’12 Best Albums: #1 Kendrick Lamar good kid, m.A.A.d city
Kendrick Lamar’s story was untold until the release of good kid, m.A.A.d city. Opening with a prayer, his tale unravels with a series of events. From getting double crossed by a local hood rat (“Sherane a.k.a. Master Splinters Daughter”) to nearly arrested (“The Art Of Peer Pressure”) Kendrick geniusly chronicles life growing up in California (“Compton”). Still the meat and potatoes of good kid, m.A.A.d city lies within the album’s sub-plots. There’s alcoholism (“Swimming Pools”), hustler ambition (“Money Trees”) and community (“good kid”, “m.a.a.d city”). Kendrick turned his ghetto story into a compelling narrative that couldn’t be ignored. The good kid won, ya bish.
Previously: #10 Slaughterhouse welcome to:Our House l #9 MMG Self Made 2 l #8 2 Chainz Based On A T.R.U. Story l #7 Meek Mill Dreams & Nightmares l #6 G.O.O.D. Music Cruel Summer l #5 Big Boi Vicious Lies & Dangerous Rumors l #4 Rick Ross God Forgives, I Don’t l #3 T.I. Trouble Man: Heavy Is The Head l #2 Nas Life Is Good
DESERVED !!!
Best album since kanye’s debut
Shocker
Great album
whats the point this being number 1 when you got Rick Ross’s GFID @ 4 and Self made in the top 10?
dont have shits like that on the same list with classics like GKMC!
i guess they got honorable mention lists for jesus piece and FNL2 (especially).
i agree, though. rah rah n all that shit.
even niggas that agree gon complain about something. shit is classic.
best album.
Kendrick won big time with GKMC
this album was good. the only thing i didn’t liked about was that kendric speaks TOO MUCH and it takes too long for lyrics to actually kick in.
Great album, well deserved. K dot better be getting some real awards for this.
CLASSIC shit! just wish we can get some better beats for the next album..c,mon Dre!
A great year for hip hop. Well deserved Dot!
Kendrick has been the best since last year
Not a surprise at all, 10/10 album. The rest of the list could be retooled tho. Mainly from 3-10.
@word I agree 100%
This album is a Master Piece… This is a VERY RARE 10/10
Already knew it from the jump….Kendrick is the future of Hip-Hop 4 real
Yup. RR couldn’t fuck this one up. The rest of the list aside from Nas was waaay off but oh well.
Haha. I stand by this comment. T.I and Big Boi didn’t deserve to be on the list.
I bet BDot was frowning as hell when he wrote this post. I guess you didnt have a choice but to acknowledge the kid.
@Tbones I bet BDot was frowning
^
why would i be?
Album was incredible. Everything from the production, to the lyrics, and the cohesion was on point. “Sing About Me/Im Dying of Thirst”>>>>>>>
definitely deserved that number 1 spot.
Ya Bish….
I definitely agree with that! My top 10 album list http://rap-critic.blogspot.co.uk/
And so he should! Aftermath, aint nuttin after that bitches!
I dont take RR list that seriously anymore since most of these list are really subjective and theres clearly alot of bias on some of the choices but I agree with the top 3 albums on this list.
Co-sign.. album is the truth.. most creative n original shit ive heard in years.. when i bought the album shit stayed in the whip on heavy rotation for about 3 weeks straight
Yea dope #1 but where is JESUS PIECE ON THE TOP 3 FUCK THIS GAY SITE AND BDOTs Gay ass!
Def #1 but no Killer Mike on the list? No Ma DOOM?
I really want to know how ppl can truly take this website as a credible source for hip-hop. Meek Mill, MMG, Ross, and 2 Chainz don’t deserve Top 10 nods.
I really want someone to explain to me why this site is credible after the recent travesty of Best of 2012 lists? It’s almost unreal how bad they chose everything.
The worst part about all these lists is that now the Pusha-T jawn is 2-3 pages back. Can someone make a version without Ross on there?
