet retreat to the humble self-reflections of a subdued Kanye in the verses is pure genius. These lyrics, spit over a simple 808-beat, and we have us one of the many masterpieces on Yeezy's near-flawless 2010 repertoire, My Beautiful Dark, Twisted Fantasy.

9. Nothin' On You by B.o.B featuring Bruno Mars

Sometimes it takes a perfect match between two unknown talents to propel them to mainstream success and that's exactly what happened to B.o.B and Bruno Mars in 2010. Soft, wooing vocals from Mars and fresh, unfettered rhymes by B.o.B coalesce on this international ode to monogamy that has generated praise from critics and fans alike. It's perhaps the 2010 version of a Ne-Yo/50 cent collaboration but without the overt showboating of 50 or the vocal predictability of Ne-Yo. A refreshingly simple arrangement that doesn't sound forced or rehearsed, this gem will be a prom-staple for years to come, something for which hip hop isn't always known.

8. Gunshowers by Method Man, Ghostface Killah, and Raekwon

How some of the leading men of the Wu, and east coast hardcore rap, can still produce music that sounds original is an astounding feat. Thus, with Method, Ghostface and Raekwon at the reins of the 2010-released LP, Wu-Massacre, the trio were able to concoct a fresh-sounding album for the fans of Shaolin. Method Man, Sun God, Ghostface Killah and Inspecta Deck reign on "Gunshowers," a track that may not fit so cohesively into the tracklist of 36 Chambers or Wu-Tang Forever, but easily holds its own in today's hip hop landscape. It neatly incorporates a sample of "La-La Means I Love You" by The Escorts into a cyclic beat which ends with the appropriate cock and trigger-pull of a TEC-9 and a homerun by the trio of Richmond County.

7. My Chick Bad by Ludacris featuring Nicki Minaj

How bad is your chick, cause as bad as she may be, Luda's chick is way badder than yours! At least, that's what he wants you to believe in a track that gangstas all over the world can dedicate to their chicks without the emasculation associated with this kind of gesture. Laced with a crunk beat, Luda's lyrical mannerisms and a frighteningly badass verse by the new first lady of hip hop, this track is exactly what hip hop is supposed to be. It doesn't rely on production embellishments or sing-songy tangents, but rather emerges strongly on lyricism only, pure and simple. After hearing this track, it makes you wonder, what has Luda's chick done to be so bad and, should the authorities be informed?

6. Airplanes by B.o.B featuring Hayley Williams

Quite easily, B.o.B could have been a one-hit wonder. But the quick follow-up release to "Nothin' On You" with one of the year's best tracks features a collaboration between Paramore siren Hayley Williams and the ATL newbie, one that has brought the newcomer to rookie of the year status in alternative hip hop. The piano laced urban ballad is highlighted by thumping drum rolls and subdued vocals and, in B.o.B fashion, replaces the grandiose luxury of hip hop with ascetic humility. Wishing on airplanes as if they were shooting stars is diametrically unlike Rick Ross's fast money-blowing ways or Lloyd Banks's materialistic braggadocio, but it works magnificently. Plus, this track alone has sent murmurs about a potential Williams solo career, propelled producer Alex Da Kid to international prestige, and made B.o.B a household name in the game of hip hop; I guess wishing on Airplanes may just work after all.

5. BedRock by Young Money featuring Lloyd

When BedRock hit the airwaves in late 2009, Young Money stock was extremely high, while Drake was emerging as the President pro tempore until Weezy served his time. Thus, it only seemed natural that the two would collaborate on a track that, even with its poorly veiled metaphors and sexual innuendos, was made to dominate. R&B singer Lloyd sings the chorus, while Nicki Minaj, Gudda Gudda, Tyga, and Jae Millz take their respective turns spitting about sex, sex, oh and let's not forget sex. But even with its thematic unoriginality, the verses are spectacular, with Drake sampling Aaliyah, Nicki putting her, um, let's just say kitty cat "on your sideburns", and Wayne hoping for a girl with that "good good" and "Michael Jackson bad." The flow of the rhymes, the style of the beat, and the command of each verse is worthy enough for a Merriam-Webster addendum to the definition of bedrock and a top 5 spot on our countdown.

