Another year, another historic low for the quality of mainstream rap music. It sounds like hyperbole to say that all major label rap sucked in 2025, but it's not far from the truth. Last year 5 of 45 entries on this list were major label releases. This year: 2 of 50. The system is broken, and the rap music being pushed on DSPs (shoutout to the worst playlist on the planet 10+ years and running, RapCaviar), trending on social media and topping sales charts has never been worse.

Outside of the major label world, quality rap music is as healthy as its ever been. There are tons of unique, creative, inspired projects you can find by taking the time to dig a little deeper. I went back through about 160 album releases from 2025 for this list, and found myself enjoying about 100 of them. This 'Best Of' list could have been 70 strong recommends, easily, and even at 50 there were some difficult cuts.

First let's highlight some of the worst before we get to the best. Let me first caveat by saying I don't hate any of these artists, and for each of them I've absolutely loved records of theirs in the past. I'm not that much of a masochist that I spend my time listening to artists that are and always have been absolute shit.

(DIS)HONORABLE MENTION

The worst rap album I listened to this year was Young Thug's UY SCUTI. It's kind of impressive how bad this is, front to back. Young Thug, one of the best artists in any genre of the 2010s, should never be this bad. It's boring and formulaic; has bad rapping, generic beats and shitty features. I'm not sure how it could be any worse, it  sounds just as close to AI-slop as the cover art looks.

Unlike the Thugger abomination, Tyler, The Creator's Don't Tap The Glass was "well received" by fans and critics alike. This record is forced, derivative shlock. The rapping is corny, the production sounds awful. Please get off this man's dick.

Playboi Carti's Music sounds like he took all of the wrong lessons from Future's "King's Dead" verse...and then proceeded to make a neverending fake Future album but only if Future didn't know how to rap interestingly or select beats. The first good song comes in at track 22. That's usually a bad sign.

Ghostface Killah's Supreme Clientele 2 and Danny Brown's Stardust are more unfortunate missteps than garbage piles. SC2 is the product of a late-career rapper who's lost a step and clearly has not surrounded himself with the right people - producers, A&R's, managers or otherwise. Stardust is Danny Brown trying to tap back into his early 2010s run over then-trendy dance music production. But this time he wants you to know that he really really likes...hyperpop! The tracks he sourced for the record would all be pretty good if he wasn't forcing raps onto them. It's an oil and water combination. If you want some dance music-rap fusion that works try GoldLink's 2025 release, ENOCH.

Finally, this isn't one of the worst records of the year, but the most disappointing 2025 release for me was Key Glock's Glockaveli. This is his first release on a major label and for some reason he decided to completely abandon all of the beatmakers that have helped make his music so successful, namely BandPlay. Super unfortunate.

‍

HONORABLE MENTION

Soli Deo Gloria - Homeboy Sandman & Sonnyjim

DOOM Was Right - Action Figure 973

Happy Halloween 7 - CEO Trayle

Mars Is Electric - Maxo

ONYX'! - Pink Siifu

SCRAM! - Domo Genesis & Graymatter

Awaken The Sleeping Giant - Queen Herawin

Pablo Clemente - World Be Free & Machacha

Bulletproof Chicken - CRIMEAPPLE & V Don

COLDEST COMBO EVER - al.divino, Estee Nack & Grubby Pawz

‍

50. DIRTWAVE, VOL. 3

Pro Dillinger & Futurewave

WAVGODMUSIC

Pro Dillinger raps like if the Pokemon Grimer was born and raised in the Bronx (yes I know he's from Rockland County). Fits perfectly over some of the best beats our Canadian neighbors to the north have to offer.

49. The Round Table

Knowledge the Pirate & Roc Marciano

TREASURE CHEST / PIMPIRE

Knowledge The Pirate came onto the scene, and first crossed my radar, with a standout verse on the Roc Marciano cut "Not Told" (along with Ka, RIP) off of 2012's Reloaded. This is the pair's first full length collab, fully produced by Roc Marci, simply dope front to back.

