Top 100 Best REAL HIP-HOP & RAP Songs Of 2012

It took until March of 2013 for me to finally hear all of the albums and projects on my list from 2012, and to then narrow that down into my top 100 songs for the year. It was a great year for Hip-Hop!

I put this list together to share great Hip-Hop and a lot of slept-on gems with the masses and to emphasize the fact that REAL Hip-Hop is very much alive. If most of these artists and songs are unknown to you, I highly recommend you give it a listen. You won't find many commercial Hip-Hop artists or songs that were on the radio on this list.

I've attempted to highlight a number of different projects and artists, but more or less, it's a collection of my favorite Hip-Hop and Rap songs of 2011. It is, of course, very subjective. There was a tremendous amount of great music, and it was very difficult to narrow this down to 100 songs and near-impossible to order them. I had to leave off songs from a lot of very good projects and albums. I could have easily turned this into a Top 200 list! But I'm happy with it, and I hope you enjoy it.

Songs are judged based on lyricism, production, concepts, overall sound and vibe, and a combination of all of those. The only rule I have when making the list: No more than 3 tracks from a single project. Other than that, it's just the best of the best.

I've provided some insight into why certain songs were included throughout the list, as well as a more in-depth description for the Top 10 records of the year.

#100. Ab-Soul - Illuminate feat. Kendrick Lamar
#99. Actual Proof - I Got You feat. Bluu Suede
#98. Big Boi - Lines feat. A$AP Rocky & Phantogram
#97. Sadat X - This Is Our Thing feat. Pharoahe Monch & Phil G.
#96. Freddie Gibbs - Stay Down
#95. Big Shug - Hardbody feat. Fat Joe & M.O.P. (Prod. DJ Premier)
#94. Sean Born - Grandeur (Prod. Kev Brown)
#93. Danny Brown - Grown Up
#92. Rukus - Watching The Moon (Stay)
#91. Fabolous - Beauty feat. Wale
#90. Oddisee - Let It Go
#89. MadGibbs (Freddie Gibbs & Madlib) - Shame feat. BJ The Chicago Kid
#88. Hopsin - Ill Mind of Hopsin 5
#87. Lupe Fiasco - Bitch Bad
#86. Macklemore and Ryan Lewis - Same Love feat. Mary Lambert
#85. Homeboy Sandman - Illuminati (Prod. J57)
#84. Public Enemy - Everything feat. Gerald Albright & Sheila Brody
#83. Brother Ali - All You Need
#82. Kendrick Lamar - The Recipe feat. Dr Dre
#81. Wale - Limitless feat. Scarface (Prod. Jake One)
#80. Oh No - Dues N Donts feat. Jose James & Phife Dawg
#79. Roc Marciano - Tek To A Mack
#78. Vinnie Paz - Cheesesteaks
#77. Kev Brown - Rumblin'
#76. Action Bronson - Bird on a Wire feat. RiFF RaFF
#75. Rapper Big Pooh - Friends
#74. ANTHM - Polaris feat. Blu
#73. Co$$ - Insanely Free
#72. KA - No Downtime
#71. 9th Wonder & Buckshot - The Feeling
#70. Blu and Exile - O Heaven
#69. Rapsody - Believe Me (Prod. 9th Wonder)
#68. JJ DOOM (Jneiro Jarel & M.F. DOOM) - Winter Blues
#67. Swerve & SYG - True Story (Prod. Ops)
#66. Aesop Rock - Zero Dark Thirty
#65. Pharoahe Monch - Damage
#64. Guilty Simpson & Apollo Brown - Neverending Story
#63. AirlineJay - What You Livin' For feat. ANTHM
#62. Raekwon - 86
#61. Earl - Chum
#60. Nas - Bye Baby
#59. Murs & 9th Wonder - Whatuptho
#58. Ab-Soul - The Book of Soul
#57. DJ Premier & Bumpy Knuckles - Turn Up The Mic (DJ Premier Remix) feat. Nas
#56. Masta Ace - Son of Yvonne (Prod. MF DOOM)
#55. dustin-prestige - I Am Legend
#54. O.C. & Apollo Brown - Anotha One
#53. Talib Kweli - Push Thru feat. Curren$y & Kendrick Lamar
#52. Lushlife - Anthem
#51. Lupe Fiasco - Form Follows Function
#50. Beneficence - Straight Out The Gate feat. Rashad & Confidence
#49. D-Prosper - Atom Anthem feat. Jay Electronica
#48. Wu-Block - Crack Spot Stories feat. Ghostface Killah, Sheek Louch, Raekwon & Jadakiss
#47. 1982 (Termanology and Statik Selektah) - Thug Poets feat. Roc Marciano & Havoc
#46. Killer Mike - Reagan
#45. Substantial - Grateful feat. Kenn Starr & Kokayi (Prod. M-Phazes)
#44. Swerve - Wasting Away feat. Ridla (Prod. DGS)
#43. Sean Born - Lights On
#42. Big K.R.I.T. - Live From The Underground
#41. Kanye West & Pusha T - New God Flow feat. Ghostface Killah
#40. Wordsworth - Vanish feat. Punchline & Masta Ace (Prod. Apollo Brown)
#39. Journalist 103 - Dreamer
#38. Freddie Gibbs - Boxframe Cadillac ('83 DeVille Mix) feat. Z-Ro
#37. Roc Marciano - Pistolier
#36. Fizzyology (Lil Fame & Termanology) - Play Dirty feat. Busta Rhymes & Styles P (Prod. DJ
#35. Purpose & Confidence - Unstoppable
#34. Macklemore and Ryan Lewis - Neon Cathedral feat. Allen Stone
#33. Blu - Kiss The Sky feat. Mela Machinko
#32. Sean Price - Bar-Barian (Prod. The Alchemist)
#31. Joey Bada$$ - Waves (Prod By Freddie Joachim)
#30. Kendrick Lamar - Bitch, Don't Kill My Vibe
#29. Lupe Fiasco - Around My Way (Freedom Ain't Free)
#28. T.I. - Sorry feat. Andre 3000
#27. A$AP Rocky - 1 Train feat. Kendrick Lamar, Joey Bada$$, Yelawolf, Danny Brown, Action Bronson & Big K.R.I.T.
#26. Roc Marciano - The Man
#25. Guilty Simpson & Apollo Brown - Truth Be Told
#24. Nas - You Wouldn't Understand ft. Victoria Monet
#23. Brother Ali - Years
#22. O.C. & Apollo Brown - We The People
#21. Sene - Backboards feat. Blu
#20. Method Man, Freddie Gibbs & Street Life - Built For This (Audible Doctor Remix)
#19. Skyzoo - How to Make It Through Hysteria
#18. Big K.R.I.T. - Red Eye
#17. Oddisee - Man I Use To Be
#16. Swerve & SYG - Love, Loss, Interlude (Prod. D-Rock)
#15. L'Orange - Alone feat. Blu
#14. Kendrick Lamar - Sing About Me, Im Dying Of Thirst
#13. Joey Bada$$ - Hardknock feat. CJ Fly (Prod By Lewis Parker)
#12. Purpose & Confidence - Harsh Realities
#11. O.C. & Apollo Brown - Prove Me Wrong

