most defensible album in Complex's The 50 Worst Rap Album Fails

Tempted to vote for Forever, way too high on this list.

what a dumb ass list, most of these have some good songs at least.

I will defend:

Unplugged 2.0 (getting my voice, some wonderful stuff on here... if a lot of this material was recorded in a studio/arranged properly it would've been a worthy follow-up to miseducation. "Gotta Find Peace Of Mind"? Come on...)
Blood Money (obviously not their best album but it has some incredible production.... "Pearly Gates" is one of my favorite beats ever,
Nastradamus (it isn't THAT bad)
Kingdom Come (there are so dope songs on here contrary to popular belief... "Oh My God," "Trouble," "Lost Ones," etc.)
Best of Both Worlds (COME ON... so many jams on this)
Beats Rhymes & Life (...)
I'm Gay/Happy (I don't even like this album but it doesn't deserve to be on this list)
The Firm (this album has CLASSICS on it... come on. And all the Trackmasters hate is ridiculous to this day)

my vote*

Wait, wtf, didn't see Walking With A Panther at first glance. Definitely that one. That album was one of the first dubbed rap cassettes I had, without that and Too Short it would have probably been another couple years before I got into hip hop.

this thread is basically bait for a long dylannn post about nastradamus haha

Beats Rhymes & Life is probably objectively my fav but i think i'm gonna vote for Best of Both Worlds, really does have some jams on it

also >>> Watch The Throne

A few of these aren't bad at all (I don't know all that many of these albums though) but Don't Sweat The Technique is great wtf

I voted Lethal Injection. One of my fav Cube songs ever is on that

I'm Gay/Happy (I don't even like this album but it doesn't deserve to be on this list)

^^^I kind of like that it did. I think the album is wack & am glad someone was willing to say so ... like I've never been that into B but '6 kiss' would have been ridic, "i'm gay" is pretty weak tho imo

'worst album fails' is such a weird title, i kno what they mean but it implies that the failing failed or something

I think this is a good mix of received wisdom & mild challops

i do like that Black Sheep record too, never got why ppl hated on it but Im a big Dres fan

43. Mystikal, Tarantula (2001)

WHOA WTF

beats rhymes and life is so good

I think this is a good mix of received wisdom & mild challops

― funky house septics (D-40), Friday, August 26, 2011 9:05 PM (2 minutes ago) Bookmark

yeah totally...i kind of like the idea of trying to cement the canon of infamous rap fan backlashes/disappointments, and the top 10 is pretty spot-on in that regard

i kind of like the idea of trying to cement the canon of infamous rap fan backlashes/disappointments,

yeah, don't like this idea one bit... especially because I'm like 90% the people who compiled this list haven't even listened to most of these. though I guess if the canon is established there's always room for a critical re-evaluation or w/e

^^I kind of like that it did. I think the album is wack & am glad someone was willing to say so ... like I've never been that into B but '6 kiss' would have been ridic, "i'm gay" is pretty weak tho imo

yeah I get what you mean, especially considering the fact that a certain sect of 2dopeboyz/Okayplayer-rap fans really took a liking to the album because of it's more "traditional/backpacker0y sound" I guess it's cool for Complex to be like "no dudes, this actually sucks"

pfork BNM'd it too

the 1st acclaimed lil b record

thank god someone FINALLY came out and said that lil b is wack

anyway, putting the mystikal album on this list invalidates the whole thing

― funky house septics (PappaWheelie V), Thursday, August 6, 2009 11:37 PM (2 years ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

― funky house septics, let me drain you of this (J0rdan S.), Monday, March 15, 2010 5:39 PM (1 year ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

well it's more that B's good material supposedly sucks/is killing rap but when he makes a backpack-type album it's TOTALLY AWESOME/WOW HE CAN ACTUALLY RAP/etc.

aw man cuz man i didn't even know of that wheelie sn

thank god someone FINALLY came out and said that lil b is wack

― J0rdan S., Saturday, August 27, 2011 1:23 AM (2 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

its more that they said the right record was wack

well it's more that B's good material supposedly sucks/is killing rap but when he makes a backpack-type album it's TOTALLY AWESOME/WOW HE CAN ACTUALLY RAP/etc.

