25 Greatest Hip-Hop Albums Of All Time
1. Public Enemy - It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back
Public Enemy's second studio album does it all and then some. Between Chuck D's impenetrable flow and Flavor Flav's iconic hype man antics, It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back (1988) is lyrical perfection all the way through. It's almost fun, the way Chuck D constructs his rhymes, but he does so whilst tackling socio-political themes like no rap group before or since.
Nation of Millions speaks openly about the seedy underbelly of America, the effects left behind by the political past and the lives of African-Americans. With its samples, complex rhymes, big ideas and passion, the record painted a picture of America, race and history so vivid and timely it stills hits all the right notes today.
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back is complex, moody, fast-paced, clever, philosophical and political. It's also brilliantly written, expertly produced, and endlessly provocative. Because of that, it sits here as the greatest hip-hop album of all time.