48. Dump Gawd: Hyperbolic Time Chamber Rap 11

Tha God Fahim & Nicholas Craven

SELF-RELEASED (BANDCAMP / YOUTUBE ONLY)

Tha God Fahim and Nicholas Craven dumped off 19 volumes of Hyperbolic Time Chamber Rap(s) in 2025, spanning volumes 4-22. The series has become Craven's playground - he's having a blast with the sample selection and it feels like he's able to explore the most off-kilter areas of his creative mind within these beats. Each volume is bite sized, usually between 15-20 mins in running time, and most have at least one absolute banger; a 'Best of 2025 Hyperbolic Time Chamber Raps' would have pretty easily cracked the top 20 of this list (note: they did release a 'Best Of Volumes 1-4' of sorts with Ultimate Dump Gawd which brought some earlier cuts, mostly from 2024, to DSPs).

I went with 11 as the choice here, its the volume I revisited the most and works best as a full listening experience. Honorable mention to 6 and 4.

47. Less Labour More Fruit

Sonnyjim & Morlockko Plus

SELF-RELEASED

Sonnyjim remained prolific in 2025, with three albums in serious contention for this list: Golden Parachute, a full-length collab with fellow UK beatmaker Morriarchi; Soli Deo Gloria, on which he handled production duties for Homeboy Sandman; and Less Labour More Fruit with German rapper/producer Morlockk Dilemma aka Morlockko Plus. Less Labour is my favo(u)rite of the bunch, with Morlockk providing a perfect mix of all-over-the-place backdrops for Sonnyjim's monotone musings. Throw in a German-language feature (sometimes from Morlockk himself) every few tracks, and you've got yourself a record!

46. Step Brothers 4 Life / Four and a Half

Starlito & Don Trip

MRVL / GRIND HARD

'Lito and Trip have been doing this Step Brothers thing since 2011. We're lucky they keep coming back to it, I like each rapper's solo output but the 4 volumes have stood up as the collective highlight of their discographies. 4 Life covers all of the usual Step Brother bases: introspection, humor, life lessons, clever one-liners and vicious back and forth rhyming. "Royal Rumble" is the centerpiece, a 6 and a half minute back-and-forth over Tennessee-rap-ified recreations of classic WWE/WWF theme songs with a banger video to match.

I don't like to include deluxe editions on this list - the 2020s music streaming ponzi scheme - but Four & A Half is worth mentioning for two excellent bonus tracks: "Unrated Version" with 8Ball & MJG; and "Hoop Dreams".

45. Matthew Gets Sick Off Cheap Wine and Prefers Gruaud-Larose 1945

FOHDH Matthew & Wino Willy

BACKWOODZ STUDIOZ

FOHDH Matthew was not on my radar to begin 2025. He is now. The Backwoodz co-sign and Wino Willy (Cavalier, Open Mike Eagle/Previous Industries) team-up was enough to get me in the door, and the rapping kept me around. Matthew's voice sticks with you, think Tyler, The Creator if he had taken the Earl career path instead of absorbing all of the world's theater-kid energy. His lyrics provide an unfiltered peak into the rapper's brain through little scattered vignettes. Most importantly, the FOHDH stands for Fuck Outta Here, DickHead.

44. Views of a Lifetime

Skyzoo

HiPNOTT / FIRST GENERATION RICH

Consistency is not the sexiest trait, but if you want to stay relevant in this hip hop game it may be the most important one. Skyzoo has been releasing consistently good-to-great records on almost a yearly basis since the late aughts. Views of a Lifetime keeps that streak alive: high-level raps with throwback but never stale production. No guest features necessary.

43. Maître D'Hôtel

Divine Crime

BARSOVERBS / DIVINE CRIME ENTERTAINMENT

One of my favorite discoveries of the year. I was not familiar with Divine Crime (curator, EP) and Clypto (producer) before this record crossed my radar. The artist lineup reads like a Lyricist's Lounge or Soundbombing compilation put together for the 2020s. The lyricist focused compilation album is a lost art, and it's great to see there are still forces at work in the indie rap world passionate about putting something things like this together.

42. Dali Ain't Dead

Zelooperz & Dilip

SELF-RELEASED

Zelooperz is a weird man on the mic. When he clicks over the right production, it's captivating. Dilip blesses him on Dali Ain't Dead with a range of sounds, styles, and BPMs that keep things unpredictable and, at the very least, never boring.

41. I Heard It's A Mess There Too

Aesop Rock

RHYMESAYERS

Pared-down, back-to-basics, just beats and rhymes Aesop Rock. Love it.

