The East coast-West coast rap rivalry is defined by feuds. I’d like to say it’s for the better, but the sheer volume of the fighting drowns out many of hip hop’s best voices to this day. Not to say that they don’t have their fans; far from it.
But what I’ve tried to compile here is a list of great rappers who rarely participated in public feuding, and stayed relatively clear of the poisonous coastal fighting. The rivalry here is simply about which side of the United States can claim to produce the better rappers. It’s yours to decide.
Side A flies us out to Sacramento to hear the inimitable flow of Blackalicious, before driving down the coast for the cocky intelligence of Oakland’s Hieroglyphics and its many associated acts.
For Side B, we return to the birthplace and mecca of hip hop: New York City. KRS-One and Rakim provide the old school rhymes that started it all, while A Tribe Called Quest and De La Soul push hip hop’s musical style into new territory.
There’s a pretty clear stylistic difference here, which illustrates what each coast has to offer, and does so much better than the gun-play ever did. Enjoy.
Listen here: 8tracks.com/the_concordian/east_west_rap_love
SIDE A: Out West
1. “Cab Fare” – Hieroglyphics – Hieroglyphics Oldies Vol. 2
2. “Passin’ Me By” – Pharcyde – Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde
3. “Fear No Evil” – Casual – Hieroglyphics Oldies Vol. 1
4. “A to G” – Blackalicious – Blazing Arrows
5. “What’s Golden” – Jurassic 5 – Power in Numbers
6. “Same Ol’ Thing” – Del tha Funky Homosapien – I Wish My Brother George Was Here
7. “Legal Alien” – Freestyle Fellowship – To Whom It May Concern
8. “Keep it True” – Aceyalone feat. Abstract Rude – All Balls Don’t Bounce
9. “Drop” – Pharcyde – Labcabincalifornia
10. “93 ‘Til Infinity” – Souls of Mischief – 93 ‘Til Infinity
SIDE B: Back East
11. “Musical Massacre” – Eric B. and Rakim – Follow the Leader
12. “Rhymes Like Dimes” – MF Doom feat. Cucumber Slice – Operation: Doomsday
13. “Shook Ones Pt II.” – Mobb Deep – The Infamous
14. “Step into a World” – KRS-One – I Got Next
15. “’95 Freestyle on Stretch and Bobbito” – Big L – Harlem’s Finest
16. “Breakadawn” – De La Soul – Buhloone Mindstate
17. “Jazz (We’ve Got it)/Buggin’ Out” – A Tribe Called Quest – The Low End Theory
18. “Vivrant Thing” – Q-Tip – Amplified
19. “Criminology” – Raekwon – Only Built for Cuban Linx
20. “Shadowboxing” – GZA – Liquid Swords
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