4. Over by Drake

Why Drake appears so often on this list and has the admiration and success he's generated is, in large part, related to his flow and originality. "Over", the lead single from the Toronto emcee's debut album, is antithetical to what many may have feared might come from the growing mainstream presence of Drake. But rather than a track designed with mainstream radio stations in mind, he chose an orchestra-driven jazzy beat to rhyme over, a song that is as skeptical about fame as it is fearful of compromising oneself. It does not cater to pop, nor does Drake go off on his typical R&B singing tangents. Rather he explores the depths of celebrity and obsequious adulation with his genius lyricism, something that most take as a given condition in the rap game. For each bottle of Champagne Krug popped, Drake is aware of the transience of hip hop royalty, staking his claim to his own style and remaining steadfastly unapologetic about it. A track this good is ear food for the masses, but even if only a select few appreciate it, Drake has made it known his career is far from over.

3. Power by Kanye West

A song with an introduction as commanding as Kanye West's "Power" is an automatic top 10 on any year-end list. Couple that with the archetypal lyrics of a scorned hip hop icon, Kanye has the hubris that can elicit disgust from a crowd one minute and win them over by his finesse and gifted way with words the next. His confidence may come across as arrogance, but "Power" is much more than that. It is his return to form, a self-referential dissection of power in hip hop, power in society, and power control. He's aware of the hubbub he created at the 2009 VMAs and how deleterious his egoism might be to himself and those around him, but questions exactly who's stopping him. He's a "21st century schizoid man," a tour de force that is as much about his own constructs of power as it is those who feed this model. Add to that seamless production and the haunting breakdown at the end, and we have ourselves a strong Grammy contender and an ideal return of Chi-town's lost angel.

2. Love the Way You Lie by Eminem featuring Rihanna

Eminem had a number one lead single in 2009 and a number one lead single in 2010. What makes 2010 a much more prosperous year for Eminem is that he has ditched the gimmicks of the past to unleash some of the most introspective and descriptive lyrics of his career, none as grotesquely beautiful as those of "Love the Way You Lie." Rihanna's lamented singing introduces the solemnity of the song. Her suppressed vocals, accompanied by an impassioned Eminem, create the image of a couple as fearful as they are comfortable with the dysfunction of their relationship. Em's tone complements the lyrics with perfection, growing more aggressive with the situation and assuming a more subdued mood during the lighter moments. The song alone, with guitar-strumming and piano production by up and coming hip hop producer Alex Da Kid, is truly emotional. It's an incredible effort indeed. But the authenticity of the lyrics are enhanced by the experiences of two of music's biggest stars, both of which have had personal and very public encounters with destructive relationships. This hip hop ballad is uncompromising, unrestrained, and a frightening portrayal of bloody love and one of the greatest hip hop collaborations in recent years.

1. Monster by Kanye West, Rick Ross, Jay-Z, Nicki Minaj and Bon Ivor

Only one song managed to beat out the magnum opus of Eminem and Rihanna's "Love the Way You Lie," and the winning track is a monster. When word came out that Kanye West had collaborated with Jay-Z, Rick Ross, Nicki Minaj and Bon Ivor, I was excited to hear how such a collaboration would take shape. I imagined Jay-Z emerging as the frontrunner in the song, Kanye would come next, Ricky Ross, then Nicki Minaj, with no real idea how Bon Ivor would fit into the equation. What actually transpired was the very pivotal moment in which Nicki Minaj evolved from mixtape royalty to the incoming Queen of Hip Hop. Her lyricism was magical, her arrangement stellar, and her flow unmatched. Her 1 minute 20 second lyrical slaying was a shine-stealing masterpiece, morphing into a variety of personalities and, in the process, putting to shame some of the biggest names in hip hop. You'd think perhaps that Yeezy, Jay and Ricky contributed practically nothing to the song, but they brought serious damage as well. Kanye's verse explains in a minute or so what his beautiful, dark, twisted fantasy looks like (he uses the word sarcophagus, which that alone is award-worthy), while Jay-Z takes thinly veiled shots at Beanie. Rick Ross brings a barely-there verse, but West's production and a resounding chorus adds to the song in extraordinary ways that makes it a complete package of greatness. Put simply, 2010 was a monster, and this track embodies every sense of the word.