Rookie of the Year
The Nominees:
Meek Mill- The Philly native burst on the scene after signing with Rick Ross' Maybach Music Group and hit big with bangers like "Work" and "I'm A Boss".
Action Bronson- When he wasn't being a gourmet chef, this MC earned some respect from hip-hop heads in 2011 with his Ghostface-eque delivery and wordplay.
Big Sean- Despite my negative review, Sean's debut album received much critical acclaim and was a bona fide commercial success.
Maffew Ragazino- This New York City lyricist came out of nowhere to deliver some great tracks in '11 including on of my favorites, the soulful "Decepts On The L Train".
And the winner is.... Action Bronson
This guy impressed me early in the year with the terrific The Program EP and continued to deliver lyrically on tracks with Ghostface, Asher Roth, and Ragazino among others. I'm looking forward to hearing more from him in the future.
Guest Verse of the Year (The Bun B Award)
The Nominees:
Nas on Mobb Deep's "Dog Shit"
Best Line: "Freedom is a virtue/Ni**as hangin way past/They're parole curfew/Blowin' on that purple/Know my street ties/Beef-wise/I let three fly/Over ya head/Welcome home P/Let's get this bread."
AZ on Wu-Tang Clan's "Legendary Weapons"
Best Line: "Breezed on the D's when they tailed on the pike/Around the same time I exhaled on the mic/The name AZ ring bells on sight."
Freddie Gibbs on Curren$y's "Scottie Pippens"
Best Line: "Stay runnin' the rock just like I play quarterback for the Eagles/Randall, Donovan, or Michael/'Fore I picked up this mic/I was hittin' licks with some lords and did dirt with plenty disciples."
Elzhi on Phonte's "Not Here Anymore"
Best Line: "See a little nervousness/And a frown/'Cause you know deep down you know you ain't nice just a little courteous/You just runnin' game/Ni**a, we the fuckin' tournament."
And the winner is...Freddie Gibbs on "Scottie Pippens"
No one can contest with Nas' imagery and lyrical poignance, but I had to give this one to Gibbs for his delivery and for the energy he brought to that track, which was the best on Spitta's Covert Coup mixtape.
Duet of the Year
The Nominees:
"Ghetto Dreams" by Common & Nas- The lead single from Common's The Dreamer, The Believer features two hip-hop heavyweights on top of their game. While Nas is one of the all-time masters of the guest verse, the best moments had to be Common rhyming about his ideal woman, "Butt naked in the kitchen flippin' pancakes/She ain't trippin' off the dough that her man makes."
"Otis"by Jay-Z & Kanye West- On one of the biggest songs of the year and another lead single, Jay and Kanye trade verses over an extra-choppy Otis Redding sample. Jay-Z begins the braggadocio with the opening line, "I invented swag" and, not to be outdone, Kanye raps about his "Otha, otha Benz" among other things.
"Martians Vs. Goblins" by Game & Tyler The Creator- The Game and Odd Future's Tyler The Creator team up for the sinister banger that also features Lil' Wayne, but only on the hook. As if he hasn't gotten enough shit this year, both artists attack LeBron James in their verses as Game raps about fucking his mom and Tyler advises his haters to "fall back like LeBron's hairline."
"Choices" by Asher Roth & Action Bronson- In what has to be the best rap song by two white kids in decades, Roth and Bronsolino both drop a killer verse over a funky instrumental. By far the best part was Asher Roth's flow in his first couple of bars that include clever lines such as "Under a submarine/Bare as the kitchen cupboard be/Californication/Agent Mulder/David Duchovney."
And the winner is..."Otis" by Jay-Z & Kanye West
This and "Ghetto Dreams" are dead even in my book but I gave the nod to Jay-Z and Kanye for the way their verses complimented each other making it more of a "duet" in the true sense of the word.
Mixtape of the Year
The Nominees:
Purp & Patron by Game- Game teamed up with DJ Skee for two mixtapes in anticipation of The R.E.D. Album, but Purp & Patron was the stronger of the two thanks to great production by Nottz and Dre as well as appearances from Wiz Khalifa, Lil Wayne, and Rick Ross.
Elmatic by Elzhi- With the help of the Detroit rock group Will Sessions, Elzhi masterfully re-created Nas' classic debut album, Illmatic.
