written by @itsthecaptain
Being “The Best” is something that you should strive to do no matter what your profession is. Whether you are a rapper, actor, athlete or you are a delivery person, you should be trying to be the absolute best at what you do. So this list is not to say these people shouldn’t believe in themselves. It’s more of a way to see if the bark is matching the bite. So let’s take a look at some of the most famous Self Proclaimed Titles in the Rap Game and how many may actually hold very true.
T.I – “The King of The South”: It’s no secret that Tip will let you know that he undoubtedly feels he is the “King of The South”. T.I has been saying this before the plaques and event titled one of his albums “King” which went Gold in one week! He got a little beef from Lil Flip about the phrase. He felt that Scarface is the King of The South and that he [Flip] himself was better than T.I. We all seen how that went. With the emergence of Young Jeezy, Rick Ross and Wayne T.I still has one of the strongest followings in hip-hop! That’s after going to jail 2 time withing 3 years! Is T.I truly King??? He says he is because “He has put in enough work in the industry and in the streets that most people talk about but don’t truly do” and if nobody else is going to challenge the title..guess we got to rock with it.
LL Cool J – “The G.O.A.T” – LL is the reason why Def Jam is not a struggling label. I also THINK he is the only rapper to have Plaques [Gold or Platinum] in every decades he’s been active. 20 Million plus albums, been a household name since 1984 and wrote the original “Song for the Ladies” with “I Need Love” which is what some rappers consider a MUST for all their albums. All that and a beef with Canibus prompted LL to say he is The Greatest Of All Time {The G.O.A.T]. Now..his resume does give him reason to say this and with people like Eminem and Nelly profession their love and inspiration from the Queens Emcee it’s hard to deny him. Depending on how old you are LL has probably had a hit for every generation of your family. 30 plus solid years of being in the hip-hop game and relevant..nobody’s done it at HIS level yet….Would the LL VS Jay-Z battle sway your opinion???
Lil Flip – “Freestyle King” – Houston’s Lil Flip got his start with the Screwed Up Click founded by the Late DJ Scew. As Flip got steam with his mixtape and started getting money he felt it necessary to call himself “The Freestyle King”. This is probably one of the hardest things to prove because if you ask the average rapper mainstream or underground they are going to tell you “Well…I don’t write” like its not cool to have constructed written bars for people. With B.I.G and Jay-Z being the first ones to be mentioned or step forward as not writing raps along with Supernatural ALWAYS Freestyling something new at his shows this is kind of a downhill battle. Who do you think is the best Freesyle rapper? I got to admit…I’m lost on this one.
Lloyd Bank$ – “The Punchline King” is actually Lloyd Banks mixtape series. Now the thing about this. This is what got him hot again. Banks kind of fell back and off due to personal lost but when he got back on his game it was because he took a step forward and announced himself as “The PLK”. Now, Cassidy calls himself the Punchline Champ…so I don’t know if they are both gunning for the same spot. Now add that to the fact that NO ONE is making a known direct Challenge…maybe Banks is.. “Well as long as I’m here I’m gonna grab checks/And make my cash stretch longer than giraffe necks” – Bank$
Snoop Dogg – “The King of LA”: Now this hasn’t been used in a song. It was something he told a cop in his video…However, Snoop has been know to let EVERYBODY know in an Interview that He run the west and “can be the King of NY if he wants to be”. To be real I feel him. He took the N.W.A movement to another level. Snoop came in the game a Crip, banging Crip, smoking chronic, charged with murder and got all his Crip friends and family platinum plaques on they wall….and that was just the 90’S! Now add that with EVERY NEW WEST COAST RAPPER is looking for that Snoop Stamp and blessing to really break out in the industry. Nipsey and Kendrick have gotten it…and Kendrick Cried on stage after he said it…Sounds like he run LA to me…
Jadakiss “Top 5 Dead or Alive” – Jada has been rocking for a long time and he is a very respect lyricist from both the streets and the mainstream rappers…but is he truly Top 5 Dead or Alive??? His order on a 106 & Park interview was “Big, Pac, Hov, Nas…..Kiss!” Now with the number 1 song being “Why” featuring Anthony Hamilton at the time I guess he could really make a claim for that title..However since that time Eminem, Kanye West, Ludacris, TI., Young Jeezy and Rick Ross have really taking over and have earned very high spot on charts and in hearts of hip-hop fans. So how real is Jada’s statement? Is he still holding that 5th slot down no question??? He has a total of 5 albums including the LOX projects and don’t forget “The Champ Is Here” series…cause I know that’s what some hardcore Jada fans will say first.
Lil Wayne – “The Best Rapper Alive” Now at first Wayne felt he won this title by default [Best Rapper Alive, Since The Best Rapper Retired] but then Jay came back…and he got kind of quiet…but then…HE WENT HAM! The Carter Series makes Wayne a household name and now he closes his shows with “I’m Dewayne Carter and I am The Best Rapper Alive”. Now, this should have Jada and LL in an uproar since they both claim a similar title and they are both still living on earth…Jay and Wayne have taken shots at each other but we all know its not going to be any battle and even though I feel Eminem and Kanye have killed Wayne on a few tracks he still sticks to his guns…Some say Wayne is the best rapper alive depending on how old you are…Only YOU can determine how real that is.
Honorable Mention – R. Kelly “The King of R&B” Although he said this during putting out some of his WORST music..people had been saying this about him since the “R.” album and until somebody resume catches his…this is extremely valid whether you like him or not.