40. GOLDFISH

Hit-Boy & The Alchemist

SURF CLUB / ALC / EMPIRE

Alchemist already has his own version of Jaylib with Gangrene (w/ Madlib's younger brother, Oh No). His latest back-and-forth, behind the boards and in front of the mic project with Hit-Boy works surprisingly well. Are we ready to admit that Alchemist is actually a better rapper than most MCs out there?

39. No Control, No Glory

AKAI SOLO

BREAK ALL RECORDS

AKAI Solo revels in the unconventional. I never know what to expect from him, and this album is all over the place in a good way. Every once in a while he'll drop an emotional bomb of a track, "It's Hard To Talk About" is one of those.

38. Funeral For A Dream

Bronze Nazareth & Apollo Brown

ESCAPISM RECORDINGS

Michigan indie rap at its finest. Apollo Brown came through for Wu-affiliate and fellow excellent beatmaker in his own right, Bronze Nazareth, with one of the most impressive full-length production efforts of the year. Standout artwork by KipDaFog who made a name for himself in 2025 creating album art for some of the best records of the year.

37. Grateful Dread

AJ Suede

KNOWHATIMEAN

AJ Suede sounds great on his own production (see: this year's Duke of Downtempo). He sounds just as good on his full-length producer team ups (see 2023's Reoccurring Characters with Steel Tipped Dove and Parthian Shots with Televangel). On Grateful Dread he takes a third path, enlisting an all-star lineup of underground producers to great, tripped out success.

36. Run For The Arts

Milc & spinitch

GOODTALK

Feels like a bright sunny day in Portland with a cold beer, ice-packed bong, and some light psychedelics.

35. No Validation

Che Noir & The Other Guys

HiPNOTT

It feels like in 2025 Che Noir ascended to the 'Best Current Female MC' throne. Each of her projects is worth checking out; this short-but-sweet release with The Other Guys is my pick for the best of the bunch.

34. EternalBlue

Bisk & YUNGMORPHEUS

SELF-RELEASED (BANDCAMP / CASSETTE ONLY)

Eerie, delicious slog of a record. YUNGMORPHEUS is behind the boards here, weaving in some recognizable samples and left field musical turns. UK rapper Bisk is rhyming his ass off without raising his voice much beyond a strong whisper.

33. Bad News

YL, Phiik, Lungs & Ill Sugi

BREAK ALL RECORDS (BANDCAMP / CD ONLY)

Phiik and Lungs are two of the best humans at rapping on the planet right now. YL is a welcome addition to the Another Planet mix, bringing a melodic reprieve from some of the AP lyrical density. Album as a whole is spot-on at capturing the feeling of living in NYC, anxieties and all.

32. A Futuristic Summa

Metro Boomin

REPUBLIC RECORDS / MERCURY RECORDS / BOOMINATI WORLDWIDE

One of just two major label releases on this list. This whole record is unashamed, blatant nostalgia bait for the early 2010s Atlanta club/future swag scene. It works because: (1) that music is amazing and still holds up; (2) Metro and his producer pals (Zaytoven, DJ Spinz) successfully recreate and modernize the sound without just recreating the hits; and (3) the rappers of that era that Metro "brought back" (sorry Rich Kidz, Roscoe Dash, Travis Porter, etc., I'm sure you didn't go anywhere!) sound 100x better and more energized that than everyone else Metro works with these days. With the exception of Lil Baby, everyone on this album sounds just so happy to be there!

31. A Fly In The Soup

Willie The Kid & Soop

SELF-RELEASED

Willie The Kid, another ultra-consistent vet churning out quality music. A Fly In The Soup is one of three full length collab LPs he dropped in 2025, along with Midnight (w/ Real Bad Man) and Catch Me If You Can 2 (w/ V Don). Soop is my favorite match for him.

30. Cabin In The Sky

De La Soul

MASS APPEAL

Admit it: Mass Appeal's 'Legend Has It' series was boring, uninspired nostalgia bait. The Slick Rick, Mobb Deep and Raekwon drops were all listenable but mostly mediocre. The Nas & Premier is exactly what you'd expect from each of them at this point (negative). Big L's unreleased catalog was fully tapped back in 2001. And the Ghostface was...embarrassing.

