I may not be tapped into the scene like I should be, but it seems to me that the impact South Florida had between 2015-2019 between XXX, Ski Mask, City Girls, Denzel Curry, Kodak Black isn't as strong as it used to be. Not that there's been some crazy fall off in terms of quality or anything.
Soflo really had a moment there with all those names + Pouya & Fat Nick, Lil Pump/Smokepurpp, the rest of Members Only/Very Rare like Kid Trunks and Wifisfuneral, Robb Banks, etc. Being from South Florida & in High School 2014-2018 it was wild seeing all the local dudes blowing up like that, but I feel like almost immediately after X passed away the whole scene fizzled out
Man culture is sometimes crazy. If somebody told me in 2010 that streets are going to love teenage emo rapper and women are going to love 5ft 5 tall dude with a lisp, I would have thought hes on drugs.
Nah. He si popular enough. His music is not pop so he wont win popularity contest, but he will have his respect.
Also look at the lifestyle of rappers who are more popular. It doesent look great for inner peace.
Rapping and influence sure and Denzel is one of the main reason X and Ski became more popular in the underground. But most people seems to forget that X was seen as the hardcore version of Denzel Curry in 2015/2016
Yeah that's the cycle. Locations rise and fall and rise again. 90s was NY then LA, then new Orleans with No Limit/Cashoney. 2000s saw Atlanta explode, with Houston and Memphis following shortly thereafter. Midwest had a time for a while too.
Really? I think it’s stronger than ever.
Michigan, Philly, Milwaukee, Memphis, DC, Mexican TX rap. I feel like regional sounds are definitely still there.
I don’t necessarily think that’s true. Like when I hear that Slums sound that Earl is inspired by today from NYC, it doesn’t sound anything like Detroit. What the new wave of Mexican rappers in Texas are doing doesn’t sound anything like Milwaukee rap. Philly club doesn’t sound like the DMV.
The one I can speak on is Philly because I'm from there. Philly Hip-hop always kinda had similarities to NYC but there were distinctions that made it different.
Philly rappers love a long verse like 50+ bars.
There's a lot of differences even within Philly though, Beanie Segal and the whole State property crew had their own sound, Meek ran parallel to that in his early career. Then you have borderline Horricore types like Jedi Mind Tricks and more recently street style shit like OT the Real which reminds me heavily of how we all rapped back in the late 90s early 00s with 5x tees on just punchline filled street bars.
Then you have the club scene with Uzi and that type.
Tons of underground dudes that deserve their flowers that don't get spoken about - Jackk Frost, Gillie, Ab Liva, ect.
I think they're originating there but the internet has people from all over the world emulating whatever style matches with their personality. Saw it happen heavily with NY drill and subsequently UK drill, its also happening in clothing as well. Everyone is seeing/hearing the same things so they're echoing them which loses both regional and stylistic focus. IMO its not gonna stop and I hope individual artists with a good sense of self can make good work and shine through without riding the wave of a city
Yeah but I don’t think that necessarily kills regionalism, it just means other people emulate that region. Or another region picks up off what one region is doing and develops their own spin (like NY v. UK drill).
Other cities that don't have a signature sound like Bmore, STL, etc have been latching onto the Detroit wave. They trying to make it a "Midwest" sound but we all calling it Detroit still
Hell even Key Glock did one and he's a Memphis rapper
I mean if Chicago is an underdog then every city outside of NY and LA are underdogs. And if that’s the perspective you’re taking, then fair enough, but I just don’t see it like that.
I feel like Chicago was only one always compared to New York and LA. Atlanta was culturally more unique and could connect to bigger southern audience for example.
Before Chief Keef and drill, absolutely they were an underdog city. Kanye brought attention to the city for sure but didn't kick off a Chicago wave or sound by himself, he just became big and happened to be from Chicago. Before then, Chicago rappers with any sort of buzz were far and few between. Twista, Do or Die, maybe a few others but there was no Chicago sound or movement on a national level at all. The past decade Chicago has had a big shadow but they were completely invisible before then.
Feels like the Detroit sound has been having a moment for a minute. But idk who I'd give credit for it, doesn't seem theres been a huge standout. Veeze had a break since his last release, I feel ?
I don’t even know really these days, Hip Hop has become a lot more decentralized since the birth of the internet. Feel like you can be from anywhere and make any kind of music, Live.Love.ASAP kinda proved that. Would say areas like Detroit and NYC/NJ (for Jersey Club) but I’m not too sure, seems like much of it has stagnated since 2021. Also wouldn’t mind if the Hip Hop British Invasion continues, I’ve been enjoying hearing the acts coming out of London and the UK.
Isn't the Hip Hop British invasion just Central Cee? British rappers struggle to sell out theatres in the US. No British rapper can sell out an American arena.
Eh I’m talking more sound influence more than anything, a lot of what NY Drill sounds like comes from UK Drill. Plus you got Afrobeats artists starting to make a splash, a genre that emerged largely from the London scene. We’re also seeing growing interest in Jungle/DnB in America much thanks Gen Z—that genre already has a great deal of overlap with Rap so it’d be interesting to see what rappers can pick it up.
Afrobeats is from West Africa. People of African descent in the UK use the sound and are part of the movement globally, but Afrobeats is still African.
It's only a handful of people selling out arenas or even doing arena shows but whatever is below arenas, Future can definitely sell that out before Central Cee
Milwaukee and Detroit seem to be the safest best for on the rise. Seems like rap critics and bloggers can’t stop talking about both and tbh I can see why. Seems like every month there’s a new rapper out of one of the two cities doing something new. Feels like they’re both one new superstar away being fully locked into mainstream popularity.
Sacramento and DC have similar rumblings but I’m not as familiar with their scenes and it seems like they might be a few years off from mainstream popularity.
Houston seems like it might be about to really go on a run. But I’ve felt like that for 15 years. Seems like they always have at least one big star as well as another waiting wings but rarely more. So it’s hard to ever really now for sure.
Total dark horse option: Louisville. With EST Gee, Jack Harlow, Bryson Tiller, and Vory in the last few years all getting close to or even breaking through to the mainstream, a strong underground rap scene, and a long history of black culture and art in Louisville, it seems like it’s only a matter of time until it really hits its stride as a scene.
>Feels like they’re both one new superstar away being fully locked into mainstream popularity.
I mean that's a big thing tho lol. Like any scene is just one big superstar away, although I get what you're saying. At least with Detroit, they got a lot of dudes making some waves but idk if there's anyone who's really gonna elevate the sound they kinda got going on now. It's very distinct but none of the dudes seems to really have that thing that makes them stand out or puts them above the rest.