THE TOP 10:

#10. Dag Savage (Johaz & Exile) - Cali Dreamin ft. Fashawn & Co$$
--Not only one of the best, but one of the most slept-on tracks of the year. Exile turns in one of his finest productions (this is the first of three times you'll see him here in the top 10) and three extremely talented and underrated MC's, Johaz, Fashawn and Co$$, go IN. All of their verses are standouts, not just in lyricism, but in sound and flow; to the point where it's very difficult to pick a best verse. But if I had to choose, I'd give the award to Co$$. Definitely a classic record.

#9. Show & A.G. - Walk With Me
--"A wise man told me, 'You always got two people walking with you; one is who you was, and the other's who you wanna be." I was hooked from the intro. Damn. That shit is DEEP, and quite thought-provoking. A beautiful and minimalist production from Showbiz perfectly frames A.G.'s introspection. 20+ years in the game and they are still making incredible music that touches the soul and expands the mind. A.G.'s flow is as sick and smooth as it's ever been. One of kind.

#8. Schoolboy Q - Blessed feat. Kendrick Lamar
--It is rare for Kendrick Lamar to be outshined on any song - he normally kills it on his features, and this song was no exception in that regard. But Schoolboy Q's verses were the standouts on this record. A universal message, one that we often forget. And a song that stayed with me long after the record had stopped, and it kept playing in my head. "Stay blessed, my nigga, blessed, my nigga / really think about it could be worse, my nigga / don't stress, my nigga / yes, my nigga / we all blessed, my nigga, uh ..."

