While most hip-hop heads will be celebrating the twenty-year anniversaries of some of the greatest albums of the genre this year (and decade), there are also some gems turning ten in 2015. These aren’t necessarily the best albums that came out ten years ago, but are all notable for different reasons. Let’s go back and remember what was happening in hip-hop during 2005!
10. Common – Be
Common is now a hip-hop legend and movie star (most recently a Golden Globe winner), and when you look over his career to date, Be stands out as one of his best albums. While Common released some classics before this, Be was his debut on Kanye West’s G.O.O.D. Music label, and was also mostly produced by Kanye himself. It is arguably the best album the label has released to date, and is a staple in both Common and Kanye West’s careers. Be typically remains as the benchmark fans look to compare all of Common’s new releases with.
9. DangerDoom – The Mouse And The Mask
MF DOOM’s collaboration with Danger Mouse is one of his most commercially successful albums to date. Both of these artists were arguably in their prime when they joined forces. DOOM was coming off three great albums in 2004 with Madvillainy, MM..FOOD, and VV2: Venomous Villain, while Danger Mouse had previously released The Grey Album, where he made beats sampling The Beatles’ White Album to match Jay-Z’s raps from The Black Album. The Mouse And The Mask was a step forward for both artists’ careers, and remains a favourite among DOOM fans. This album also saw the beginnings of the highly anticipated DOOM/Ghostface Killah collaboration, which may actually come out in 2015.
8. DJ Muggs & GZA – Grandmasters
Another unique, one-album duo, Cypress Hill’s DJ Muggs and Wu-Tang’s GZA made a great album that tends to go underrated when looking at GZA’s solo discography. While not as iconic is 1995’s Liquid Swords, Grandmasters has that raw, underground feel to it, with straight rapping over drum loops and not many repetitive hooks. DJ Muggs’ simplistic production allows GZA to show off some supreme lyricism, with chess used as a prominent theme throughout the album. GZA has consistently been one of the best lyricists in hip-hop, but DJ Muggs’ unique production on this album makes Grandmasters stand out in GZA’s discography.
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