The new De La Soul record, their 9th LP and first since the passing of Plug Two aka Trugoy aka Dave, is the one saving grace of this failed corporate activation. It's a very good, not without flaws, album from arguably the best hip hop group of all time. The loss of Dave is handled with tasteful care and some legitimately touching moments, unfortunately there's no making up for the scarcity of actual Dave appearances on the record. To his credit Pos carries a significant load here, with assists from a well-picked group of guests, and he's up to the task. The production lineup comes through has well - in particular Supa Dave West who might be the album MVP - though Prince Paul's absence is still puzzling.

29. Other Blues

Defcee & Parallel Thought

SELF-RELEASED

Personal, self-deprecating and heartfelt musings about being a regular guy with a day job who happens to love creating rap music. "Graduation Picture" is one of the best storytelling tracks I've heard in some time.

28. Let God Sort Em Out

Clipse

ROC NATION

Let Got Sort Em Out has been hailed by almost every "critic", music writer, "rap expert" etc., as the runaway album of the year. The Grammys are a joke (ha ha) but it's worth mentioning that Clipse received five Grammy nominations including ones for Best Rap Album and Album of the Year (??). It's the second time they've been recognized by the recording academy for their work as a group...the first being for their feature on Justin Timberlake's "Like I Love You" back in 2002.

Does anyone else think the reception to this album is weird as hell? This is a good Clipse reunion record. There's some great rapping about cocaine and other things. There is also wildly inconsistent and borderline bad Pharrell production and songwriting. The Thornton brothers are great, they sound invigorated and they deserve their flowers. But their boy P has lost it.

If you skip around it's a fun listen. It's an album made for playlisting. It's also probably the worst Clipse album? It probably won't be Kanye shepherding their next record but if Pharrell minus Chad is the only one left in the room they might want to shop around. (And stop with the singing features, please! We just want more Mike Tyson Blow To The Face!).

27. Alphabet Highway

Boldy James & V Don

RRC

I made jokes about Boldy James' 2024 output (four LPs) on last year's list. I can't say I expected him to blow that pace out of the water in 2025. By my count Boldy released eight full length LPs in 2025, along with two EPs - including Adu 2 with Real Bad Man, a vinyl-only release built entirely on Sade samples, a strong recommend if you can find it. Boldy has made a point to dismiss anyone who claims he releases too much music but the focus on quantity has been to the detriment of overall quality. Three of his eight album releases made the list, not the best batting average for someone in the conversation for best rapper currently doing it.

Alphabet Highway, his first full-length with V Don, thankfully has no quality sacrificed. V Don's opulent street landscapes are a great fit for Boldy doing his 227 thing, and at times here it feels like he's paving new ground vs. retreading the same over and over again.

26. Did You Enjoy Your Time Here...?

PremRock

BACKWOODZ STUDIOZ

Impressive solo turn from half of one of my favorite current rhyme duos, ShrapKnel. PremRock has a great ear for beats and an impressive indie rap rolodex - Controller 7, Child Actor, Blockhead (!), Sebb Bash, Small Professor and YUNGMORPHEUS are among the beat contributors here. Another excellent Backwoodz release, could 2025 be the label's best year ever??

25. BRAP 2

Estee Nack & V Don

23IncredibleIndustries / Serious Soundz / FXCK RXP (VINYL)

In 2025 I became an Estee Nack fan. I've been familiar with him for a few years and even enjoyed an album or two of his (Nacksaw Jim Duggan, in particular), but BRAP 2 is where it clicked. V Don knocked this out of the park. Nack is hilarious, flowing and just fun to listen to throughout the whole project.

24. Showbiz!

MIKE

10k

My favorite MIKE album to date, feels like he leveled-up for this one. Good balance of self- and outside production.

23. WHAT IF

Declaime & Spectacular Diagnostics

FXCK RXP

Declaime (aka Dudley Perkins) is one of the best to ever do it over Madlib beats. His debut from 1999, Illmindmuzik, in particular, is an overlooked classic in my book. With WHAT IF he finds a new super-producer match in Spectacular Diagnostics, finding new angles to hone craft while staying his unique self.

22. (The) Forever Dream

Fly Anakin

LEX RECORDS

On "Corner Pocket", track 12 of (The) Forever Dream, Fly Anakin raps with his partner BbyMutha - who happens to be one of the best rappers in the game, regardless of gender - over some Alchemist production that sounds like it could score the discovery of a video game's magical fae forest realm (I miss Tears of the Kingdom).