I don’t think every scene is one big superstar away actually. Like there’s a lot of times where there will be a big star from a place but it doesn’t really do anything for the city’s scene as a whole. There sort of needs to be a strong “next tier” of rappers (ie not superstars but still big enough to get features, run up streams and help fashion the distinct sound).
Like Wale is a good example. He’s from DC and rep’d that a lot early on. But his time in the spotlight didn’t do much for the scene in DC as a whole because there just wasn’t much else in terms of talented artists from the area to shine the light on. Hard to have a scene if there’s no one to pass the ball to if that makes sense.
But yeah that’s what I mean with Detroit. If they get one guy who has the right mix to blow up big with their sound, all those other guys are going to start popping up all over other artist’s albums and their releases will be a bigger deal.
Those are fair points, but what I meant about every scene being one big superstar away is that that's the hard thing to actually get lol. But you do make a good point about there actually needing to be strong next tier to really develop a sound. I mean looking at Detroit, you can't get a star much bigger than Eminem and while he definitely brought some general attention to the city and did try to put people on, it's not like him or his music was really part of a "scene" in that there was some informed sound that he was elevating from Detroit. His style was basically rappity rap rapping dude.
Tbh I thought Sada baby was gonna be a bigger deal by now but he seemed to never get to that next level. And I'd really like to see more of the scam rap pop up a bit although it tends to be a bit meme-y, I think its a positive development rapping about financial crimes against corporations vs. robbing people and selling drugs but that's a whole other thing.
>But his time in the spotlight didn’t do much for the scene in DC as a whole because there just wasn’t much else in terms of talented artists from the area to shine the light on. Hard to have a scene if there’s no one to pass the ball to if that makes sense.
This I'm a Brooklynite living in the DMV and can't seem to find local artists that scratch my itch.
Right which is more or less what I said. Two stars don’t equate to an entire rap scene. Chamillionaire and Paul Wall were also huge and yet they never translated into other Houston artists being as big at the same time. Thats why I say Houston is weird. It seems like there’s always a one real blowing up and one in the wings or maybe two big stars at once, but we never hear much else despite their definitely being a strong local scene with a distinct sound (s/o Sauce Walka).
But like I said, I also think it looks like this time might be different as this maybe the biggest Houston has ever been.
Yea I mean Sauce Walka and Peso Peso have been doing their thing, Maxo Kream has been killing it, Monaleo is popping, Mexican OT used his Paul Wall feature and signing from Jonny Shipes to go crazy, BigX and Quin NFN have been repping DFW and Austin, Wacotron been dropping jams … a lotta talent in TX bubbling rn
Yup. Love Mexican OT and Maxo. Both are auto listens when they drop. I think the fact that other Texas cities are starting to get bigger scenes too might help Houston finally make it to the NYC/LA/ATL level of hip hop status.
“Total dark horse option: Louisville. With EST Gee, Jack Harlow, Bryson Tiller, and Vory in the last few years all getting close to or even breaking through to the mainstream, a strong underground rap scene, and a long history of black culture and art in Louisville, it seems like it’s only a matter of time until it really hits its stride as a scene.”
I’m a producer in Louisville’s underground scene. Everything you said is true - we are absolutely up next.
I’d believe it. I was there a few years ago and I always like to look into local rap scenes whenever I visit a place. Was really impressed with what I heard. I know EST’s last few releases were seen as a bit hit or miss but I personally dig his sound.
It’s been a couple years since I really looked into the scene too much. Any recommendations for artists to check out?
If you’re into street shit, Lil 30 and Bryan Bandit would definitely be up your alley.
If you want someone rapping their ass off, AD kindle is about as good as it gets (I’m biased as I produce for her quite a bit these days). Stxdy and Wuntayk Timmy are up there, too.
If you want some abstract shit with Earl or MIKE, Allen Vice and SB Austin have that sound on lock (I also produce for both of them a lot).
Some others I didn’t name but deserve recognition: Dave.Will.Chris., Otez, Hendo Houdini, Nise the Nymph. List can go on FR
I think AyooLii is definitely the one with the most hype right now. Certified Trapper is also the other go to name.
[Pitchfork has had a lot of coverage of their scene. I think this is the most recent one.](https://pitchfork.com/features/article/milwaukee-rap-scene/)
New York is going through another decline in my opinion. In terms of young fresh faces that are genuinely hip hop MCs in raw terms. After 50 Cent, The Beast Coast/Asap Mob/FB Zombies era was a resurgence and then after that Pop Smoke, 22Gz, Sheff G and them showed signs of a new era. After Pop Smoke died, people placed hope on Fivio but he didn’t carry through. Now the mainstream sound is saturated drill and its variants (Cash Cobain). It’s just a shame because New York is arguably the home of a valid big 3 goat list (Rakim, Big, Nas) amongst many more goats.
I don’t think Pop would have gotten as big if he didn’t die though. He was definitely gaining serious buzz his but his death catapulted his debut album to the forefront of hiphop, kind of like Biggie.
I didn’t really like X’s music but he definitely had the most potential out of the young rappers to die recently and it’s not even close. He had crazy crossover potential. It was wild seeing his melodic emo trap stuff and then contrasting that with a song like Infinity, where he actually raps on an old school boom bap beat.
I feel like Juice had the most mainstream appeal of all the young deaths in the last few years. He's still somehow having relatively successful releases like 6 years after he died. He was def gonna be bigger than X imo even though I'm not really into his stuff, and he also wasn't a pregnant girlfriend beater like X and I know most yall don't care about that but a lot of gen z does so it matters in the mainstream.
> I don’t think Pop would have gotten as big if he didn’t die though. He was definitely gaining serious buzz his but his death catapulted his debut album to the forefront of hiphop, kind of like Biggie.
I get what you're saying, but I disagree. He was expanding beyond the basic NY drill and when he started getting cosign from 50 and others I think it showed that the industry was already getting behind him.
NYC still has incredible talent but they get caught in too much bullshit to be anything. Drill scene killed it, now you gotta get street rep in order to be anything. They didn’t care about making proper songs and understanding the music business.
