10 Best Hip-Hop Albums Of 2017 (So Far)

Killer Mike and El-P have made a name for themselves on the underground rap scene their debut mixtape, the self-titled RTJ in 2013 and again in 2015 with RTJ 2. The duo has made waves with their stylistic use of unique lyrics that surpass the norm that is set by the mainstream audiences and have become somewhat of a cult-classic within the rap community in the vein of rappers like Jedi Mind Tricks, Immortal Technique, and MF DOOM. The two are closer to the latter, in forms of literature and pop culture references mixed in with urban wisdom.

Now while the digital version of the album came out in late December 2016, the physical was not released until January 2017, placing it on the “barely made it” category. This album represents the hitting of a stride, before, the two were able to use their unconventional sound to appeal to the underground community, but this time around MC and producer El-P goes out of his way to create a different sound that does not adhere itself to the genre tropes at the time being, but still garnering mainstream attention, even being used in the worldwide premiere trailer of Marvel Studio’s Black Panther.

Among the artists joining the duo in their third album are Rage Against the Machine singer Zach De La Rocha along with jazz musician Kamasi Washington and fellow underground favorite Danny Brown, who all give proper contributions to this album. The single “Legend Has It” features a modern style of production with the usage of all kinds of alluring sounds that really seems to solidify this as the moment the glass ceiling was broken through, and introspective tracks “Talk To Me” and “Don’t Get Captured” offer their darker side frequently explored in the two albums prior to this.