@B.Dot bc you hated on the album… you said in that interview with those other 4 scrub that “since pitchfork liked it” blah blah. Pitchfork actually represents good music and promotes artist that are on the underground.
you..youre a clown
Fuck that boring ass shit.If all you people like that weak ass,I’m falling asleep album, fine.I aint wit that.Ida taken dj paul’s repetitive ass over half that list.At least his beats go hard.
Definitely agree with 1 and 2 but how MMG and Rick Ross made this list is almost as ludicrious as the fact that FNL2 didnt make it at all. Garbage
“Finally got the Crown, this motherfucker meant for me. FUNNY HOW YOU DO YOUR TO 5 AND DON’T MENTION ME…FUCK EM ALL” JE5US PIECE
UGH… Y’all nigga’s hatin too much. RR should remove the comment section and dead y’all sensitive ass nigga’s. YUCK
Real talk, it doesn’t even matter who fell #2 thru #10 anyways
GKMC was clearly the best Album of the Year.
As long as #1 is correct the others don’t matter… Well.. besides LIG being in the top 3.
@B.Dot its pathetic that Jesus Piece didn’t make this list cuz it was easily top 5. i like big boi but his album was not top 10 at all. slaughterhouse was disappointing also. Dreamchasers 2 was better then meeks album. God forgives i dont was not bad but wasnt as good as his last album. Self made was decent but nothing special. 1.GKMC 2. Life is good 3. Jesus Piece, 4.Trouble Man 5. Cruel Summer, 6.GFID 7. Live from the underground 8. Based on an a tru story 9. Self Made 10. Dreams Nightmares real list
Much respect to Kendrick.
Tho Dr Dre certainly showed him love and he’s on Aftermath, Kendrick is pretty much on his own
No label, fellow rapper etc giving him the push or anything.
Kendrick made an album that you love listening to the first time but have to hear over and over to catch the whole story, the metaphors & other goodies. This is what someone who gets hip hop is a craft is supposed to do. Not everything has to be blatant & so in your face. Some things are hinted at, suggested, between the lines & there is no shame in admitting your fears, ambitions , victories and losses.
Thank you Kendrick for an amazing album.
Remind everyone, especially bloggers, that you can put out material that’s miles away from what everyone is doing over and over and over……and over again
@p0is0nedkoola
Lester Bangs of Hip hop
Bad Year end lists GOOD Blog
Damn like kdot, but Jesus Piece is a way better album C’mon i hate the way they underrated The Game’s talent THE REAL KING OF THE WEST COAST
Bdot dnt kno real hiphop
Well deserved, hands fucking down
‘
Best rap album since MBDTF
All of their lists go by impact, and then quality. So I don’t know why people are surprised.
Damn wow
NO JESUS PEICE !!!!!!!! ?????? ahhhhhh
fuck em let em hate …
NO r.a.p. music in the top 10 ?
NO jesus piece in the top 10 ?
NO food & liquor 2 in the top 10 ?
………
THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH U ???
1. GKMC
2. Life is Good
3. GHID
4. ONIFC
5. FAL2
6. Cruel Summer
7. Stoned Immaculate
8. Jesus Piece
9. Dreams & Nightmares
10. Trouble Man
Habits & Contradictions was just as good. Just depends on if you want to hear so lyrical shit or some new age gangsta rap shit.
This is well deserved.
But ur missing Jesus Piece on this list.
U gotta know that now, cuz look at how many people are saying it!
Ya Bush?
“Cause That’s Jesus people and The Game, he’s the equal Hated on so much, The Passion of Christ need a sequel”……….shit dawg they shit on Game Smh they will only call him Legendary when he’s dead so sad
finally!
Def Agree. Kendrick shit was hip-hop album of year.
Habits & Contradictions was definitely better than GFID, Slaughterass, Tru Story, Self Made, and Dreams & Nightmares
No ab-soul no Game wat huh? Bdot you sux bruh
JP was the truth smh fuk this shit
^ How about you explain why you think Game deserves number 1, just as BDot did.
