Top 20 Verses of 2008

This list should exemplify the massive talent an MC has in those 16-32-48 bars. Some are guest spots who stole the show and others have a guest spot, but made the orginal artist irrelevant. I really could’ve filled this list with Elzhi and Royce verses; I tried to expand though. Peep it. (Excludes any songs that are comprised on ONLY one verse).

20. T.I on “Swagger Like Us” (with Jay-Z, Lil’ Wayne, Kanye West)

Album: Paper Trail

• He emerged as the best on the track. He came hard — very hard — and it was necessary to take back the track that was always rightfully his. Granted, he is talking about swag, but its pretty masterful with the hunger and science he puts into it.

19. Dice Raw on “Get Busy” (with The Roots)

Album: Rising Down

• He drops one of the best punchlines of his career and the year: “I’m kinda like W.E.B DuBois meets Heavy D and the Boys.” Beyond that, the rest of the verse is tremendous and it has to be when you are taking shine away from Black. This album was littered with great verses.

18. Kool G Rap’s 2nd verse on “On The Rise Again”

Album: Half A Klip

• What’s a verse of the year list without G Rap? Backed by a Premier beat and an interesting Haylie Duff feature, G Rap takes this 2nd verse to completely lash out. It is about as vivid as it can get from one of the illest street story tellers of all time.

17. J-Live’s 2nd Verse on “The Upgrade (with Posdnuos)

Album: Then What Happened?

• Still sleeping on this album? Stop. His lyrical ability is much too underrated and his second verse on this track exemplifies the beauty in his raps. Live kind of blacks out and just goes and goes and goes.

16. Royce Da 5′9 on “Do My Thing” (with DJ Revolution and Guilty Simpson)

Album: King of The Decks

• Listen to that flow…wow. Royce has fun with this, but still remains as vicious as ever. The lines come fast and furious too; get the rewind button ready.

15. Nas’ 3rd verse on “N.I.G.G.E.R”

Album: Untitled

• Nas is always lyrically spectacular, so of course, he had to get on this. It was just a matter of where he would fit in. The third verse of arguably the best song on the album fits in well because of its introspective outburst. It’s Nas looking in the mirror, realizing.

14. Murs’ 2nd verse on “Can It Be”

Album: Murs For President

• This 2nd verse is truly the story of the rise and fall and rise again of Murs the artist. It’s talking about his issues, all hip hop relevant, but he doesn’t dwell on the negatives… he does something about it. It’s beautiful.

13. Phonte on “Cool as a Fan” (with Big Pooh)

Album: And Justus For All

• You may remember my Top 15 Phonte Performance list. That was dope wasn’t it? This almost made the cut because of how “chill” it is. It’s pretty much Phonte kicking it on the curb just talking trash, and the way it’s done and his run on at the end is great.

12. Slug’s 2nd verse on “Yesterday”

Album: When Life Gives You Lemons, You Paint That Shit Gold

• Easily the most emotional of all verses on this list. To really appreciate this song and this verse, the rest of the album should be heard. The verse (and song) are so fitting for the situation he’s in. Listen to the lyrics as he admits to plenty of his mistakes, his hardships and is willing to make anything possible work.

11. Sean Price 1st verse “Run” (with Guilty Simpson and Black Milk)

Album: Ode To The Ghetto

“The Matrix” (with Black Milk, Pharoahe Monch and DJ Premier)
Album: Tronic

• Both are really on par with each other and were hard to split up. Sean P, as usual, had a monstrous year full of crazy, erratic verses that are all contenders for this list. These two stuck out because of what they added to the track; a punch, a shot, a stab, a kill.

10. Reks’ third verse on “Say Goodnight”

Album: Grey Hairs

• Reks just explodes his load all over this third verse and manages to still have juice for the rest of the album. I guess having Premier back you on a track is going to make you give a little extra before the end of the joint. Reks doesn’t sound happy though.

9. Andre 3000 on “Green Light” (with John Legend)

Album: Evolver

“Everybody” (with Fonzworth Bentley and Kanye West)
Album: C.O.L.O.U.R.S.

