15 Indie Rockers Who Would Probably Make Great Rappers

Alias: Jay-V

Debut Album: Stunt All Day, Buy Out Your Sorrows: S.A.D. B.O.Y.S. 4 Life

Given all of the work that he's done with Kanye West, why wouldn't Justin Vernon start to fantasize about launching a rap career of his own? No longer satisfied with moaning half-intelligible choruses for Yeezy, Vernon would forge his own path as Jay-V, a Future-esque talent who marries Auto-Tune and rapping together to create a powerful hybrid product.

Jay-V would never blow you away with his technical prowess, but with Stunt All Day, Buy Out Your Sorrows: S.A.D. B.O.Y.S. 4 Life he provides the perfect soundtrack for all the highs and lows of a trap lord, side-stepping the emotional black holes of his earlier material, and numbing his sadness with pure, unchecked nihilism.

Alias: Icey White

Debut Album: It's So Cold in The D

Though Jack White has been living outside of Nashville for a few years now, the Detroit native is ready to return to his roots as Icey White, a hard-hitting MC looking to join the ranks of the city's current rap stars like Eminem and Danny Brown. On It's So Cold in The D, White addresses the bleak state of Detroit's current affairs, stringing together vivid tales of the city's inhabitants, similar to his work on a song like "Carolina Drama." If White has one strong suit has a lyricist, it's his storytelling ability. It's safe to say that he would have no trouble translating that talent to rap. Also, expect to hear more than a few bombs dropped in Dan Auerbach's direction.

Alias: ¢oyne

Debut Album: Money Talks

Wayne Coyne has never been afraid to experiment with other genres with The Flaming Lips, as the band's 2012 album The Flaming Lips and Heady Fwends featured guest appearances from Ke$ha, Erykah Badu, Biz Markie, and more. Time and time again, the band has shown itself to be truly fearless at the prospect of stepping into new musical territory, and at the front of all this discovery has been Coyne.

However, after the recent release of the band's thirteenth studio album The Terror, Coyne is likely feeling the need to spread his wings a little bit more. In collaboration with some of the same creative minds as Heady Fwends, Coyne becomes ¢oyne, a genre-bending rapper looking to push the form to its absolute limit. The long-rumored Flaming Lips/Ke$ha collaboration may never come to fruition, but you can be certain that she and ¢oyne would be able to crank out a few bangers.

Alias: 2 Kimz

Debut Album: EVOL 2: The Break-Up

As two of the defining female rock stars of the '80s and '90s, Kim Gordon and Kim Deal each brought an irreplaceable fire to their respective work with Sonic Youth and the Pixies, helping to shape the sounds of alternative rock for the decades to come. Without Deal, the Pixies haven't been the same on their recent reunion tour, while Thurston Moore has caught public scorn for the extra-marital affair he maintained while married to Gordon.

So you can bet that both these women have something to talk about on their collaborative debut, EVOL 2: The Break-Up, a spiritual successor to Gordon's 1986 album with Sonic Youth. Moore is about to get ethered.

Alias: Big Win

Debut Album: I Will Not Lose

While many consider Arcade Fire to be a Canadian band, they often forget that Win Butler was originally raised in Texas, having grown up near Houston for most of his life until he was sent away to boarding school in New Hampshire. However, after winning a Grammy, releasing four critically successful albums, and finishing up a tour of wild, rambunctious live shows, Butler is now ready to re-embrace his H-Town roots, and fight for his spot in hip-hop.

Teaming up with his fellow Houston rappers like Paul Wall and Bun B, Big Win steps up to dominate the competition, grill in mouth and styrofoam cup in hand. And along with the release of I Will Not Lose, Big Win would also have another treat in store for his fans: a chopped and screwed remix of every Arcade Fire record.

Alias: RainMaker

Debut Album: Tha Block Needz Water

As one part of the diverse experimental rock outfit TV On the Radio, Kyp Malone has already explored a number of different genres including electronica, soul, and post-punk. Additionally, as Rain Machine, Malone dropped an eponymous album in 2009 which provided further detail on his talents and abilties as a musician. With so much progress and potential as an artist, while also having lived in New York for years now, why wouldn't Malone try his hand out in hip-hop?

As RainMaker, Malone would bring his raw, warbling vocal talents to the mic, lending a unique passion and unmistakeable quality to his recordings. In his solo work, Malone has often touched on racism, politics, and other equally-charged topics. The blend of his content and style would prove potent in hip-hop.

Alias: Ganglord

Debut Album: More I $ee (Third Eye Open)

One of England's most outspoken rock stars is now ready to take his no-holds barred approach to hip-hop. Morrissey has never been afraid to express his views on Queen Elizabeth, English politics, vegetarianism, or animal rights, and under his Ganglord moniker (taken from his song of the same name) the former lead singer of The Smiths would go in on all of these topics and more, cutting up any beat with his savage, unapologetic flair. You thought Morrissey was controversial now? Just wait until you hear More I $ee (Third Eye Open), which follows Morrissey into a deep web of political conspiracies, spiritual cults, and more.

Alias: Frank Black

Debut Album: The Devil Between Us

Around since the late '80s, Black Francis has been able to watch the evolution of hip-hop from its humble beginnings. He's sat back and studied the game, and now Black is ready to take it on head first, so the Pixies frontman has decided that it's time to branch out once again, breaking apart the band he helped re-unite and taking to the road as a solo artist.