Good pick. This was a great album. I think what’s important for an album is the rewind/scroll factor and this album definitely met this criteria.
Jesus Piece deserves to be here. Keep it real. And stop hanging on nuts. THere’s no way Dreams and Nightmares deserves to be on this list where Jesus Piece doesn’t make it … Let’s stop this assery.
Fist classic debut hip-hop album since 50 Cent/s GRODT
@Justmyopinion BARS AND BEATS NUFF SAID
Name me King (Game voice)
trouble man at #3 ???
………
THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH U ???
NO sean price’s MIC TYSON in here ???
………
THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH U ???
Is it just me or does this album seem sooo overrated? I got the cd when it dropped and its good (no pun) an everything but i really dont see why people r hyping it so much. Yes its very unique and creative in regards to the whole concept of it, and its cool that this is someones official debut album. I just honestly dont feel that this is a classic. Imo, i feel like everyone hopped on kendrick with this because it is a step forward from all the trash out there in hip hop rite now. I almost feel like people are realizing that most of hip hop is trash nowadays, and they want to become a fan of a rapper who is considered real hip hop, and this is who they chose. Example, some of my buddies who arent even really hardcore hip hop heads got this and tellin me “damn u got that gkmc? Its a classic dude” listenin to drank on repeat. Idk, i got this and listened to it prbly twice in full. On thethe other hand i got life is good when that came out and i still put that album on and just let it play, an that came out back in june or july. No hate to kendrick or gkmc
@james dolo I agree. i think it’s the most superior album of 2012, but i don’t think it’s “classic”. i think it’s VERY good. same goes for Nas
“ya BUSH” ???
………
THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH U ???
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R.A.P._Music
AND IT AIN’T NOWHERE IN YOUR LIST ???
………
THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH U ???
I think the album is slightly overrated too, imo the album gets boring and I dont know many ppl who listen to this album to this day. Most fans think if every project their favorite artist drops isnt considered the most well put together masterpiece to ever grace the frequencies of your headphones than you are a hater. But I think it was a good album but not to the extent of the die hard fans. I wasnt a big fan of the production as a whole, how many songs of his have been beat jacked? I cant name one but when somebody like Drake drops an album their usually at least 5 remixes to something like Lord Knows
Jesus Piece should have been on the list. Game got snubbed.
live tis monday in dublin fucking can,t wait
Gooood List !!!!!!
FUN FACTS —–
RICK ROSS … RICH FOREVER MIXTAPE – DESTROYS GOD FORGIVES, I DONT
BIG BOI WAS INNOVATIVE BUT NOT ALL THAT
MEEK MILLS LP OVER SLAUGHTERHOUSE….REALLY ….NO
I MUST AGREE WITH THE TOP 3 of 2012 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I had the same list.
1. Kendrick – GKMC
2. Nas – LIFE IS GOOD
3. T.I – TROUBLE MAN
2 BLACK Thumbs Up !!!!!!!!!! WAY UP !!!!!!!
LMFAO @ game being on there, dudes dick riding harder than I thought
When I saw that Life Is Good was at #2, I knew that GKMC had to be #1 and if it wasn’t, I might have just been done with this sight haha
“Ya bush” Huzzah for proof reading B. Dot. Huzzah.
Well deserved!! yah bish
best album of the year and it wasnt even close
i loved life is good
but gkmc >
How the fuck is Ross’ GFID #4 but Ab-Soul’s Control System not on the list?!? RossRadar keeps taking L’s!!!
Glad that y’all showed K. Dot some love. GKMC deserved the top spot.
I’m guessing that Schoolboy Q didn’t make the list bcuz his lp wasn’t a “major” label release.
Well all of you guys on this website! You totally neglected OC & Apollo Brow’s Trophies.. I mean, it’s not always the commercial aspect u shud consider when deciding the best album.
Even more surprising, Macklemore ‘The Heist’ is underrated and not in best albums (where it shudda been) lol.. The top two were pretty obvious anyways
Thats fuked up Game aint on the list that album is classic blastin that shit now!! Is it me or did game diss rosemo700 on see no evil did he have him killed?
