Unkut.com Presents: The 50 Greatest Queensbridge Rap Songs

Queensbridge. According to MC Shan's everlasting anthem, it's the place where stars are born—and pioneering work by Marley Marl, Tragedy Khadafi, and Blaq Poet laid a solid foundation for artists such as Mobb Deep, Nas, and Capone-N-Noreaga to spread the QB sound across the planet. No other area has produced so many great rap records in such a short span of time, or had such a widely felt influence on the style of emceeing since the pioneering early days in The Bronx.

Pound for pound, it's tough for any other spot to challenge the legacy of Bridge Rap, which combines an advanced verbal science with a double dose of drama, set to stark, unforgiving soundtracks. As we anxiously await the inevitable arrival of "The Bridge 2010," Complex teamed up with the scholars at Unkut.com for a guided journey through the 50 Greatest Queensbridge Rap Songs of All Time. [Note: Prodigy and Nore's solo tracks were excluded since they aren't technically from the Bridge, hailing from Hempstead, Long Island and Lefrak City, Queens respectively.]

By Robbie Ettelson