From Drake's "Hotline Bling" taking over the Internet to Kendrick Lamar's genre-bending masterpiece To Pimp a Butterfly captivating listeners, 2015 has been kind to rap music. Where last year the genre suffered from a lack of strong albums, this year made up for it in spades. Both the underground and the mainstream produced critically acclaimed tapes and songs, which in turn created healthy discourse that the game needed.
Part of that discourse was generated by a generation gap that is happening within the sport of rap. Vince Staples got folks upset for bigging up the 2000s while tossing the '90s to the side, even though he raps like he could've been in N.W.A. Future, Young Thug, and Rae Sremmurd have been the poster boys for everything that's wrong with rap even though they've got bars. And Drake dismantled a former battle rapper, even though he's a singer (his words).
We're hear to talk about bars, though. During the late months of 2014 we started rounding up the best rap verses of the month and continued that franchise in 2015. The list we cooked up is made up of MCs young and old who have an appreciation for the sport. Check out the Best Rap Verses of 2015.
42. Kendrick Lamar “Deep Water”
Date: Aug. 7, 2015
Best Line: “Pick 'em off like a big dog, motherfucker, woof”
I most definitely reached for answers when Compton first dropped, but can you blame me? Drake and Kendrick have been in a cold war since the "Control" verse. Lamar spits with so much emotion, it's hard not to feel some type of way. Drake doesn't want any part of this beast of an MC.
40. The Game “On Me”
Date: Oct. 9, 2015
Best Line: “Look in my rhyme book, see murder like when I was a fan of No Limit”
One time for The Documentary 2 for being able to live up to the name. The Game wasn't trying to get bodied on his own shit and gave Kendrick reason to respect an OG. Chuck Taylor took us on a journey through Compton in that last verse. That's on Bloods.
38. Fabolous “Quiet Storm” (Freestyle)
Date: April 10, 2015
Best Line: “I be preaching on these niggas you would swear it's a reverend”
Fab is 75 years old and is still rapping circles around cats. He took it back to Fabolous Sport on this one. Bring back Clue ad-libs in 2016.
36. Roc Marciano “Bonus Round”
Date: Dec. 8, 2015
Best Line: “The dope is pure, I could tap on it/My line, feds got the tap on it”
Roc Marciano raps so effortlessly, it blows mine. He's top five, I don't care, fight me.
"Horse dick, curl your toes like a corn chip"
35.
33. Styles P “Alert”
Date: March 2, 2015
Best Line: “The money and the weed, the guns and the Nikes/And the cars and the ice just might form Voltron”
Two of the most consistent on the same track? Don't mind if I do. Styles P is a rapper's rapper who will never lose a step. He's a legend in the game and reminded us all with this offering. Imagine the amount of weed that gets smoked during a session between these guys. They don't want you to smoke exotic. Remember that.
31. Da$H “Shark Tank”
Date: Sept. 10, 2015
Best Line: “It's the tan skin Bugsy Siegel/Ridin' in a bucket with two bitches and a rusty Eagle”
This verse is menacing, the beat is dark, and the Taxi Driver samples tie everything together. Don't sleep on 17 More Minutes. Dolla got next.
29. Earl Sweatshirt “Grief” (First Verse)
Date: March 23, 2015
Best Line: “Say you eating, but we see you getting cooked, nigga”
Earl is honest and can rap his ass off. So many quotables in this goddamn verse. Are you a wave rider or a wave provider? Word to Yams.
27. Dr. Yen Lo “Day 0”
Date: Feb. 19, 2015
Best Line: “Streets be laced decent pay for a steeplechase/Evil days the most peligro ways to reach a safe” —Ka
The Brownsville, Brooklyn, spitter is one of the game's most slept on. He raps eloquent like a Bible verse. I'll just let Earl tell it. They can't stop the flu.
25. Beanie Sigel “Keep Dealing”
Date: Dec. 18, 2015
Best Line: “And spend it all until I’m swallowing dirt/'Cause I ain’t never see a Brinks truck follow a hearse”
Sigel Desert Eagle is one of the greats, fuck what ya heard. He came back with one lung to serve us the gospel. Beans may sound different, but he ain't lose a step. Soak in the jewels because you may never see a bad guy like this again. Here's to a glorious comeback.
23. Vince Staples “Lift Me Up” (First Verse)
Date: June 30, 2015
Best Line: “I'm just a nigga until I fill my pocket/And then I'm Mr. Nigga, they follow me while shoppin'”
Vince is on his way to becoming a rap god if he decides to continue on with his career. How are you going to get mad at his rap opinions when he spits like this? Get your priorities straight.
