In a year of unfettered violence on black bodies, we’re constantly reminded that life can be taken away at any second, by anyone, for any reason, or for none at all. It’s shocking and depressing, but Future’s “March Madness” bundles up all those feelings and throws them back at you.

Of all the videos in this list, Macklemore’s “Downtown” is the most ridiculous one. It has to be, because if he’s known for constructing cinematic, over the top creations.

The highlight of Future’s “Where Ya At” video is, without a doubt, DJ Esco, as he shuffles across the screen with a hand in your face. The chemistry he has with Metro Boomin, the other dancing figure in the background of the video, is obvious, and in tandem they demonstrate a friendship that’s much deeper than rap.

The most powerful video of the year goes to J. Cole’s “G.O.M.D.” In it, Cole is what Malcolm X once described as a “house nigga,” and he quickly becomes the target of ire of those in the field.

If you want to pull the heartstrings of your audience, play on nostalgia. That’s what director Mike Carson did for this video, and by remaking the Martin sitcom from the mid-‘90s, he handed Big Sean one of the best music videos of the year.

A famous director once said a movie is simply a “succession of images juxtaposed so that the contrast between these images moves the story forward in the mind of the audience.”

Slime Season isn’t what we thought it would be. Initially supposed to be produced entirely by London On Da Track, it’s final form features tracks from a number of different producers, giving the tape a much less cohesive feel than the excellent Barter 6 from earlier this year. But that’s okay – Thug’s style is often hard to digest for too long, so Slime Season is better seen as a collection of singles, most of which leaked before the tape […]

You might not know it, but Yo Gotti has been in the game for almost 20 years. His first tape, Youngsta’s On A Come Up, dropped in 1996, and since then his commitment to feeding the streets has never wavered. His new tape, The Return, is his most consistent project since 2013’s I Am album, and though that was released through his CMG imprint via Epic Records, this time he says he only has himself to count on: “Fuck the […]

There is perhaps no more identifiable sound right now than Zaytoven’s. The keys, the bounce, the sparkling synths; all make up a signature style that has endured since Gucci Mane’s mid-‘00s heyday. So when the MVP of rap in 2015 calls upon him for a full project, it only cements the strength of his formula.

Rick Ross hit a rough patch in 2014. He dropped two albums within eight months of each other that clearly didn’t reach his lofty expectations. His latest Black Dollar mixtape, on the other hand, finds Rozay sounding revitalized and almost urgent. Whether it’s the languid but vibrant “Money & Power” or the invigorating “We Gon Make It,” this is the best Ross has sounded in years.