This shit had like 1 or 2 good joints trash tho
@RiRi think so
Shit was trash overrated
1life is good 2jesus piece 3goodkidmadcity real list
@mmg they hate seen Game winning they know he’s dope af they just don’t like him on sum kobe shit
ya’ll really gonna put self made 2, 2chainz, ross, meek and not put JESUS PIECE….ya’ll cant be serious…no ab soul, no lupe, no schoolboy q, yea ok…embarrassing
keep hating on Game and others, just gonna keep them hungry
only accurate ones were #1 and #2
@B.Dot
even if you don’t agree with the album being a classic, you’ll have to consider it as a classic in a few years ^_^
I don’t like kendrick lamar but good kid maad city is a new standard for the other hip hp albums. Damn I don’t want to say it but this is the best album I have heard in a couple of years 🙁
Helllllllllllllll yeahhhhhhhhhh
Fuck Yea
Ali bomaye !
Jp was hot af but got to give it to kdot not cause its a better album because we need more stars in the west thats why
Lupe game ab soul? Shit is a funny list ha
Them niggas hating, i hate em niggas, make me wanna bring back tommy hilfiger lol that my shit !
Lupe fiascos food and liquor 2 the great American rap album part 1 was better then all of these albums combined
@MightyOne yup
Fuck yall west coast niggas FUCK THE GAME & FUCK 2PAC ! THE V HER BXTCHES YUP YUP
Push
Fuk kendrick
@V9 kill your self right now
Kendricks Album sucks really bad and im a big fan its the truth so for it to be even in the top 10 just shows how ppl kiss his ass hope next album has good beats cause the beats were trash flow was good jus hate it when he sings weird jus use yur own voice kdot not that autotune shit
Ps Mostly Ever1 i kno said it sux
V9 your on some krazy dope huh u base head
This shit left my car after 2days i just didn’t feel the vibe
i think if u ask 9 out of 10 hiphop fans about kendicks album, they will say its a classic just for the sake of it, its very good but defn not a classic, unless you can call it a ‘new age classic’ or sumthn, i think if rozay released rich forever as an album it woulda hands down shitted on everything else this year including gkmc and life is good bcoz the music was so powerful, people hate on him but if you put all 3 of his projects this year plus meek mills shit, he overlapped the whole rap game! think about it
I fill this is dr Dre’s first project, that didn’t live up to the hype. The West Coast was waiting for Kendrick to drop a classic album like The Documentary because that Album put the the West Coast back on the map and was a insant Classic snoop was old dpg were geting old but still dope. 2Pac was dead eazy e dead ice cube was acting So Game came out of no where and put the Coast on his back and became the King out here now that he is 5 albums in and sold 11mill he needs a brake he needs help he been doin it by him self thats where Kdot comes in Hope he stays long and isn’t a one hit type of rapper cause dude can rap! Snoop Em 50 Game now kendrick lamar i wish him the best he can be extraordinary like the ones before him.
Got in my whip is cruleSummer gkmC and JP
i cant believe people are acting surprised/mad at this tho…
Sum1 frm MMG should have had #1spot
Stop compairing him to Game piz and thank U
Wow just saw the list and some 1 BIG is missing SMH
It was not the number1 album by far
I think Shyne Po will have a problem w/this 1
Ross #4??? Fixed
Snubbed
Shyne aint rich shyne po lol
i dont think he heard Jesus Piece…. that shit was waaaayyy better than Ti album…. ask around.. most will tell you…. Jesus Piece right at 3…
EVER HEARD JESUS PIECE??
gkmc deserved #1
Best hip hop albums of the deceny and the album is crowned “best album (all genre)” by 90% of the other magazines.
kendrick won
Trash
How biased can RR be? How the fuck did jesus piece not even make the top 10? Should of been at least 3rd.
@jennifer does that persons name start with a G?
Sourse top 3 was nas kendrick and game
It’s fucked up the way the rap game goes first you had lil wayne now you have 2chains first you had Game now you have Kendrick.