In his past solo efforts, Black Francis has gone by the name Frank Black, which couldn't be more perfect for his hypothetical hip-hop career. No one can really lay claim to the name Frank White post-Biggie, but Frank Black? Why not? Plus, vocally, Black brings a distinct fearlessness to the genre, offering a cutting wail that could give any track the urgency of an early DMX cut.

Alias: K.O.

Debut Album: Gold Rhymin'

Strangely, for all her charisma, Yeah Yeah Yeah's frontwoman Karen O has never released a solo album of any kind, instead only featuring on various tracks by other artists, while offering a few, unconnected solo tracks every now and then. We'll take her reticence as a sign that she's ready to try something new, preferring to explore an entirely different genre rather than try and shed her associations with the YYY's in indie rock.

Armed with the sharp yelping and soft, delicate cries of her vocal range, K.O. would pack a powerful 1-2 combination. We've already heard her on N.A.S.A's "Strange Enough," with Ol' Dirty Bastard, but it's time for K.O. to tackle more than just hooks and choruses. She's ready to drop bars.

Alias: Fy-On The Criminal
Debut Album: Lock Box: Tales From the Texas Penitentiary

When Fiona Apple was arrested in Texas back in September of 2012, she was quick to express her frustration with the conduct of the policemen who took her in that day, saying at the time that they acted in an "inappropriate and probably illegal" manner towards her. If Fiona is looking for a place to air out her grievances with the cops, then why not record a hip-hop album taking down the state of the justice system in America? You don't have to listen to Apple's music to know that she can put together a verse; you only have to read her album names. The entire title for When the Pawn... is a full 16 all on its own.

Alias: New Yorke

Debut Album: Hail to the Thief (The Re-Up)

Who knows when the next Radiohead album will ever come out, so why not dream about what other avenues Thom Yorke could explore while he's still unoccupied with his original band? Featuring production from his buddy Flying Lotus (as well as a few guest verses under his Captain Murphy alias), Yorke would drop a pensive, experimental blend of hip-hop and jazz, the kind that someone like DOOM could easily find a groove on. Lyrical superfluity has never been Yorke's strong suit, so multiple 16s on a single track might be too ambitious here. Expect to find a lot of guest appearances on New Yorke's debut.

Alias: Gold $oundz

Debut Album: #AllDaysOff: Slacker's Anthem

After a lengthy solo career, Stephen Malkmus finally decides that he needs to switch things up and stray out of the indie rock lane he has helped popularize since the early '90s. At 47-years-old, Malkmus is out to prove that an old dog can learn new tricks, so he's ditching the Jicks and dropping his guitar in favor of rocking the mic completely alone.

Under the name Gold $oundz (a throwback to his days with Pavement), Malkmus will cover a variety of topics for rap audiences, serving as an older version of a stoner-rap star like Curren$y. Don't worry about bringing the weed. He's got plenty.

Alias: Lil' Annie

Debut Album: Year Of The Tiger: Goddess Season Approaches

As Lil' Annie, St. Vincent takes the grandeur of her current artistic persona and brings it over to hip-hop, offering the type of showmanship the genre was founded on. With a strong, soulful voice, and the ability to create one coherent sound out of many, St. Vincent has proven her versatility to us multiple times throughout her career.

On a track like "Laughing With A Mouth Of Blood," she pulls together a complicated arrangement of influences and manages to make something beautiful of it, and with how textured and explosive hip-hop production has become in recent years, Lil' Annie should have no trouble carving out her niche in the genre with her talents. Plus, you have to imagine that a rap album from St. Vincent would come with a few Portlandia skits on the tracklist. An opportunity for more Fred and Carrie in our lives is never a bad thing.

Alias: The Bard

Debut Album: Ye Olde Rapper's Most Favourite Hip-Hop Sonnets Vol. I

If you've ever listened to The Decemberists, then you're already familiar with the lyrical flair of lead vocalist Colin Meloy, a sprawling, ornate writer who has used his songs as a platform for countless epic adventures throughout his career. Meloy is the same singer who wrote "The Mariner's Revenge Song," a Melville-esque tale of a man who gets swallowed by a whale in search of his dead mother's ex-lover. He's also responsible for helping to put out The Tain, a five-track EP released by The Decemberists in 2004 that was named after an Irish mythological epic.

So, as he embarks on his solo journey into hip-hop, Meloy continues to explore his literary fascinations, but this time with one of the most revered poets in the Western canon, William Shakespeare. Using the name The Bard, Meloy would pay homage to Shakespeare by not only taking his nickname, but also solely relying on the form of Shakespearean sonnets for his verses. And don't forget about his vocabulary either. Meloy has a mental dictionary that would make even Aesop Rock's head spin.

Alias: No Mercy

Debut Album: Hell Hath No Mercy

Having recorded a number of albums with The Shins as their frontman, and as one-half of a braintrust with Danger Mouse as Broken Bells , James Mercer is ready to drop his soft-spoken indie persona and trade it in for a snarling, screaming new attitude as No Mercy.

You won't find any gentle, hypnotic tracks like "New Slang" or "Red Rabbits" on his debut album Hell Hath No Mercy. No Mercy isn't about getting pushed around or experiencing heartbreak or trying to reconcile the difficulties of life and love. No Mercy is ready to rip the face off of any fake rappers who want to stand in his way, blending the coke-rap paranoia and violence of an artist like Pusha-T with the actual paranoia and violence that comes from ingesting copious amounts of cocaine. Mercer is out to prove one thing and one thing only with his new solo endeavor: he's the craziest motherf***er around.