4. Kendrick Lamar's 'Control' Verse
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JdcNoGmt7Ws I think anyone would agree that Hip Hop has become a bit tame in its later years. It's not that the talent isn't there, but the coastal beefs and diss tracks of the '90s Golden Era, along with the overall competitive nature of Hip Hop have taken a massive backseat, after Biggie and Pac's notorious rivalry ended with both of their lives. This year, Kendrick was looking to change this, and he made it abundantly clear on his now infamous verse on Big Sean's track, 'Control'. Now widely recognized as Ken's track, despite only featuring, his verse shouts out every big name in the game, and, while not dissing them directly, he offers a warning shot. He explains to them in very direct language that, while he's got love and respect for them all, they are his competition in this rap game, and he will be aiming to take them all out. Already being looked at as a milestone in the genre, and one of the most important songs of the year, the track showed us that Lamar is looking to bring Hip Hop back to its roots, and hopefully herald a new golden age, where competition is at the heart. The response received was overwhelming, with almost every prominent rapper offering their two cents through twitter and many of them squaring themselves up for some serious battle, even providing their own diss tracks in retaliation. While the big names of the game had spent the last decade being friendly and getting chummy with each other, Kendrick reminded us, and his fellow brethren, what hip hop is about, and that's competing with each other for the top, not sharing it equally among themselves.