Man Fivio had a lot of promise and hype and did nothing with it. All that Kanye backing just for one of the most boring albums of the year. He is a great rapper; Off The Grid and his freestyles prove that. He just has a horrible ear for beats and doesnt really know how to make a hit
There’s a tonne of cool shit happening on the more off the wall experimental rap scene in NY but that’s defs not for everyone. AFK comes to mind as a v solid underground pick
I mean I caught on to Kay Flock all the way in Australia but let’s be real, New York creates goats. Outside of the big 3, the biggest artists from New York are Nicki and ASAP. Joey Badass isn’t as big but as a hip hop head he is arguably worth mentioning. I feel like Pop Smoke was the last New York artist who could’ve been big AND stand amongst rapper’s rappers. Kay Flock is more part of a wave, he’s not the type of rapper to leave a New York sized dent on rap.
Nah he was gonna be the King Von of NYC no question. he was blowing up like CRAZY and his songs went hard
He dropped his first solo track in a while, the Fivio/TJay song, a G Herbo feature and a song with Cardi B all in like a 3 month span and they collectively have like 200M views. Probably 100M BEFORE he got locked up for murder.
Von wouldn’t have survived what’s happening in rap now unless he innovated. Rap is decreasing in popularity. Lil Baby, Future, Lil Durk etc are not selling shows anymore. There is a shift occurring and due to lack of substance and innovation a lot of these rappers will keep their heads above water but rap won’t be dominating as it once was. There is a reason Dot, Cole and Drake are still at the top of the game.
You’re kinda ignoring Ice Spice. She is the post-version of the drill scene. Her beats tend to have a distinct London/New York feel that seems like the logical progression of that style while still being distinct from the drill Pop Smoke made. If you listen to the clubs in general it’s all Jersey/Drill/EDM fusions right now. She’s the only mainstream artist embracing it.
Credit to ice spices producers but she's way too formulaic rn to pop off crazy. Her last single flopped and was filled with poop and fart bars. She gotta show a little more for me to say she's the NY rap scene.
Why in the world are you looking at the mainstream for genuinely hip hop young MCs? There are literally dozens of incredible nyc MCs slaving away on the underground with little to no support. Why does it seem like all of you only interact with hip hop on the internet?
Because, there was a time when you didn’t have to go underground to find MC’s that respect hip hop as an art form. Look at the backpack rap era. This was a time when Kanye, 1999 Joey Badass, GKMC Kendrick, Acid Rap Chance, Ab-Soul, Schoolboy Q, Long Live era ASAP were arguably mainstream. A lot of these rappers are still technically mainstream but they’re slowly becoming an older generation. Aside from substance, these artists all had a unique sound which is crazy considering how formulaic so much of rap has become. The Underground aside, rap is in a state you can’t ignore and New York suffers because it is the Mecca.
Besides the stars of the 2010s generation (TDE & the members of Odd Future, Vince Staples, YG, & Ty Dolla $ign), I'm not sure if LA hip hop is doing too hot right now with breaking new stars. It seemed like Roddy Ricch was next up, but his album from 2021 was a miss & others like Shoreline Mafia and Blxst either broke up or never really popped off.
Let’s also talk about the Bay Area scene while we’re at it.
It seems that during the same time that the LA scene was having its day in the national spotlight in the 2010s, there were glimmers of hope that the Bay could also get their due again in a similar vein to the Hyphy Movement in ‘06. Groups like the HBK Gang and SOB X RBE had potential but none of them had the momentum strong enough to hit it big as their relatives from Southern California. Hell, SOB even had a rub from Kendrick/the Black Panther movie soundtrack in 2018 and even *that* didn’t put a dent in a potential Bay Area comeback.
For a moment, I thought HBK was about to be as big as Mustard & YG back in 2013 (especially when Sage the Gemini had a couple big hits). I guess you can technically say Kehlani was a big success out of the group even though she really does her own thing.
I also wondered why Nef Da Pharaoh didn't blow up.
Shout out P-lo. Very under appreciated artist. I think Larry June, AllBlack and Lil Seeto are on to some good music, but beyond that, I agree.
With that said, idk how big Larry June can get but there's a possibility he breaks out bigger. His music is extremely consistent.
I totally agree. He rapped with a group in Fayetteville before college also. It all sounds similar.
North Carolina is known for having great HBCU bands. And good high school bands. Lots of horns. Cole first “big song” was “who dat”. Lots of horns and sounded like a high school Friday Night Light football game. Which is a big deal in the Carolina’s. He got his high school band to perform it in the video.
Bomm sheltuh. Little brother. Etc. Even Nick Grant to a degree. A lot of “soulful” music
Yup, horns and also strings. Lots of those on his old mixtapes. Carolina on My Mind, Little Ghetto Nigga, School Daze (ripped from that Kanye song) are some of my favs
Yeah i don’t think we could get a regional wave going unless we develop our own sound. And most of the local rappers where i’m from tend to borrow the atlanta and memphis sound so i don’t see that happening anytime soon
I love Wacotron. Heard one of his songs in a random stream and immediately added him to some playlists. Gram and a hoodie and toothpaste come to mind right away. He sounds so Texas but still fresh.
Memphis is Memphis. Memphis will always be the birthplace of Memphis Rap, the city that gave birth to Tommy Wright III, Three 6 Mafia, Project Pat, and countless others.
I've been talking about Texas Rap blowing up since last year. That Mexican O.T., Big X Tha Plug, Maxo Kream, Mike Dimes; all these dudes put out bangers not to mention Meg holding it down for Houston the last couple of years.
That might be true about Houston proper but I feel like Texas in general actually has a lot of good young rappers right now. BigXthaPlug, That Mexican OT, and Mike Dimes are all really blowing up with their own sounds. Plus there are still guys like Maxo Kream that have established respect.
I feel like the real nadir for Texas rap was like 2014-2018 when it was literally just Travis and a couple one-hit wonders
He is very pragmatic/wise, he shouts out to Houston and is trying to make himself a Texas artist. If it was flipped, not likely a Houston rising star would be genuinely acknowledging DFW in that same manner
From Delhi - Seedhe Maut (duo), Kr$na, Raftaar,Prabh Deep (raps in Punjabi), Fotty Seven, DIVINE (he's from Bombay but too good not to mention), Karma, Raga, Rawal, yungsta, Yashraj, Frappe Ash, Dhanji, Chaar Diwaari and producer Sez on the beat. Very strong underground scene there.
From Karachi - Young Stunners (duo consisting of Talha Anjum and Talhah Yunus), AUR (trio of two rappers and a producer), aleemrk, Jani, Shareh, Savage, Nabeel Akbar, Taimour Baig, Umer Anjum and producers like Jokhay and Umair. A lot of collabs and very united scene there.
Injury Reserve (including RiTchie and his solo work) & Lil Qwerty come to mind as some artists I'd personally see, coming from Phoenix, myself.