Semester Abroad by Kidz In The Hall- Long before the release of Occasion, Naledge and Double O put out some album-quality material on this mixtape such as "So Amazn" and "Moments", two of my favorite songs this year.
Covert Coup by Curren$y- Curren$y and Alchemist provided hip hop fans with some solid listening material on 4/20. In addition to the aforementioned collaboration with Freddie Gibbs, "The Type" featuring Prodigy was another standout.
And the winner is...Elmatic by Elzhi
Where a lot of MCs would have jacked the beats from Illmatic and freestyled over them, Elzhi and Will Sessions actually re-crafted the timeless album and put their own unique spin on it. The way Elzhi remakes the songs to reflect his own life experiences is brilliant as is his lyricism and delivery throughout the tape.
Verse of the Year
The Nominees:
Elzhi on "It Ain't Hard to Tell"
Best Line: "Robberies of liquor stores/Tricks and whores/Reality sick as yours/So I blow trees stronger than Sycamores."
Game on "Mama Knows"
Best Line: "But that ain't stop me/Pretending I was Apollo from Rocky/Workin on my dip game/Now nobody wanna box me"
Nas on "Nasty"
Best Line: "Maserati/Bumpin Biggie the great legend/Blastin/I'm after the actress that played Faith Evans."
Kanye West on "The Joy"
Best Line: "This beat deserves Hennessy/A bad bitch/And a big of weed/The holy trinity."
And the winner is...Kanye West on 'The Joy"
Kanye's verses on the Pete Rock-produced bonus track on Watch The Throne were pure genius and some of the best rapping of his career. I actually went back and forth on which of Kanye's two verses on this track was actually the verse of the year because either could have won. He flows perfectly over Pete's slow, soulful instrumental and drops hilarious and well-thought-out bars throughout his verses.
Producer of the Year
The Nominees:
Big Jerm- I don't know much about Big Jerm but he did some stellar work on the boards this year for Wiz Khalifa and his Yinzer counterpart, Mac Miller. His beat for Wiz, Curren$y, and Big Sean's "O.T.T.R." was one of the best instrumentals this year.
Big K.R.I.T.- The rapper/producer made a splash this year in both areas but his beat-making stood out as he produced the hit "Country Shit (Remix)" with Bun B and Ludacris as well as T.I.'s new single "I'm Flexin'".
No I.D.- No I.D. had a hand in the two best-produced albums this year, Jay-Z and Kanye's Watch the Throne and Common's The Dreamer, The Believer which he produced in its entirety.
Double O- Double O's musical creativity was a major factor in all of the great music that Kidz In The Hall dropped in 2011 including a nominee for best mixtape and best album.
And the winner is...No I.D.
This one was sort of a no brainer. Between Hov and Kanye's "Primetime", the entire Common album, and the best moments from Big Sean's debut album, Chicago legend No I.D. had by far the greatest impact of any producer in 2011.
Beat of the Year
The Nominees:
"Ni**as in Paris" produced by Hit-Boy & Kanye West- Despite the simple, minimalist melody, this became the most popular beat of 2011 thanks to the banging percussion and heavy bassline, not to mention the hilarious "Blades of Glory" movie samples.
"Martians Vs. Goblins" produced by Brody Brown, Lamar Edwards, & Laranee Dopson- This might be the busiest instrumental of the year but Edwards and Dopson of 1500 Or Nothin and Brody Brown pull it off exceptionally well. The main attraction here is the heavy synth bass al a Dead Prez's "Bigger Than Hip-Hop" but listen closely and you can hear violins and choirs and a whole host of weird noises that help make this one of the best, most unique beats of the year.
"I'm A Boss" produced by Jahlil Beats- This Meek Mill anthem was right up there with "Ni**as In Paris" as far as the most freestyled-over beat of 2011. Jahlil Beats provides the track that combines what has become the signature MMG sound with what sounds sort of like the old NBA on NBC theme song.
"Ghetto Dreams" produced by No I.D.- In what was the standout moment for the producer of the year, No I.D. uses an off-tune piano sample, hard snare drums, and a horn section that would make Pete Rock blush. To top it off, the hook makes use of scratches of both Nas and Common, the track's two artists.
