10 Conscious Rap Albums You Should Listen to Right Now
With everything going on in the world, we’ve shortlisted ten conscious rap albums you should check out if you haven’t already. These projects not only entertain but help to enlighten the listener on fundamental issues.
Ice Cube's AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted album. Image from Lench Mob and Priority Records.
1. Let's Get Free by Dead Prez – Florida’s M-1 and stic.man spit lyrics about everything from Pan-Africanism, the Black Panther movement and the education system.
Key Tracks; Hip Hop, Mind Sex and Happiness.
Listen to Let's Get Free on Spotify and Apple Music here.
2. All-Amerikkkan Badass by Joey Bada$$ – From anthems like ‘For My People’ and ‘Land of the Free’ to analytical deep dives on ‘Babylon’, this album shouldn't be overlooked.
Key Tracks; Ring The Alarm, For My People and Rockabye Baby.
Listen to All-Amerikkkan Badass on Spotify and Apple Music here.
3. Black on Both Sides by Mos Def – A classic album regardless of genre. Look no further than songs like ‘Mr. Nigga’ where Mos Def looks into the usage “nigga” past and present. The song also examines societal double standards in society for POC.
Key Tracks; Mathematics, New World Water and Umi Says.
Listen to Black on Both Sides on Spotify and Apple Music here.
4. Laila's Wisdom by Rapsody – A Grammy-nominated album as beautiful as it is politically aware. A tier guest spots from Anderson Paak, Busta Rhymes, Black Thought and BJ the Chicago Kid.
Key Tracks; Power, Nobody and Jesus Coming.
Listen to Laila's Wisdom on Spotify and Apple Music here.
5. To Pimp A Butterfly by Kendrick Lamar – Any Kendrick Lamar album takes you to school to some degree. TPAB's merit is that it only gets more relevant with every passing year. It would be impossible to sum everything all this album does. This is a must-listen.
Key Tracks; How Much A Dollar Cost, King Kunta and The Blacker the Berry.
Listen to To Pimp A Butterfly on Spotify and Apple Music here.
6. Fear of a Black Planet by Public Enemy – Public Enemy needs no introduction. Catch themes of institutional racism, white supremacy and black empowerment front and centre on this album.
Key Tracks; Fight the Power, 911 Is a Joke and Welcome to the Terrordome.
Listen to To Fear of a Black Planet on Spotify and Apple Music here.
7. We Got It from Here... Thank You 4 Your Service by A Tribe Called Quest – The Tribe's sixth and final album is the swan song they deserved. Tribe create timeless songs like ‘We the People’ and drop knowledge on the listener.
Key Tracks; We the People, Conrad Tokyo and The Space Program.
Listen to We Got It from Here on Spotify and Apple Music here.
8. Food & Liquor by Lupe Fiasco – Lupe looks into what ‘cool’ means within the black community as well as single parents, gun culture and Islamophobia in America.
Key Tracks; Kick Push, He Say, She Say and Theme Music To a Drive-By
Listen to Food & Liquor on Spotify and Apple Music here.
9. Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z... by Tupac Shakur – The album’s acronym stands for "Never Ignorant in Getting Goals Accomplished". On this album, Shakur shares his thoughts on black-on-black crimes, female empowerment and much more.
Key Tracks; Keep Ya Head Up, Last Wordz and I Get Around.
Listen to Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z... on Spotify and Apple Music here.
10. Straight Outta Compton by N.W.A – All you need is this quote encapsulates the spirit of the album “Searchin’ my car, lookin’ for the product / Thinkin’ every nigga is sellin’ narcotics.”
Key tracks; Fuck tha Police, Straight Outta Compton and Gangsta Gangsta.
Listen to Straight Outta Compton on Spotify and Apple Music here.
Did we miss any? Be sure to tell us your favourites in the comments below!
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