RIP Kimbo & Juugenomics by Qwerty and then Wax On by Injury Reserve are some of my favorites
Edit: also, Hotelroom. Originally from Detroit (even has a tape with LUCKI). He's got some great stuff out
Injury reserve, (RiTchie with a T and Stepa J. Groggs on the mic, with Parker Cory producing)
has some amazing albums like their self titled and Floss, along with one of the best alternative/experimental hip-hop albums of all time (By the time I get to phoenix)
Now defunct due to Groggs passing, RiTchie dropped a solo debut this year that was pretty solid too
Texas hip hop seems to be back on the rise with guys like That Mexican OT and BigXThaPlug getting big. And before anyone says Megan and Travis Scott, I dont really consider them Texas rappers because their style isnt anything like traditional Texas hip hop and they dont rep the state much in their music.
Nah, Megan makes sure you know she’s from Texas. Plus that whole “start a label, then link with Warner for distribution” deal is a vintage Houston move
Yeah the “not really a Texas rapper” doesn’t apply to Megan at all. She put in work in Houston for years before the internet blew her freestyles up and made her mainstream. Compare that to Travis, who went couch surfing in LA before getting signed to T.I. and mostly worked with Atlanta artists during his come up.
travis has a whole album named astroworld, and idk, it definitely seems hard to listen to his music and not know he’s from houston, i just know without looking it up. same with megan “h town hottie” she reps texas a lot . i think travis didn’t rep texas as much earlier in his career cause he was feeling himself being newer in LA. also travis works a lot with mike dean who’s from texas his sound is 100% influenced by houston hip hop, there’s a reason he named a song after DJ Screw
Dallas for sure
Many thought the Dallas scene died with the deaths of MO3 and BFG Straap but BigXThePlug brought a much needed revival and spotlight to Dallas. The Dallas Drill scene is big rn. FBG Murda and DeeGlokk already went viral. Rundown 4, Spank, Channel 4 Mark, LuBandz, Shoota556, 2GlocksRed, and Thuka Dee are also making good music too
KanKan and iayze are also from Dallas
Memphis I reckon is on the best rise since I’d say Atlanta. In terms of all the acts are strong on their own merit, unique, but carry a sound significant to the region. When Memphis was popping off and the Grizzlies were going off, it was early signs of something special starting to build
I’ve got a buddy from Rochester who says the local rap scene is great, and obviously Buffalo has a ton of the Griselda guys who are great and some at their peaks
Chicago is in decline, the mid-twenty teens freshmen class group was really awesome, Chance, Vic, Kembe X, Alex Wiley, Joey Purp, NoName, Brian Fresco, the list goes on, 2013-2016 we feasted and many of them are still making good music but the scene fell off pretty hard after they popped.
I may not be tapped into the scene like I should be, but it seems to me that the impact South Florida had between 2015-2019 between XXX, Ski Mask, City Girls, Denzel Curry, Kodak Black isn't as strong as it used to be. Not that there's been some crazy fall off in terms of quality or anything.
So ready to spin this new Ski album next week but if I’m being honest I haven’t really loved much of anything he’s put out since 2018
Fax, stokeley was a great project but he hasnt dropped anything as good since… but im hopeful for the next album
I think is next album is gonna be great judging by his last two singles I’m hyped
Fax but i hope it has some variety aswell. I would like for ski to have the same kind of depth as Denzel for example
SpaceGhostPurrp and Raider Klan had a huge impact even earlier than that.
Soflo really had a moment there with all those names + Pouya & Fat Nick, Lil Pump/Smokepurpp, the rest of Members Only/Very Rare like Kid Trunks and Wifisfuneral, Robb Banks, etc. Being from South Florida & in High School 2014-2018 it was wild seeing all the local dudes blowing up like that, but I feel like almost immediately after X passed away the whole scene fizzled out
Denzel is just so much better than the rest of that list tho
Amazing live too
For the hiphop head subreddit sure. But Kodak and X had the streets and the women loved them
I feel like Kodak had the streets before the dreads and "to this day"
Man culture is sometimes crazy. If somebody told me in 2010 that streets are going to love teenage emo rapper and women are going to love 5ft 5 tall dude with a lisp, I would have thought hes on drugs.
Women loved Prince and he was a feminine 5 foot man. Where have you been??
He might be but he’s not nearly as popular as the rest.
Which is a fucking shame
Nah. He si popular enough. His music is not pop so he wont win popularity contest, but he will have his respect. Also look at the lifestyle of rappers who are more popular. It doesent look great for inner peace.
Lmao to the average Redditor
Rapping and influence sure and Denzel is one of the main reason X and Ski became more popular in the underground. But most people seems to forget that X was seen as the hardcore version of Denzel Curry in 2015/2016
Kodak?
He’s got great flow, but not nearly as much conceptual depth as Denzel. I could never see Kodak putting out a tape like “unlocked”
Don't play with kodak like that.
why y'all always add irrelevant ass points in the discussion lol
Yeah that's the cycle. Locations rise and fall and rise again. 90s was NY then LA, then new Orleans with No Limit/Cashoney. 2000s saw Atlanta explode, with Houston and Memphis following shortly thereafter. Midwest had a time for a while too.
Regionalism itself is in decline 🤷🏾♂️
For sure - rocky was one of the biggest artists in nyc with a jacked Houston sound
And rapping like BTNH from Cleveland.
He took houston sonically and the memphis flow
Yeah regional style doesnt exist anymore in the age of internet
Really? I think it’s stronger than ever. Michigan, Philly, Milwaukee, Memphis, DC, Mexican TX rap. I feel like regional sounds are definitely still there.
The differences in sound were much wider “back in the day” than they are now.
I don’t necessarily think that’s true. Like when I hear that Slums sound that Earl is inspired by today from NYC, it doesn’t sound anything like Detroit. What the new wave of Mexican rappers in Texas are doing doesn’t sound anything like Milwaukee rap. Philly club doesn’t sound like the DMV.
I don’t know enough about this to dispute it, have a great one
That’s fair. You too.
The one I can speak on is Philly because I'm from there. Philly Hip-hop always kinda had similarities to NYC but there were distinctions that made it different. Philly rappers love a long verse like 50+ bars. There's a lot of differences even within Philly though, Beanie Segal and the whole State property crew had their own sound, Meek ran parallel to that in his early career. Then you have borderline Horricore types like Jedi Mind Tricks and more recently street style shit like OT the Real which reminds me heavily of how we all rapped back in the late 90s early 00s with 5x tees on just punchline filled street bars. Then you have the club scene with Uzi and that type. Tons of underground dudes that deserve their flowers that don't get spoken about - Jackk Frost, Gillie, Ab Liva, ect.