Honorable Mention: "Mama Knows" produced by Pharrell,"Tupac Back" produced by Mike Will, "Gotta Have It" produced by The Neptunes & Kanye West, "Anti Freeze" produced by Swiff D, "Player of the Century" produced by Double O, "Born In The Trap" produced by DJ Premier, "The Motto" produced by T-Minus.
And the winner is..."Ni**as in Paris" produced by Hit-Boy & Kanye West
It was close between this and "I'm A Boss" but you can't go anywhere these days without hearing the bass from "Ni**as in Paris" blasting out of someone's car window. I even heard the panel members of ESPN's "Around The Horn" singing this beat during a commercial break and most of those guys are 50 year old white men.
Album of the Year
The Nominees:
Watch The Throne by Jay-Z & Kanye West- The much anticipated collaboration between two hip hop giants lived up to and exceeded my expectations.
The R.E.D. Album by Game- Game's fourth album was hit or miss but had a number of terrific songs including "Mama Knows", "Ricky", and "Heavy Artillery" featuring Beanie Sigel and Rick Ross.
Occasion by Kidz In The Hall- Definitely one of the most fun albums of 2011, Occasion was chock-full of party anthems.
The Dreamer, The Believer by Common- The legendary Chi-town rapper-producer duo of Common and No I.D. reunited for what has to be Common's best album in at least ten years.
Honorable Mention: Take Care by Drake, Sideline Story by J. Cole, Greatest Story Never Told by Saigon, Give Me My Flowers While I Can Smell Them by Blu & Exile.
And the winner is...Watch The Throne by Jay-Z & Kanye West
Even though all of these were very solid albums, none of them really stood a chance against Jay-Z and Kanye's epic masterpiece. Watch The Throne was brilliantly produced from start to finish and featured some of Jay and Kanye's finest work on the mic in years. This is not only the album of the year, but the best album in the PropsOverHere era.
Song of the Year
The Nominees:
"Ni**as in Paris" by Jay-Z & Kanye West- The second single off of the album of the year set the hip hop world on fire.
"Nasty" by Nas- Nas' newest single displayed his incredible flow and lyricism and proved that the wiley veteran is still on top of his game.
"I Do" by Young Jeezy, Jay-Z, & Andre 3000- In a track that's immediately reminiscent of Outkast's "International Player's Anthem", producer M16 flips the "Overnight Celebrity" sample with a Southern flavor that's fitting for Young Jeezy. As far as I know, this is the first time that rap legends Jay-Z and Andre 3000 have been on a track together which gives this one some bonus points even though their verses weren't particularly good.
"Ghetto Dreams" by Common & Nas- Two legends team up to rap about bitches over a nasty No I.D. instrumental.
Honorable Mention: "Mama Knows" by Game, "Pour It Up" by Kidz In The Hall, Bun B, & David Banner, "Enemies" by Saigon, "Dreams Money Can Buy" by Drake, "Otis" by Jay-Z & Kanye West, "O.T.T.R." by Wiz Khalifa, Curren$y, & Big Sean, "Anti Freeze" by Pac Div.
And the winner is..."Ni**as in Paris" by Jay-Z & Kanye West
With respect to Nas and Common, who continue to get shafted, I can't justify calling anything else the song of the year. No song has been so widely accepted from the hood to the burbs maybe since "In Da Club" came out, and that shit went quadruple platinum.
Artist of the Year
The Nominees:
Curren$y- Spitta killed it in 2011 putting out a bunch of solid mixtapes including Covert Coup, Weekend At Burnies, and Verde Terrace, all of which are definitely worth a listen.
Kidz In The Hall- Starting with "So Amazn", Naledge and Double O put out a lot of great music this year including the terrific "Brain Candy" series and the full-length album, Occasion.
Game- Game had a prolific and successful year, dropping two great mixtapes with DJ Skee and one of the best albums of the year.
J. Cole- The up-and-comer and Roc Nation signee had a very solid debut release with The Sideline Story and his "Any Given Sunday" mixes included gems such as "How High" and "Unabomber".
And the winner is...Game
Though all of these candidates were deserving, Game was the rapper that put out more good hip hop music than anyone else this year. His Purp & Patron and Candy Corornas mixtapes were two of the best this year and the much anticipated The R.E.D. Album far exceeded my (admittedly low) expectations.
So there you have it. Congrats to the big winners and props to all the artists that helped make 2011 a great year for rap music. See you all next year.