Quelle Chris, of course, then comes in on the chorus to repeat "Shouts out to me...shouts out to me...I call the radio and send a shout out, to me". Music doesn't get much better.

21. Stadium Lo Champions

Raz Fresco & Futurewave

SELF-RELEASED / WAVGODMUSIC (PHYSICAL)

Dear Canada,

Please continue providing us with quality indie hip hop. We are grateful for the stylings of Raz Fresco, Futurewave, Daniel Son and all of the others (apologies to Montreal's Mike Shabb who released two very good LPs this year that narrowly missed the list along with a nice instrumental album).

Sincerely,

America (the good parts)

20. Before Common Era

Knowledge the Pirate

TREASURE CHEST / COPENHAGEN CRATES (VINYL)

KTP's collab with Roc Marci (see #49) received more hype, but this was his best release of the year. A true no-skips record. Another shoutout to Kip DaFog who crushed this artwork.

19. Criminally Attached

Boldy James & Nicholas Craven

SELF-RELEASED / NEAR MINT (PHYSICAL)

The better of the two Boldy x Craven releases in 2025. Still one of the best rapper-producer teams out there, but I wouldn't mind if they took a year off to get back to Fair Exchange No Robbery level work.

18. Jestures

Atmosphere

RHYMESAYERS

An extremely pleasant surprise! Yes this sprawling, alphabet-themed, 26-track mega-album is a legit return to form for two guys in their fifties who are still having fun doing this indie hip hop thing. "Dad Era Slug", it turns out, is very likable. Ant hasn't lost a step.

17. Saisir Le Feu

ShrapKnel & Mike Ladd

FUSED ARROW RECORDS

The second release in ShrapKnel's Fused Arrow Records series dubbed the "Triple Steel Beam Collection". Each record was fully produced by a different prominent underground rap producer, and it turns out Mike Ladd's broad spectrum of musical styles works best for the duo.

I could listen to Curly Castro rap about nerdy shit I also happen to enjoy - Game of Thrones quotes, MF DOOM album cuts, obscure 90s athletes, random comic book characters - all day.

16. MULBERRY SILK ROAD

Errol Holden

SELF-RELEASED

Errol Holden is a rapper's rapper. The full-length centerpiece of his prolific 2025 - executive produced by Roc Marciano - is a gritty, no frills record elevated by some top-notch production, most of it provided by frequent collaborator 2000 Souls.

‍It's the ideal canvas for Errol to showcase his rhyme skills, with the perfect amount of interstitial content (interludes, movie samples) which I assume is at least partially Roc Marci's touch.

15. Vivid Visions

The Expert

RUCKSACK RECORDS

The producer-as-artist rap album can be an uphill battle. How does one create a cohesive record with different voices, different lyricists, and different styles taking turns on the mic from song to song? The Expert managed to crack the code for the audio journey he calls Vivid Visions. Take a few mgs and let this one ride uninterrupted.

14. Token of Appreciation

Boldy James & Chuck Strangers

SELF-RELEASED

Mistakenly labeled as a new Boldy James x Alchemist project when it leaked in unfinished form in 2024. It turned out to be the super dope Chuck Strangers behind the boards all along, with ALC on the mix and master. Boldy's Best of 2025.

13. The Years We Have

Theravada

2000 ENT.

Theravada begins rapping three seconds into The Years We Have. For the full 28 minute runtime he doesn't let up, weaving in some of my favorite 90s and early 2000s references over possibly the best beats you'll hear all year. His work on Earl Sweatshirt's Live Laugh Love put him on the map for a lot of rap fans, and this record anointed him as one to watch in the world of well-crafted rap music.

12. Sortilège

Gabe 'Nandez & Preservation

BACKWOODZ STUDIOZ

An album of layers, both within Preservation's unique sonic landscapes and Gabe 'Nandez's personal, abstract and at times spiritual songwriting. Pres has been at or near the top of my 'Best Producers in the Game' list for years, and its nice to see Gabe 'Nandez coming through as another breakout MC of 2025.

11. Rose Gold

CRIMEAPPLE & DJ Skizz

DIFFERENT WORLDS MUSIC GROUP / DAUPE (PHYSICAL)

Excellent front to back. CRIMEAPPLE is too slick with the rhymes, consistently funny with the punchlines. Skizz A+ on the production. My favorite of the duo's three collabs, all of which are worth a listen.