21. J. Cole “Black Friday” (First Verse)
Date: Nov. 27, 2015
Best Line: “When you and K. Dot shit drop? Bitch never/They can’t handle two black niggas this clever”
OK, the best line is from the outro, I know. But it's true. Cole and Kenny need to make the time, man. Lamar bodied "A Tale of 2 Citiez" for sure, however, Jermaine ain't no slouch. The first verse on his "Alright" freestyle is perennial all-star caliber. These guys are just getting started. Rap is in a good place.
19. Meek Mill “Ice Cream Freestyle” (First Verse)
Date: Jan. 9, 2015
Best Line: “And we turn to media, they lie to us/Nobody really speakin' on them courtrooms that bodied us”
Meek came home hungry. That first verse is killer with all of its "stay woke" lines and such. We all thought this was gonna be his year. Boy, were we wrong. More on that later.
17. Jadakiss and Styles P “Block Work”
Date: May 1, 2015
Best Line: “Listen, duke, you could shoot, but you know that it's both ways/My gun splash brothers, I call 'em Curry and Klay” —Jadakiss
Jada and Styles are Mark Twain and Kurt Vonnegut, Raoul Duke and Dr. Gonzo, etc., etc. Two of the best to ever do it when it comes to the in-and-out flow.
The Ghost had a notable line just before the one above, and it goes a little something like this:
"Word to Spanish José, we was movin' the most yay
Had my boys runnin' and gunnin', suttin' like 'Coach K'"
This duo has been the soundtrack to the streets since '96.
15. Drake “6PM in New York”
Date: Feb. 13, 2015
Best Line: “It gets worse by the annual, my career's like a how-to manual”
Drake blacked. Jimmy wasn't having it in 2015, and we should've taken heed. Tyga caught a stray and nothing was the same. The game was put on notice: Aubrey is tired of being bullied. You have to give credit where it's due. Now come for Pusha, I triple dog dare ya.
13. Kendrick Lamar f/ Assassin “The Blacker the Berry” (Last Verse)
Date: Feb. 9, 2015
Best Line: “So why did I weep when Trayvon Martin was in the street?/When gang banging make me kill a nigga blacker than me?/Hypocrite!”
Kendrick was accused of respectability politics when he dropped this bomb on us in the lead up to TPAB's release. He was able to tap into the complications of humanity. We're all hypocrites when it comes to certain things. There's nothing wrong with wanting better for your community. The truth hurts.
11. Pusha T “Untouchable”
Date: Nov. 12, 2015
Best Line: “The last one to find out that Baby own the cars”
Pusha Ton is so petty, man. He's going to keep going at Drake and them until he calls it quits because they'll never respond. We love it, though. King Push keeps things interesting and has clever lines like this:
"Matching Missoni looks African on me"
10.
8. Lupe Fiasco “Mural”
Date: Jan. 20, 2015
Best Line: “Now what's a coffin with a scratched ceiling?”
Lupe is a very good rapper. Let's hope he's able to stay focused and deliver with his next project because Tetsuo & Youth proved the upper echelon MC in him never left. It'll take centuries before we're able to decode "Mural."
6. Future “Digital Dash”
Date: Sept. 20, 2015
Best Line: “I pour the Actavis and pop pills so I can fight the demons”
Future doesn't have bars? Then explain his "Digital Dash" verse. He was street, boastful, vivid, and introspective. What more do you want? Are you not entertained? "Hit her sideways when I banged her," vision it!
4. Kendrick Lamar “Black Friday”
Date: Nov. 27, 2015
Best Line: “Listen to you with boredom, baby rappers, abort them/To the grave I deport them, corporations extort them”
If it weren't for "Back 2 Back" damn near ending Meek's career, this effort from the best rapper alive would've been verse of the year. What is Kendrick's problem? Why does he go so hard? He needs Jesus, or some milk.
2. Drake “Back to Back” (First Verse)
Date: July 29, 2015
Best Line: “Yeah, trigger fingers turn to Twitter fingers/Yeah, you gettin' bodied by a singin' nigga”
A Drake hater such as myself can't even front. This joint knocks in the club and is so goddamn petty. This gets verse of the year for impact alone. Meek should've had a plan. Tighten your circle up, my guy. You got bodied by an R&B rapper and had to tuck your whole summer in. Life comes at you fast.