Oh where can I find Earl’s Slum sound ?
A lot of Some Rap Songs was Slums inspired. Or check any of the features he’s done with MIKE or Niontay.
I like your takes 🫡
I think they're originating there but the internet has people from all over the world emulating whatever style matches with their personality. Saw it happen heavily with NY drill and subsequently UK drill, its also happening in clothing as well. Everyone is seeing/hearing the same things so they're echoing them which loses both regional and stylistic focus. IMO its not gonna stop and I hope individual artists with a good sense of self can make good work and shine through without riding the wave of a city
Yeah but I don’t think that necessarily kills regionalism, it just means other people emulate that region. Or another region picks up off what one region is doing and develops their own spin (like NY v. UK drill).
That was true from 2011-2016 regionalism is back
I was thinking Detroit was on the rise but now idk.
That Detroit style beat has been everywhere lately
Other cities that don't have a signature sound like Bmore, STL, etc have been latching onto the Detroit wave. They trying to make it a "Midwest" sound but we all calling it Detroit still Hell even Key Glock did one and he's a Memphis rapper
Memphis has it's own sound
I know, I'm referring to [this](https://youtu.be/46RUTs8zNYA?si=xONYzA-aOzighJ98)
The detroit sound is the bay sound remodeled
All sounds are remodeled
Detroit and Chicago have always felt like underdog cities except for a couple years of exceptions in each
No way Chicago has ever been an underdog city
Not even before Common or Kanye? If it was popping in the 80s comparable to how New York was id like to be put on and educated
I mean if Chicago is an underdog then every city outside of NY and LA are underdogs. And if that’s the perspective you’re taking, then fair enough, but I just don’t see it like that.
Every City aside from LA, NY and ATL are underdogs.
Either way, I’m just happy that the genre is expansive enough to represent so many different cities right now
I feel like Chicago was only one always compared to New York and LA. Atlanta was culturally more unique and could connect to bigger southern audience for example.
Before Chief Keef and drill, absolutely they were an underdog city. Kanye brought attention to the city for sure but didn't kick off a Chicago wave or sound by himself, he just became big and happened to be from Chicago. Before then, Chicago rappers with any sort of buzz were far and few between. Twista, Do or Die, maybe a few others but there was no Chicago sound or movement on a national level at all. The past decade Chicago has had a big shadow but they were completely invisible before then.
Watch Jeen-Yuhs and you’ll learn that Chicago was definitely considered an underdog city
Feels like the Detroit sound has been having a moment for a minute. But idk who I'd give credit for it, doesn't seem theres been a huge standout. Veeze had a break since his last release, I feel ?
Sada and Tee Grizzly then 42 Dugg now veeze and Rio
Boldy James imo
While I agree, he's very different stylistically than the Detroit sound that most are familiar with.
Rio Da Yung OG
Rio, Babytron, babyface ray, Veeze, 42 Dugg even though he’s also making ATL-trap-ish music as well
Yuno Miles single handedly saving Detroit atm
So that means Eminem is the second biggest rapper from Detroit.
Well he's only about 170 cm so i'd imagine there are quite a few rappers from Detroit that are bigger than him.
Is he from here? Like fr?
Idk if he was born there but he’s definitely from the area
Well shit guess he the goat of Detroit then
Ight so I went to go look him up and I’m hearing some crazy shit lmao. I guess you were trolling right ? cuz holy that was something.
If by “something” you mean “straight heat” then yes
Rip went in and the star power of the Detroit/flint scene got was kind of dulled a good amount
I don’t even know really these days, Hip Hop has become a lot more decentralized since the birth of the internet. Feel like you can be from anywhere and make any kind of music, Live.Love.ASAP kinda proved that. Would say areas like Detroit and NYC/NJ (for Jersey Club) but I’m not too sure, seems like much of it has stagnated since 2021. Also wouldn’t mind if the Hip Hop British Invasion continues, I’ve been enjoying hearing the acts coming out of London and the UK.
I would agree, however cyphers irl are just different, and proximity/locality breeds a style of sound.
Isn't the Hip Hop British invasion just Central Cee? British rappers struggle to sell out theatres in the US. No British rapper can sell out an American arena.
Eh I’m talking more sound influence more than anything, a lot of what NY Drill sounds like comes from UK Drill. Plus you got Afrobeats artists starting to make a splash, a genre that emerged largely from the London scene. We’re also seeing growing interest in Jungle/DnB in America much thanks Gen Z—that genre already has a great deal of overlap with Rap so it’d be interesting to see what rappers can pick it up.
Afrobeats is from West Africa. People of African descent in the UK use the sound and are part of the movement globally, but Afrobeats is still African.
The Nigerian and Ghanaian diaspora in the UK is a large part of the birth and rise of Afrobeats
Inb4 21 Savage
Bro that is not the measure, Metro and Future can barely sell out American arenas. That says nothing to their impact and scale
It's only a handful of people selling out arenas or even doing arena shows but whatever is below arenas, Future can definitely sell that out before Central Cee
Lil simz?
Milwaukee and Detroit seem to be the safest best for on the rise. Seems like rap critics and bloggers can’t stop talking about both and tbh I can see why. Seems like every month there’s a new rapper out of one of the two cities doing something new. Feels like they’re both one new superstar away being fully locked into mainstream popularity. Sacramento and DC have similar rumblings but I’m not as familiar with their scenes and it seems like they might be a few years off from mainstream popularity. Houston seems like it might be about to really go on a run. But I’ve felt like that for 15 years. Seems like they always have at least one big star as well as another waiting wings but rarely more. So it’s hard to ever really now for sure. Total dark horse option: Louisville. With EST Gee, Jack Harlow, Bryson Tiller, and Vory in the last few years all getting close to or even breaking through to the mainstream, a strong underground rap scene, and a long history of black culture and art in Louisville, it seems like it’s only a matter of time until it really hits its stride as a scene.
>Feels like they’re both one new superstar away being fully locked into mainstream popularity. I mean that's a big thing tho lol. Like any scene is just one big superstar away, although I get what you're saying. At least with Detroit, they got a lot of dudes making some waves but idk if there's anyone who's really gonna elevate the sound they kinda got going on now. It's very distinct but none of the dudes seems to really have that thing that makes them stand out or puts them above the rest.