― my own private kanyes west (The Brainwasher), Friday, August 26, 2011 8:25 PM (3 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

exactly

I mean, imo tarantula is a step down from the LP before but its also 10x as good as a bunch of this stuff

i also like can-i-bus in a challop-y sense

yeah tarantula was the first one where i really raised my eyebrow like really you're gonna pick on that record

is immobilarity actually bad? ive never listened to it

some challoptimists on soulstrut were repping for that erick sermon record too, i havent heard it though

challokayplayer

tarantula easily

lethal injection was another one like tarantula where it's a step down but still a really solid album

i'm upset that lil b is on the list too because now instead of discussing the career lowlights of actual legends we have another thread about the pomplamoose of rap's most adowable wittle pubwicity stunt yet

the world would be a better place if lil b had a song in a ubiquitous car commercial

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HI_S7NZ2sHQ

obv

give it a year, every fresh young executive in the media industry is currently scheming how they can use their job to meet lil b and/or tyler and hand them a bag of money

These are actually pretty dope:

13. A Tribe Called Quest, Beats, Rhymes, & Life (1996)
19. Goodie Mob, World Party (1999)
23. Ice Cube, Lethal Injection (1993)
28. Eazy-E, It's On (Dr. Dre) 187um Killa (1993)
46. Leaders Of The New School, T.I.M.E. (The Inner Mind's Eye) (1993
49. Eric B. & Rakim, Don't Sweat The Technique (1992)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFGICfBmtpY

theres a few in here (Cube, Eric B & Rakim come to mind) that could be described as 'gradual fall-off becomes apparent' records rather than records that were expected to be huge & flopped a la the firm

yeah a lot of these seem like basically victims of the rap world turning a page and the artist suddenly seeming passe even if they're doing the same thing that made them hot 2 years earlier

they really messed up not putting Kingdom Come higher

Kingdom Come (there are so dope songs on here contrary to popular belief... "Oh My God," "Trouble," "Lost Ones," etc.)

i'm glad there's at least one person out there who will say this, esp "lost ones"

dammit xp

haha

i do like "Trouble" and the Just Blaze tracks, but i mean that's the album that even BP3-defending stans will still shit on, so it definitely should be in the top 10 pantheon of high profile fails

President Keyes has a good list there.

Dude, I bought that Canibus LP back when it dropeed, album cover looks like some silly condom packaging. I remember not caring about any other song on there for about 3 months cos I just rinsed the absolute shit out of 2nd Round KO. Still listen to that song. Hype-Nitis is a jam, album isnt that bad really, was just a let down in the sense that he was supposed to come through on some M.O.P. hyped up aggressive type raps, but it just wasnt close to that all.

Electric Circus has some jams.

Taste of Chocolate being on here is just madness, MADNESSSSSS, even if it is his worst album.

*dropped

Ghetto Bird through What Can I Do? is a fantastic stretch on Lethal Injection. What Can I Do? is my fav cube joint.

This Erick Sermon track will snap your neck, but that LP isnt that great overall.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRo6ZlAcuiw

I have some major love for Doggfather as well, just may get my vote. I pretty much love any pre overdubbed vocals Snoop. That album is kind of a personal classic of mine really. Doggfather eats it alive of course, but it holds up, and has aged well. Up Jump The Boogie, Vapors, Snoops Upside Your Head, Doggyland, Blueberry and Groopie are all pure.

some of those blurbs are v. otm -- im just saying hes one of those dudes whose idea of contemporary rap is narrow & in hock to 90s idealism

he does say "jiggy" a lot

deej, what would you say your single favorite rap album of all time would be if u had to choose one

i couldnt really answer that but for whatever reason the thing that popped into my head was 'hard to earn'

kind of modest for a 'FAV ALBUM EVER' but its one ive come back to for years so its kind of comfort food

I was working on a theory that you could tell what type of rap fan someone was by their favorite album. I bet Bastard Swordsman is an Illmatic guy.

not really following the current strain of conversation but that Lauryn Hill album is simultaneously heartbreaking and hilarious when she starts ranting

mine is Low End Theory -- should this be a thread (or possibly a 'what Sex And The City character are you' type web quiz)

some dude OTM, although sometimes it's De La Soul Is Dead or Fear of a Black Planet

(but usually LET)

Dan def strikes me as the type of dude who fav rap album is De La Soul Is Dead, no offense

none taken! luv that shit

yeah i mean it's hard to turn that into an insult. "you like old stuff...really really great old stuff, but old stuff"

xp Hmm, sounds like I should go back to Dynasty. Back when he was putting out an album a year it was easy to dismiss the weaker ones.

wait how the shit did Tical 2000 not make any of these lists? Just because it had 5/25 dope songs doesn't mean it wasn't the biggest mess and FAIL

Mines is probably ATLiens.

^my #2 Rhythm-al-ism is #1 for me.

cuban linx for me.

the infamous.

28. Eazy-E, It's On (Dr. Dre) 187um Killa (1993)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VsdLn46UXnA

sex & violence by bdp is kinda up and down, but so is every bdp album after criminal minded

love "duck down" off that

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDyYHIDJ1CQ

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

41. Lil B, I'm Gay (I'm Happy) (2011) 7

are you guys just that big of stans for this guy or is everyone on this site secretly 17?

whiney otm x10000

is there a CD on this list that got a vote that isn't better than "i'm gay (i'm happy)"

is there a CD on this list that got a vote that isn't better than "i'm gay (i'm happy)"

― D-40, Wednesday, 31 August 2011 00:09 (2 seconds ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Electric Circus.