I like a few cuts on here
This and LIG are the only ones I agree with you on! Cruel Summer & WTOH should’ve been rated 3rd and 4th or at least not rated worse than 2 Chainz and Rick Ross. smh
Oh, and where’s Jesus Piece?
What a conspiracy yall at RR got going on!? JP is dumb hot robbed the man
@Bdot why do you reply to shit that don’t matter but we all askin why u shited on Game and u can’t answer cuz ?
@john Bdot is a super jayz fan, thats cool jayz is the man but why would he post Game top3?? shit he didn’t even make his top 10! witch is really fucked up SMFH to me the game is the top 5 DEAD OR ALIVE i have fucked wit him since 04, and he’s only getting better… Bdot just don’t him as a person.
[…] HERE For full […]
@ the Rap Radar staff…
No hate here, I’m just wondering if u all would break down ur criteria as it relates to ur lists.
Don’t get me wrong, a lot of the picks r dead on but, there r a few head scratchers. I guess I’m curious
on what these lists r based on. N!99@$ r going to front but, y’all hold weight as far as the web is
concerned. I’d be the 1st to admit that I’ve went back and checked shit out based on ur end of the yr
list.
this fuckin site dont support Game at all..all his music and shit get the most comments on this fuckin site and when his album come out they dont support him…everybody knows Game puts out solid albums with dope lyrics and beats and Jesus Piece was easily one of the albums of the year..it doesnt matter if you dont like him as a person you have to respect his talent as a rapper and he is one of the best in this rap shit
i cant believe it! they blocked me. this is unreal. someone who just speaks their mind and they can’t stand it
we need to not support this site. they have proved the fact that they only look style and not talent.
I can’t believe Meek Mill was a top 10 album on this site. its almost funny.
[…] #10 Slaughterhouse welcome to:Our House l #9 MMG Self Made 2 l #8 2 Chainz Based On A T.R.U. Story l #7 Meek Mill Dreams & Nightmares l #6 G.O.O.D. Music Cruel Summer l #5 Big Boi Vicious Lies & Dangerous Rumors l #4 Rick Ross God Forgives, I Don’t l #3 T.I. Trouble Man: Heavy Is The Head l #2 Nas Life Is Good l Kendrick Lamar good kid m.A.A.d city […]
Haha RR fuked up for that one jesus piece was fuckin crazy the red album was a good album to and i dont think u put that wow
cool album but i think ppl dickrdin all lil i mean section 80 was way better WHO AGREES?????
Kdot’s shit was trash i like his first album
@74 i do
list was wack. GKMC obviously deserves 1, but 2 shoulda been killer mike’s album, way better than LiG. had better beats, more cohesive sound and he spat fire throughout. there’s not one bad cut on that record, whereas LiG got stinkers like summer on smash, and dated production on a number of em as well. shoulda been top 10, but no way number 2. r.a.p. music owes a lot to el-p, who’s own album was insane as well. ridiculous that he gets no love from hip-hop heads but the rest of the world loves him. el-p (and mike will) owned this year, beat-wise.
T.I.’s album was duuuull, sounded dated, hip-hop’s supposed to be fresh. no bangers, half assed raping. got bored 4 tracks thru and didn’t even bother listening to what he was saying. only reason this is on here is coz T.I. commercial as hell like this site.
all the MMG stuff didn’t deserve that much acclaim from you guys either. I hate meek mill but i can tell dreamchasers 2 bumps, even if i don’t listen to it. but his album?! man that guy betrayed his own sound; got no good bars and the production’s generic. could be off any southern dude’s mixtape (messed up that he ain’t even from the south). bad move releasing just after kendrick as well, really shows how amateur meek is in comparison; guy’s got no range and no idea how to craft an actual song (gonna put ‘amen’ and ‘burn’ down to luck). ross’s album was clearly not even close to the quality of his mixtape (it was still good though), the jay-z and dr dre collab was especially disappointing, can’t think of anything i wanna hear less than dre braggin about damn headphones! and finally from MMG; self made vol 2… what the hell was that?! all them tracks sound exactly the same. only good thing about that album’s power circle (which is mainly down to gunplay killing it).
slaughterhouse was forgettable, VLADR was a disappointment (especially after sir lucious left foot).
