17 Great Florida Rap Songs That You Probably Don't Know

By Confusion & S. Ajay Ram

Florida is a weird state. It just is. Every time you hear a story about a naked man biting people's faces off or driving through a neighborhood with a decapitated body hanging out of the passenger window, you can safely bet that it happened in Florida. There's even a Twitter account dedicated to it. But hey, at least things in Florida area always interesting.

There are swamps, drugs, beaches, retirement communities, prostitutes, clubs, farms, and strip malls, sometimes all within walking distance, and it makes for an interesting environment. As you can imagine, the music that comes from this place also has a very particular vibe. While Florida's rock scene may be a few years behind the times, there have always been interesting things happening in the hip-hop world. Local scenes bubble up in Tampa and Miami in cycles, and every few years you get some major breakout hits. But a lot of the time, those hits stay in Florida. They dominate the clubs and local radio stations, but outside the state, a lot of people never get to hear them. You might be familiar with a few of these, but here are 17 great Florida rap songs that you probably don't know.

If you're not familiar with Florida rap, "Snatchin" might sound like a throwback, like maybe it was made back in the '90s or early 2000s. Nope. This is 2011 right here, and this was a hit in Tampa, off Tae Bae Bae's C.O.O.N Muzik (No Possums Allowed) mixtape. A couple of his songs blew up in local clubs and ended up on radio, but in 2012 he was sentenced to eight years in prison for gun charges.

Get C.O.O.N Muzik (No Possums Allowed) here.

Tampa's Rated R dropped this one in 2003 on an album called Da Ghetto Psychic. He may have proven to be the next Nostradamus, but he definitely knew what was going down in the club tonight. "Your sister she be fuckin'/Your aunt she be fuckin'/These hoes be fuckin'/The hoes be fuckin'/These..."

Er, you get it. But seriously, my aunt does be fuckin'.

How could you not love it? It's 1992. It's that Miami bass sound making its way to Tampa. It's ass-shaking in all its Florida glory. It's cowbell. And there's a guy scratching in the trunk of a Cadillac! Fuck yeah, Florida.

Hate on Khaled all you want, but he's good at bringing people together for triumphant hits, and it doesn't get much better than these three Florida rappers on "I'm Da Shit." This one was from Khaled's third album We Global, but you probably never heard it unless you lived in Florida or bought it at Best Buy, because this one was a Best Buy bonus track. It was also huge on Florida radio for a minute.

Joell Ortiz hopped on for a solid remix, and get Ball Greezy's mixtape version without Ace Hood on his Before Da Deal project.

Miami newcomer and Raider Klan affiliate Denzel Curry is both a breath of fresh air and an intergalactic punch to the gut. Denzel showcases his otherworldy style and knack for catchy flows on tracks like "Parents" and "Stadium Starship," but "Threatz" is an essential posse cut, and one of Florida's hardest tracks of 2013.

Download the track here.

Dade County rapper Brisco aka the Opa Locka Goon has had an interesting career. He signed to Poe Boy Entertainment as a teenager then got picked up by Cash Money in 2006, but his Street Medicine album still doesn't have a release date. He's been featured on plenty of big-name rappers' songs, but no word if Cash Money is still planning on putting him on. 2010's "On The Wall" was supposed to be the lead single, but who knows. It's still a good song.

Back in 1997, on his debut album Based On a True Story, Trick Daddy's flow was sounding a little like early 2Pac... if 2Pac had been raised in Miami and was less conflicted about his contradictory views on women. What do you expect from a guy who came up under Uncle Luke?

As another member of the Miami Rap class of '06, Billy Blue quietly gathered attention from a few important names. He had a joint deal with local Miami label Poe Boy Music Group, Interscope, Akon's Konvict Muzik, and Timbaland's Mosley Music Group. On "Riders and Sliders" (which sounds alot like a White Castle combo meal), it's obvious why Billy garnered this kind of major support.

Download the track on Billy Blue's Blumanatti mixtape.