Voted Cube iirc. Lol @ lil b, some of those votes should have gone to Big Daddy Kane.

the thing about meme rap is that you can never feign too much enthusiasm

u sure never have that problem

good zing but really, al otm

wow, didn't see this. I have a beef w/ the following inclusions:

13. A Tribe Called Quest, Beats, Rhymes, & Life (1996)

Man, Beats Rhymes and Life is like a Dean's List student suddenly getting straight Bs one semester. I mean it's a huge dropoff from Low End Theory and Midnight Marauders, but it's still an enjoyable listen, even if arguably not essential. Just not as focused and the inclusion of Consequence (whom I like) was weird.

41. Lil B, I'm Gay (I'm Happy) (2011)

I like "I'm Gay" -- and I also like shit like Blue/Red Flame. Don't think it's impossible to like both 'sides' of the artist. Think this is just too easy of a potshot.

43. Mystikal, Tarantula (2001)

This is by far the biggest pile of bullshit in the entire list. The defense of its inclusion is very vague and lacking in detail, and makes me wonder when the last time the author listened to this album was. "Pussy Crook" is a great song, yea, Mystikal's later actions do make it a bit o_O, but it's a fucking banger of a song when removed from that. And the entire album is fucking fire -- I mean loving Let's Get Ready and hating Tarantula to me is like loving Super Tight and hating Ridin' Dirty. I prefer Let's Get Ready, but Tarantula ain't much of a dropoff.

36. Hammer, The Funky Headhunter (1994)

I thought this list was supposed to be for awesome rappers making wack albums? If anything, the only Hammer album that is still listenable (even if it is admittedly corny and phony sounding) is this one.

27. Shyne, Godfather Buried Alive (2004)

Man gtfo with this. I actually prefer this to his debut as he actually manages to evolve beyond generic gangsta tropes on several tracks on this one and come up with some semblance of identity. I like the debut too but it isn't like it was a classic or anything.

i'm not necessarily excusing the rest, there's a few I haven't heard.

i didn't even notice mystikal was on there. i voted for the winner but now i wish i could change my vote.

36. Hammer, The Funky Headhunter (1994)

I thought this list was supposed to be for awesome rappers making wack albums? If anything, the only Hammer album that is still listenable (even if it is admittedly corny and phony sounding) is this one.

Let's Get It Started is p dope, fuiud

Maybe 70% of this list could be repurposed as "Actually Kind-of-Dope Albums You Can Get Used on Amazon for $1.99"

would no one stan for Das EFX?

I wanna say Kingdom Come cuz of the Just Blaze trifecta but a) that still was a fail and b) I'm not familiar with all these

the album's subject matter—the War in Iraq on "Casualties of War"?—wasn't on par with what we'd come to expect.

Such an odd criticism of Eric B & Rakim. Rappers addressing the Iraq war? Not that crazy an idea really. Great track too.

46. Leaders Of The New School, T.I.M.E. (The Inner Mind's Eye) (1993)

I love this album, can't understand why people rate it below the debut

is this Boot Camp Clik really worthy of placement?

The Boot Camp Clik album is in no way bad, I guess you call it disappointing if you compare to the debut albums of Clik members (Black Moon, Smif-n-Wessun, Heltah Skeltah), and the lack of Beatminerz is noticable, but most of the beats and raps on it are still solid.

Also, I've never understood why No Man's Land is considered a failure... Just because they changed their style after the debut doesn't necessarily mean SoM were bad at their new style, and they weren't. As far as dark/contemplative rap goes, No Man's Land is really good, personally I rate it even above the debut.

Maybe 70% of this list could be repurposed as "Actually Kind-of-Dope Albums You Can Get Used on Amazon for $1.99"

Truth.

DMX, Year Of The Dog...Again (2006)

why the "Again?", he never had another album called Year of the Dog

i'm upset that lil b is on the list too because now instead of discussing the career lowlights of actual legends we have another thread about the pomplamoose of rap's most adowable wittle pubwicity stunt yet

― some dude, Friday, August 26, 2011 9:51 PM bookmarkflaglink

I lolled

“the pomplamoose of rap” is vicious

2006 was the year of the dog in the Chinese zodiac and they loop every 12 years, so maybe DMX was just commenting on that?

“Good Grief! More Year of the Dog”

xpost that was my theory, it's just a weiiiird title.

The eazy e nomination was insane. Perfect album

Lol Boring