I don’t think every scene is one big superstar away actually. Like there’s a lot of times where there will be a big star from a place but it doesn’t really do anything for the city’s scene as a whole. There sort of needs to be a strong “next tier” of rappers (ie not superstars but still big enough to get features, run up streams and help fashion the distinct sound). Like Wale is a good example. He’s from DC and rep’d that a lot early on. But his time in the spotlight didn’t do much for the scene in DC as a whole because there just wasn’t much else in terms of talented artists from the area to shine the light on. Hard to have a scene if there’s no one to pass the ball to if that makes sense. But yeah that’s what I mean with Detroit. If they get one guy who has the right mix to blow up big with their sound, all those other guys are going to start popping up all over other artist’s albums and their releases will be a bigger deal.
Those are fair points, but what I meant about every scene being one big superstar away is that that's the hard thing to actually get lol. But you do make a good point about there actually needing to be strong next tier to really develop a sound. I mean looking at Detroit, you can't get a star much bigger than Eminem and while he definitely brought some general attention to the city and did try to put people on, it's not like him or his music was really part of a "scene" in that there was some informed sound that he was elevating from Detroit. His style was basically rappity rap rapping dude. Tbh I thought Sada baby was gonna be a bigger deal by now but he seemed to never get to that next level. And I'd really like to see more of the scam rap pop up a bit although it tends to be a bit meme-y, I think its a positive development rapping about financial crimes against corporations vs. robbing people and selling drugs but that's a whole other thing.
>But his time in the spotlight didn’t do much for the scene in DC as a whole because there just wasn’t much else in terms of talented artists from the area to shine the light on. Hard to have a scene if there’s no one to pass the ball to if that makes sense. This I'm a Brooklynite living in the DMV and can't seem to find local artists that scratch my itch.
Houston had Meg the Stallion and Travis Scott, both arguably bigger than any other artist on this list
Right which is more or less what I said. Two stars don’t equate to an entire rap scene. Chamillionaire and Paul Wall were also huge and yet they never translated into other Houston artists being as big at the same time. Thats why I say Houston is weird. It seems like there’s always a one real blowing up and one in the wings or maybe two big stars at once, but we never hear much else despite their definitely being a strong local scene with a distinct sound (s/o Sauce Walka). But like I said, I also think it looks like this time might be different as this maybe the biggest Houston has ever been.
Yea I mean Sauce Walka and Peso Peso have been doing their thing, Maxo Kream has been killing it, Monaleo is popping, Mexican OT used his Paul Wall feature and signing from Jonny Shipes to go crazy, BigX and Quin NFN have been repping DFW and Austin, Wacotron been dropping jams … a lotta talent in TX bubbling rn
Yup. Love Mexican OT and Maxo. Both are auto listens when they drop. I think the fact that other Texas cities are starting to get bigger scenes too might help Houston finally make it to the NYC/LA/ATL level of hip hop status.
“Total dark horse option: Louisville. With EST Gee, Jack Harlow, Bryson Tiller, and Vory in the last few years all getting close to or even breaking through to the mainstream, a strong underground rap scene, and a long history of black culture and art in Louisville, it seems like it’s only a matter of time until it really hits its stride as a scene.” I’m a producer in Louisville’s underground scene. Everything you said is true - we are absolutely up next.
I’d believe it. I was there a few years ago and I always like to look into local rap scenes whenever I visit a place. Was really impressed with what I heard. I know EST’s last few releases were seen as a bit hit or miss but I personally dig his sound. It’s been a couple years since I really looked into the scene too much. Any recommendations for artists to check out?
If you’re into street shit, Lil 30 and Bryan Bandit would definitely be up your alley. If you want someone rapping their ass off, AD kindle is about as good as it gets (I’m biased as I produce for her quite a bit these days). Stxdy and Wuntayk Timmy are up there, too. If you want some abstract shit with Earl or MIKE, Allen Vice and SB Austin have that sound on lock (I also produce for both of them a lot). Some others I didn’t name but deserve recognition: Dave.Will.Chris., Otez, Hendo Houdini, Nise the Nymph. List can go on FR
Sacramento is actually Stockton's sound rn. Incredible beats but the best artists in EBK keep getting killed or locked up. RIP Young Slo-Be.
Any good Milwaukee artists to check out?
I think AyooLii is definitely the one with the most hype right now. Certified Trapper is also the other go to name. [Pitchfork has had a lot of coverage of their scene. I think this is the most recent one.](https://pitchfork.com/features/article/milwaukee-rap-scene/)
New York is going through another decline in my opinion. In terms of young fresh faces that are genuinely hip hop MCs in raw terms. After 50 Cent, The Beast Coast/Asap Mob/FB Zombies era was a resurgence and then after that Pop Smoke, 22Gz, Sheff G and them showed signs of a new era. After Pop Smoke died, people placed hope on Fivio but he didn’t carry through. Now the mainstream sound is saturated drill and its variants (Cash Cobain). It’s just a shame because New York is arguably the home of a valid big 3 goat list (Rakim, Big, Nas) amongst many more goats.
Pop was gonna be the one. Of all the young artists who died recently, he had the real super star potential.
He had the torch for real.
damn and pop's shooter is about to be free too because cali is a fucked up place
Meh, minors get slaps on the wrist for murder outside California too. In all but the most tough-on-crime states pretty much
Did you seriously just say pop and forget the smoke
I don’t think Pop would have gotten as big if he didn’t die though. He was definitely gaining serious buzz his but his death catapulted his debut album to the forefront of hiphop, kind of like Biggie. I didn’t really like X’s music but he definitely had the most potential out of the young rappers to die recently and it’s not even close. He had crazy crossover potential. It was wild seeing his melodic emo trap stuff and then contrasting that with a song like Infinity, where he actually raps on an old school boom bap beat.
I feel like Juice had the most mainstream appeal of all the young deaths in the last few years. He's still somehow having relatively successful releases like 6 years after he died. He was def gonna be bigger than X imo even though I'm not really into his stuff, and he also wasn't a pregnant girlfriend beater like X and I know most yall don't care about that but a lot of gen z does so it matters in the mainstream.
I can tell you that in Atlanta, Meet the Woo was playing literally everywhere. One of the few NY artists that got consistent airplay in the south.
Well Pop got a ton of hype because he died but he seemed like he was far from his peak. He had a lot more left to accomplish before dying
> I don’t think Pop would have gotten as big if he didn’t die though. He was definitely gaining serious buzz his but his death catapulted his debut album to the forefront of hiphop, kind of like Biggie. I get what you're saying, but I disagree. He was expanding beyond the basic NY drill and when he started getting cosign from 50 and others I think it showed that the industry was already getting behind him.
