November was a pretty low-key month for hip-hop music. With the exception of Eminem, whose new record is considered by many fans as a return to form, the genre's heavy hitters had already released their big records earlier in the year.
It's a strange change for the industry. When commercial rap albums were dropping with great consistency in the early '00s, November and December were packed with releases being unloaded for the Christmas stocking stuffer season. There are still a few records yet to drop (Childish Gambino, etc.). But for the most part, it's been thin for major crossover hip-hop artists.
But there were a few worthwhile moments. Insanul takes a look at the latest release by Action Bronson, while David listened to the Three 6 Mafia comeback record (as Da Mafia 6ix) and the first new Rich Homie Quan tape since his "Type of Way" blew up this summer. Claire Lobenfeld analyzes M.I.A.'s latest record, while Ross Scarano took a listen to Blood Orange, aka Dev Hynes, who worked previously with Solange Knowles and Sky Ferreira . All that and more: these are the Best Albums of November 2013.
Written by Ross Scarano (@RossScarano), Insanul Ahmed (@Incilin), Claire Lobenfeld (@clairevlo), Brendan Frederick (@bfred), Dave Bry (@DaveBry9), Khal (@khal), and David Drake (@somanyshrimp).
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