2 chainz’s record and cruel summer are both solid though, stuffed with cuts you wanna drive to, dance to, or bang to.
this year sucked, bar a few records hopefully 2013’s better. looking good so far, asap’s album sounds great.
my top 10:
1. k.dot – good kid, m.a.a.d city
2. killer mike – r.a.p. music
3. freddie gibbs – baby face killa (was released without the dj tags as a downloadable album)
4. schoolboy q – habits and contradictions
5. el-p – cancer 4 cure
6. nas – life if good
7. good music – cruel summer
8. 2 chainz – based on a t.r.u. story
9. chief keef – finally rich
10. rick ross – god forgives, i don’t
jesus piece was trash though, can’t see why people shit on rapper like keef, who stick to their lane and do it well (apart from laughing to the bank and 1 or 2 others finally rich is the best shit to switch your brain off to and have some fun), and then go and listen to a dude like game. lame-ass, 30yo+, grown man name dropping like he’s paris hilton, then coming out with half baked concepts like jesus piece. filled with features, no actual sound to the album, only thing that links it together is every song’s got game on it (saying one or 2 words about jesus and then going straight back to talking about other people like a girl and talking about money)
No
overrated
RipHop just stop no one cares about you
SHOULDA BEEN NUMBER TWO.
http://t.co/zzUQZC6I
Growing up in South Central Los Skanless, this album took me surprise. It’s a straight banger no doubt. Heavy rotation big time. As for the people putting Jesus Piece in your top 10, go slap yo self!!! Jesus Piece is one the worst hiphop albums ever and I am westcoast dude to the fullest…
Co- sign w/ the ripper.
I didn’t want to come off as a hater but, Game peaked a LOOOOOONG time ago. Based on his music u can tell that he’s a student of the game, and is a fan hip hop. The problem w/ him is that he hasn’t evolved as a MC. Documentary was a classic, no doubt but, everything after that was so-so.
Outside o the 1s joint it’s been the same formula w/ every lp. Spend $$$ on beats and features and slap ur logo on the front. He might as well put DJ in front of ur name, all u’re doing is putting together a compilation lp. Don’t get it twisted tho, he has his moments but, they’re short lived bcuz of his inconsistently and identity crisis.
After a listen or 2 his lp’s become forgettable.
shoulda been NUMBER TWO
This beat out everyone else for best album by miles and miles and miles
List is pretty accurate especially top 5 but the Slaughter House album def should not be on this list for best album of 2012
Either 2012 was absolute trash, or this is the worst compiled year end list I have ever seen. Maybe a mix of both. The only thing I agree on are #1 & 2. I think 1 & 2 are interchangeable. I personally would have had LIG at #1, but have no issue with Kendrick holding the spot. T.I’s album came out in the middle of December, so I’m not sure how it made the list, even if it is that good. Let that album marinate and include it on next year’s list. The rest of the list is trash. Not a single underground or indy album on the list. All major label releases. Rap Radar, if you guys only specialize in mainstream rap you need to adjust the title to best mainstream albums of 2012.
[…] #10 Slaughterhouse welcome to:Our House l #9 MMG Self Made 2 l #8 2 Chainz Based On A T.R.U. Story l #7 Meek Mill Dreams & Nightmares l #6 G.O.O.D. Music Cruel Summer l #5 Big Boi Vicious Lies & Dangerous Rumors l #4 Rick Ross God Forgives, I Don’t l #3 T.I. Trouble Man: Heavy Is The Head l #2 Nas Life Is Good l #1 Kendrick Lamar good kid m.A.A.d city […]
[…] locking in last year’s top rap and R&B albums, K-Dot and Miguel point the fingers on VIBE‘s upcoming “Big List” […]
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Aye my nigga