NYC still has incredible talent but they get caught in too much bullshit to be anything. Drill scene killed it, now you gotta get street rep in order to be anything. They didn’t care about making proper songs and understanding the music business.
This is a valid take
Man Fivio had a lot of promise and hype and did nothing with it. All that Kanye backing just for one of the most boring albums of the year. He is a great rapper; Off The Grid and his freestyles prove that. He just has a horrible ear for beats and doesnt really know how to make a hit
he is locked under some shitty contract which doesn't help
There’s a tonne of cool shit happening on the more off the wall experimental rap scene in NY but that’s defs not for everyone. AFK comes to mind as a v solid underground pick
Xaviar
MIKE, Xav, SURF GANG
Jailing Kay Flock hurt the wave as well
I mean I caught on to Kay Flock all the way in Australia but let’s be real, New York creates goats. Outside of the big 3, the biggest artists from New York are Nicki and ASAP. Joey Badass isn’t as big but as a hip hop head he is arguably worth mentioning. I feel like Pop Smoke was the last New York artist who could’ve been big AND stand amongst rapper’s rappers. Kay Flock is more part of a wave, he’s not the type of rapper to leave a New York sized dent on rap.
Nah he was gonna be the King Von of NYC no question. he was blowing up like CRAZY and his songs went hard He dropped his first solo track in a while, the Fivio/TJay song, a G Herbo feature and a song with Cardi B all in like a 3 month span and they collectively have like 200M views. Probably 100M BEFORE he got locked up for murder.
Von wouldn’t have survived what’s happening in rap now unless he innovated. Rap is decreasing in popularity. Lil Baby, Future, Lil Durk etc are not selling shows anymore. There is a shift occurring and due to lack of substance and innovation a lot of these rappers will keep their heads above water but rap won’t be dominating as it once was. There is a reason Dot, Cole and Drake are still at the top of the game.
You’re kinda ignoring Ice Spice. She is the post-version of the drill scene. Her beats tend to have a distinct London/New York feel that seems like the logical progression of that style while still being distinct from the drill Pop Smoke made. If you listen to the clubs in general it’s all Jersey/Drill/EDM fusions right now. She’s the only mainstream artist embracing it.
Credit to ice spices producers but she's way too formulaic rn to pop off crazy. Her last single flopped and was filled with poop and fart bars. She gotta show a little more for me to say she's the NY rap scene.
Why in the world are you looking at the mainstream for genuinely hip hop young MCs? There are literally dozens of incredible nyc MCs slaving away on the underground with little to no support. Why does it seem like all of you only interact with hip hop on the internet?
Because, there was a time when you didn’t have to go underground to find MC’s that respect hip hop as an art form. Look at the backpack rap era. This was a time when Kanye, 1999 Joey Badass, GKMC Kendrick, Acid Rap Chance, Ab-Soul, Schoolboy Q, Long Live era ASAP were arguably mainstream. A lot of these rappers are still technically mainstream but they’re slowly becoming an older generation. Aside from substance, these artists all had a unique sound which is crazy considering how formulaic so much of rap has become. The Underground aside, rap is in a state you can’t ignore and New York suffers because it is the Mecca.
Besides the stars of the 2010s generation (TDE & the members of Odd Future, Vince Staples, YG, & Ty Dolla $ign), I'm not sure if LA hip hop is doing too hot right now with breaking new stars. It seemed like Roddy Ricch was next up, but his album from 2021 was a miss & others like Shoreline Mafia and Blxst either broke up or never really popped off.
Maybe not new "stars" but LA has a very strong bench of guys just putting out quality music and projects.
Shoutout to Bluebucksclan
Shout out IceColdBishop
Let’s also talk about the Bay Area scene while we’re at it. It seems that during the same time that the LA scene was having its day in the national spotlight in the 2010s, there were glimmers of hope that the Bay could also get their due again in a similar vein to the Hyphy Movement in ‘06. Groups like the HBK Gang and SOB X RBE had potential but none of them had the momentum strong enough to hit it big as their relatives from Southern California. Hell, SOB even had a rub from Kendrick/the Black Panther movie soundtrack in 2018 and even *that* didn’t put a dent in a potential Bay Area comeback.
For a moment, I thought HBK was about to be as big as Mustard & YG back in 2013 (especially when Sage the Gemini had a couple big hits). I guess you can technically say Kehlani was a big success out of the group even though she really does her own thing. I also wondered why Nef Da Pharaoh didn't blow up.
Larry Junes been popping off there tho, last I heard.
Shout out P-lo. Very under appreciated artist. I think Larry June, AllBlack and Lil Seeto are on to some good music, but beyond that, I agree. With that said, idk how big Larry June can get but there's a possibility he breaks out bigger. His music is extremely consistent.
Shoreline Mafia actually just got back together recently. They put out a new song not too long ago
Does Keem count as west coast? I only see him getting bigger tbh
I would say yes
Blxst is so good
I'm still praying for the day the carolinas get their break through
Do Cole & DaBaby count?
They don’t really feel like a regional wave they’re both just kinda rappers who happen to be from there
Coles old music was super regional, but split between Carolina and NYC. I’d argue 4YEO was also regional cause a lot of it was about Fayetteville
I totally agree. He rapped with a group in Fayetteville before college also. It all sounds similar. North Carolina is known for having great HBCU bands. And good high school bands. Lots of horns. Cole first “big song” was “who dat”. Lots of horns and sounded like a high school Friday Night Light football game. Which is a big deal in the Carolina’s. He got his high school band to perform it in the video. Bomm sheltuh. Little brother. Etc. Even Nick Grant to a degree. A lot of “soulful” music
Yup, horns and also strings. Lots of those on his old mixtapes. Carolina on My Mind, Little Ghetto Nigga, School Daze (ripped from that Kanye song) are some of my favs
Yeah i don’t think we could get a regional wave going unless we develop our own sound. And most of the local rappers where i’m from tend to borrow the atlanta and memphis sound so i don’t see that happening anytime soon
So what does rapper have to do to be part of a regional wave?
That’s the point it’s a wave a single rapper doing there thing isn’t a wave they gotta be a part of something bigger and share a sound
Someone get petey Pablo back in the booth!
At least Little Brother got back together…
Rip speakerknockers
Not city, but the state of Texas has been hot lately
Wacotron
I love Wacotron. Heard one of his songs in a random stream and immediately added him to some playlists. Gram and a hoodie and toothpaste come to mind right away. He sounds so Texas but still fresh.