#7. Blu and Exile - A Man
--Perhaps the deepest and most introspective Hip-Hop song of 2012. Who do you believe in? Blu examines beliefs; where they come from, how we justify them and what they mean to us, in a fashion that few in Hip-Hop have been able to accomplish. A topic many MC's have tackled, but very few with the success Blu & Exile have with "A Man". Making the production sparse for the 2nd rendition was a brilliant decision that really helped accentuate the beauty of Blu's poetry and message. " Who do you believe in? I know it ain't me / I hope it ain't a priest or who you see on TV / I hope it ain't your poppa, partner, he only raised you / And I know it ain't your mom, even though that's who you came through ..."

#6. eLZhi - Blue Widow
--eLZhi's only release in 2012 ... and WOW. He's spittin' flame from the opening line, "I blow a blunt of blue widow, listening to instrumentals ..." and never stops. No need for a chorus, just a two minutes riding one of my favorite beats of the year, by one of the best lyricists in the game. "The Weatherman" is at the top of the list for my most anticipated LP's of 2013 (along with the mythological Act II).

#5. Joey Bada$$ - Righteous Minds (Prod By Bruce LeeKix)
--Joey's talent and flow are simply undeniable. The vibe is unmistakably golden era, and the lyricism and wordplay are spectacular and deceptively deep. I'm just going to cover two lines in the first verse, for the sake of space: "And I, I never knew the world could be this cold /Only time a nigga die, he was playing a role" -- The double meaning: The only time he saw people die was in movies, “playing a role.” He never thought he’d see it in real life. Also, a play on words here - “Only time a nigga DIE (one of two dice), he was playing a ROLL." And one more line: "They only thing they offer dreamers is a wake and a coffin." - Simple on the surface; The big dreamers of this world end up murdered. But also note the juxtaposition between “dreamers” and “a wake.” Very dope.

#4. Blu and Exile - More Out Of Life feat. Jasmine Mitchell
--While their follow-up to "Below The Heavens" couldn't quite match it as a whole, several records may have even surpassed it; including this gem. Blu's wordplay is phenomenal -- " But don't praise fathers cause half of you grew without one / Malcolms, Martins, Pacs, Chris Wallaces / Muhammads, Khalil Gibrans, Akhenatens / Gods and goddesses, following false promises / Laws and politics, full-ride scholarships / Still don't know what time it is ..." -- and Exile provides the perfect backdrop for Blu's poeticism. We all want a little More Out Of Life ... Truth. That's real.

#3. Nas - Stay (Prod. No I.D.)
--I seriously contemplated making this the #1 song of the year. I don't know how many hundreds of plays this got when I first heard it. Many of you may recognize the same sample was used by No I.D. on a joint he did for CyHi in 2011. And man, what a sample! I remember saying to my girl, "I wish I could hear Nas on this beat ..." Some dreams do come true. The 2nd verse was the best verse on the album. "I want you dead under six feet of soil / At the same time, want you here to witness me while you in misery / We hate each other but it's love / What a thug mystery ..."

#2. Jay Electronica - Dear Moleskine (Prod. Just Blaze)
--The snippet was released back in 2009. And if you're like me, you've been anxiously awaiting the full version in all its glory. And it doesn't disappoint. I absolutely love the extended intro and that the extended outro. Another masterpiece from Just Blaze and Jay Electronica. His bars are on another level - "My mama said, 'Son, why such a lonely face?' / Because the pressure's on me / Plus I feel like Bill Murray trapped in Punxsutawney / Dr. Phil told me that I can sell crack or hit the army..."

#1. DJ Khaled - Hip Hop feat. Scarface, Nas & DJ Premier
--Who would have thought DJ Khaled would put together the best real Hip-Hop joint of the year? Nas and Scarface both deliver two of the best verses of the year. Check out the video of DJ Khaled talking about how this came together; very cool. The emotion in 'Face's verse is so strong its palpable. The production is raw and grimy. And DJ Premier adds in the cuts. What more could you want? Hip-Hop perfection. "I fucked Hip-Hop."