• The former was the R&B feature verse of the year, and the latter is just a tremendous verse. Hard to split up these 2 and both are worthy due to Andre’s sultry and stylistic talk to the opposite sex: “eenie meenie miney meenie prenuptial.” It’s always a spectacle when Dre raps and these two verses are no exceptions to the rule.

8. Ludacris’ 2nd verse on “Last of a Dying Breed” (with Lil’ Wayne)

Album: Theater of The Mind

• After the impressive verse from Wayne, Luda comes back to reclaim his track. And wow, he goes all out on this. This joint may very well be a contender for song of the year and with a verse like this one from Luda, he shows why he has so much potential to be the MC we all know he can be.

7. Jay-Z’s 2nd verse on “Brooklyn (Go Hard)” (with Santogold)

Album: Notorious Soundtrack and The Blueprint 3

• Punchline of the year: “I father, I Brooklyn Dodger them, I jack, I rob, I sin/ ah man/ I’m Jackie Robinson except when I run base, I dodge the pen.” By the time you figure out this quadruple entendre, you’ll get to listen to the rest of the verse and realize it’s one of the dopest of 2008.

6. Andre 3000 on “Royal Flush” (with Big Boi and Raekwon)

Album: Sir Luscious Left Foot

• Yeah, he’s making another appearance here. Fred put it perfectly: “Three Stacks is like that long distance slam you get like twice a year. You wait and wait and you get it and don’t get it for the rest of the year. Is it worth the wait? Yes. Does it kill you to not get it more? Of course. “Royal Flush” was undoubtedly one of the best tracks of the year and Andre blacks out; squashing Rae and Big Boi in his path.

5. Phonte on “Be Prepared” (with Akrobatik and Big Pooh)

Album: Absolute Value

• This was extremely close to cutting that Top 15 Phonte Performance list. This verse about the industry, the shadiness of it, the accolades and the modern stance of it is genius. It’s perfectly crafted and perfectly said. Preach ‘Te.

4. Elzhi on “Motown 25″ (with Royce Da 5′9) or “Goatit” (with Black Milk, Bishop Lamont, and Phat Kat)

Album: The Preface / Caltroit

• He really should have a list of his own this year. Matter of fact, throw the entire Preface on this because he’s been that good in 2008. While he doesn’t exactly get Bishop on “Goatit,” Royce certainly becomes a casualty to Elzhi’s retarded verse. Elzhi goes extremely hard on the latter, and with any other artist at any other time, he certainly would’ve crushed him. But…

3. Bishop Lamont on “Goatit” (with Black Milk, Phat Kat and Elzhi)

Album: Caltroit

• The flow and the delivery and the end product of BL’s verse on “Goatit” off of the early 2008 album, Caltroit, is brilliant. You will kind of stop in amazement and just appreciate it for what it is; a ripping of the microphone.

2. Royce Da 5′9 on “Losing Out” (with Black Milk)

Album: Tronic

• Similar to Elzhi, he could’ve had his own entire list this year. What a year for Royce. On his 1st verse, it’s the flow and the delivery that gets you. He’s complimenting the beat better than anything else I’ve heard all year. On the 2nd verse, I don’t even think he needs a beat…he blacks out and demolishes any Detroit haters and naysayers.

1. Brother Ali on “Second Time Around” (with Wale)

Album: DJ Benzi’s The New Deal Mixtape

• This was never in doubt for me. As soon as I heard it for the 500th time in a row, it was necessary that this be number one on the list. Don’t sleep on one of the best rappers of this modern era in hip hop (with 2 classic albums and two great EPs) delivering the best verse of 2008. Listen to Ali just rant about everything from music downloads, stealing, work ethic and other rappers. He just goes off and it is amazing.

Honourable Mentions

• Royce on “Motown 25″
• Nas 2nd verse on “Hero”
• Elzhi’s 2nd verse on “Colours”
• Royce’s 2nd verse “Shake This”
• Royce on “Go Hard”
• Termanology 1st verse on “Drugs, Crime, Gorillaz”
• MF Doom’s 1st verse on “Get ‘er Done”
• Q-Tip’s 2nd verse on “Move”
• Bumpy Knuckles on “Damage”
• Mos Def, Styles P and Black Thought on “Rising Down”

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