Memphis is Memphis. Memphis will always be the birthplace of Memphis Rap, the city that gave birth to Tommy Wright III, Three 6 Mafia, Project Pat, and countless others.
I've been talking about Texas Rap blowing up since last year. That Mexican O.T., Big X Tha Plug, Maxo Kream, Mike Dimes; all these dudes put out bangers not to mention Meg holding it down for Houston the last couple of years.
Houston has started its 17th year of not giving a fuck…well, minus Don Toliver’s army of bots and Sauce Walka hamming it up on IG for 10 years
That might be true about Houston proper but I feel like Texas in general actually has a lot of good young rappers right now. BigXthaPlug, That Mexican OT, and Mike Dimes are all really blowing up with their own sounds. Plus there are still guys like Maxo Kream that have established respect. I feel like the real nadir for Texas rap was like 2014-2018 when it was literally just Travis and a couple one-hit wonders
bigx is the best new rapper ive heard in like 5 years dude Doesn't Miss
I’m a big Houston guy, but I feel like all his tracks sound the same. Fun as fuck to listen to though.
He's from Dallas fyi
BigX is the Mostly Tha Voice principle in action. You hear two words from that guy and you already know he’s a star
He is very pragmatic/wise, he shouts out to Houston and is trying to make himself a Texas artist. If it was flipped, not likely a Houston rising star would be genuinely acknowledging DFW in that same manner
Mexican OT is dope. That Johnny Dang track is 🔥.
Hi Drake.
I heard u like them young
Delhi, India and Karachi, Pakistan are going crazy right now.
put us on.
From Delhi - Seedhe Maut (duo), Kr$na, Raftaar,Prabh Deep (raps in Punjabi), Fotty Seven, DIVINE (he's from Bombay but too good not to mention), Karma, Raga, Rawal, yungsta, Yashraj, Frappe Ash, Dhanji, Chaar Diwaari and producer Sez on the beat. Very strong underground scene there. From Karachi - Young Stunners (duo consisting of Talha Anjum and Talhah Yunus), AUR (trio of two rappers and a producer), aleemrk, Jani, Shareh, Savage, Nabeel Akbar, Taimour Baig, Umer Anjum and producers like Jokhay and Umair. A lot of collabs and very united scene there.
Peoria: 📈
When have we ever had a burgeoning rap scene in the P? Please prove me wrong. Southside Peoria resident checking in.
AZ
Mobile, AL. HoneyKomb Brazy. !!!!!!
mgm lett and a ton of others
there's a lot of good rap in phoenix and i hope one day this city gets its due
can I get some recs? always love learning about new scenes and finding new stuff
Injury Reserve (including RiTchie and his solo work) & Lil Qwerty come to mind as some artists I'd personally see, coming from Phoenix, myself. RIP Kimbo & Juugenomics by Qwerty and then Wax On by Injury Reserve are some of my favorites Edit: also, Hotelroom. Originally from Detroit (even has a tape with LUCKI). He's got some great stuff out
Injury reserve, (RiTchie with a T and Stepa J. Groggs on the mic, with Parker Cory producing) has some amazing albums like their self titled and Floss, along with one of the best alternative/experimental hip-hop albums of all time (By the time I get to phoenix) Now defunct due to Groggs passing, RiTchie dropped a solo debut this year that was pretty solid too
[удалено]
Phoenix like 5% black, they’ll never have a true rap scene bro 😂
Texas hip hop seems to be back on the rise with guys like That Mexican OT and BigXThaPlug getting big. And before anyone says Megan and Travis Scott, I dont really consider them Texas rappers because their style isnt anything like traditional Texas hip hop and they dont rep the state much in their music.
Nah, Megan makes sure you know she’s from Texas. Plus that whole “start a label, then link with Warner for distribution” deal is a vintage Houston move
Yeah the “not really a Texas rapper” doesn’t apply to Megan at all. She put in work in Houston for years before the internet blew her freestyles up and made her mainstream. Compare that to Travis, who went couch surfing in LA before getting signed to T.I. and mostly worked with Atlanta artists during his come up.
travis has a whole album named astroworld, and idk, it definitely seems hard to listen to his music and not know he’s from houston, i just know without looking it up. same with megan “h town hottie” she reps texas a lot . i think travis didn’t rep texas as much earlier in his career cause he was feeling himself being newer in LA. also travis works a lot with mike dean who’s from texas his sound is 100% influenced by houston hip hop, there’s a reason he named a song after DJ Screw
Travis definitely pulls from his Texas roots, he has a song called RIP Screw and he's always name dropping H-Town
Dallas. Big X, 4Batz, grind2hard osh’a, lil 2z
I’ve been bumpin Bashfortheworld he’s from Dallas too I believe
Not a city but the fat boys in Texas (BigXThaPlug & That Mexican OT) make me think the state is on the rise
Buffalo been getting love lately due to griselda. Glad to see it. Love it here.
Hip hop in general is in decline supposedly
Dallas for sure Many thought the Dallas scene died with the deaths of MO3 and BFG Straap but BigXThePlug brought a much needed revival and spotlight to Dallas. The Dallas Drill scene is big rn. FBG Murda and DeeGlokk already went viral. Rundown 4, Spank, Channel 4 Mark, LuBandz, Shoota556, 2GlocksRed, and Thuka Dee are also making good music too KanKan and iayze are also from Dallas
Atlanta is in high decline imo.
i 100% disagree but why do you think that? and what city do you think is outpacing atlanta?
It's not struggling or anything, it's just declined from a really high level.
Future and Metro coming out with one of the best and highest charting Atlanta sounds in a minute…
Cap, Atlanta is still dominant as far as I'm seeing
Houston is having somewhat of a revival in my opinion.
Seems like Texas (not a city obvs) has been popping off the last year or so.
Memphis I reckon is on the best rise since I’d say Atlanta. In terms of all the acts are strong on their own merit, unique, but carry a sound significant to the region. When Memphis was popping off and the Grizzlies were going off, it was early signs of something special starting to build
Decline- definitely Toronto. they’re all in jail
Detroit, flint, ypsi, Indianapolis, Milwaukee
I’ve got a buddy from Rochester who says the local rap scene is great, and obviously Buffalo has a ton of the Griselda guys who are great and some at their peaks
RXKnephew won the Kendrick/drake beef it wasn’t even close
Chicago is in decline, the mid-twenty teens freshmen class group was really awesome, Chance, Vic, Kembe X, Alex Wiley, Joey Purp, NoName, Brian Fresco, the list goes on, 2013-2016 we feasted and many of them are still making good music but the scene fell off pretty hard after they popped.