10. Who Waters the Wilting Giving Tree Once the Leaves Dry Up and Fruits No Longer Bear?

$ilkMoney

LEX RECORDS

A fucking trip, as you may be able to tell from the "psilocybin journey gone wrong" artwork. Hands down some of the best rapping of 2025, and $ilk provides easily the best nonstop commentary on industry bullshit in today's world ( honorable mention to Rome Streetz & Conductor Williams' "Rule 4080").

9. Neighborhood Gods Unlimited

Open Mike Eagle

SELF-RELEASED

Mike tapped into something special on this one. Hella personal, funny and clever as always. Disappointed we were robbed of a video for "Wide Leg Michael Jordan Generation X Jeans".

8. A Lost Language Found

Lukah & Statik Selektah

SELF-RELEASED / RRC (VINYL)

The southern rap-legend features on this record say it all: Killer Mike, Bun B, 8Ball. Lukah is carrying the torch for southern lyricists. This full-length with Statik Selektah explores the racial trauma found in Memphis, the south, and America as a whole through the lens of dialect, language and all matters of talk. It's his best work yet.

7. Black Hole Superette‍

Aesop Rock

RHYMESAYERS

Aesop Rock is a national treasure. Sharp as ever lyrically, and clearly still in love with the craft. Aes is so good at creating complex, fun rhymes, while remaining the most relatable MC on the planet. No one is making such engaging storytelling rap, and I can say confidently no one else is making good songs about home aquarium snail invasions or college guest lecturers gone off the rails. Also my pick for the best self-produced record of the year.

6. Alfredo 2

Freddie Gibbs & The Alchemist

ALC / ESGN

It's better than the first one. There is a higher ranked Alchemist record on this list but it does feel like he saves his absolute best for Freddie.

Honestly if all of the guest verses were removed (or replaced...hi Curren$y!?) this would be 2-3 spots higher.

5. The Sword & The Soaring

Navy Blue

SELF-RELEASED

It's tough to tell whether we are currently witnessing Navy Blue's ascent to his creative peak as an artist or if this is just another step up in a larger journey to all-time greatness. He is the spiritual successor to Ka's special brand of intelligent, well-crafted, emotion laden rap music that will be sorely missed.

4. GOLLIWOG

billy woods

BACKWOODZ STUDIOZ

GOLLIWOG is a well-made, "elevated", horror movie. You get more atmosphere, story, and psychological terror than cheap jumpscares (yes I know track 1 is in fact called "Jumpscare").

It's messier and more bloated than some of woods' recent albums, but that's part of the fun. woods' insistence on trying new things out results in some beautiful song stretches you won't find anywhere else.

The companion album GOWILLOG, an August Fanon reimagining with a few new tracks and even a reworking of a Aethiopes track, is a dope piece of art in its own right and is worth seeking out.

3. Live Laugh Love

Earl Sweatshirt

Warner Records / Tan Cressida

This is technically the second major label release on this list, though it's clear Earl is able to do whatever he wants under his Tan Cressida imprint, deliver it to Warner (for a nice chunk of change) and split the profits.

It's short and sweet at 24 minutes, 11-tracks of Earl making elite rapping - smooth imagery, casual complex layered rhymes - seem effortless. It seems he might have found his perfect production match in Theravada.

2. Mercy

Armand Hammer & The Alchemist

BACKWOODZ STUDIOZ

Haram is basically a perfect record, not an easy thing to follow-up. The trio of woods, ELUCID and ALC keep what worked - the best rap duo currently doing it over the best producer in the game's A+ batch - yet manage to traverse new ground. Sometimes lighter, sometimes funnier, sometimes darker, and sometimes deathly serious.

1. Unlearning, Vol. 2‍

Evidence

RHYMESAYERS

An ode to the joy of creation, the love of the process, the drive to never stop learning. Evidence is in a special zone as an artist right now, equally so behind the boards as he is on the mic. This is his magnum opus, sprinkled with the perfect dash of guest rappers and producers, never overshadowing the man at the center.

As Ev says on "Stay Alive": "The best way to stay alive is don't die / The best way to make a classic record is don't try..."