The second that beat drops and Reggie spits the opening line, I’m already grinning like an idiot. And when he’s roasting the trash music library in the "borrowed" car? Man, I’m gone - completely tuned out of the real world. Oh, and that scene with the girl on the bike? Straight-up “best of the best!”...

This album not only solidifies Rakim's status as a legend but also reflects the overall state of American rap during that period. A lot was happening then. It was the golden era (in my opinion and that of millions of others) in the fifty-year history of hip-hop culture. Since the early 90s, many legendary albums were released, recognized as milestones in the genre...

Over these 50 years, few have influenced hip-hop like Nas, and half a century is certainly an impressive span. Born on September 14, 1973, in New York City as Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones, he emerged as a genius. His debut album, "Illmatic" from 1994, remains for me and many others the best rap album in the history of the genre. I dare say I'm lucky...

So I dove in and got lost. This is so atmospheric. One of my favorite albums from the mid-'90s. I'm loving what Mr. Cheeks, the author of the majority of the rhymes, is doing. He could be considered the frontman of the group. I read some reviews of this album. In many cases, Mr. Cheeks was praised, but with a note that he's not a top-tier rapper, as if the reviewers...

Those were the times of Rodney King and burning LA (the prophecies from "Black Korea" came true). The work of Ice Cube, accused of racism and inciting violence, was full of aggression, outrage, and criticism towards a system that maintained the status quo of inequality. It was representative of the anger and frustration of the Black community towards...