25 Greatest Hip-Hop Albums Of All Time

It's impossible to overstate just how important to hip-hop N.W.A were they released their first of two studio albums, Straight Outta Compton, in 1988. At a time when rap when was going through a big change, N.W.A came along and helped push forward the subgenre of gangsta rap into the mainstream.

With their controversial, violent lyrics and deep distrust of the police and the justice system, N.W.A are just as famous for the staggering rap talents of Ice Cube, Dr Dre, Eazy-E and MC Ren as they are from their ongoing legal troubles and clashes with mainstream radio stations.

Ignoring the controversy, what is left is a rap group unwilling to be censored or shunned - a group with a powerful if tough-to-stomach message about race, inequality and society, as well as a group with a near-unrivalled influence over the rap game in the late 80s/early 90s.