10 Rap Albums That Rock Fans Need To Check Out

4. Straight Outta Compton - NWA

When deconstructing the idea of rap music, it tends to have a lot of same building blocks as something like punk rock in the early '70s. Much like bands like the Ramones and the Clash, these were the misfits of society who had a lot of stuff and say and were more than willing to put their soul down on wax to prove their point. Whereas something like the Sex Pistols may have sounded dangerous in their time, you couldn't come anywhere close to Straight Outta Compton.

Looking back on this one record, NWA was the foundation for a hip hop supergroup, with nearly every single MC having a strong sense of personality to stand out amongst the rest. From the minute you heard the public service announcement about witnessing the strength of street knowledge, this record doesn't hold up for a second, as Ice Cube, Eazy E, and MC Ren detail some of the most disturbing tales of excess that came from Southern California.

Aside from the raw flows on display, the production is also immaculate, as Dr. Dre forms the foundation of what he would be doing with his G-funk masterpieces in his later life like the Chronic. Though an outfit like this was never meant to last for very long, it's a miracle that we were at least able to get something this hard at all.