Standard Issue: Hip-Hop, Vol. 1
Image by Nick M.W.
Ten essential tracks from a slice of hip-hop’s Golden Age.
This article was originally published on FarFromProfessional.com (8/12/24).Here at Far From Professional, we write about things that we love. On occasion, we may write just to get our freak on, but most of the time we write about something that is near and dear to us. If what we put down matches your vibe, then we hope you check out our work. This Standard Issue article is perfect if you’re sitting at a tire shop or in your dentist’s office killing time, or if you’re taking a shit. Make sure you turn the volume up on those earbuds as you bob your head to some “ real hip-hop, hip-hop!”
Here at Far From Professional, we write about things that we love. On occasion, we may write just to get our freak on, but most of the time we write about something that is near and dear to us. If what we put down matches your vibe, then we hope you check out our work. Our In the Mood and Standard Issue articles are perfect if you’re sitting at a tire shop or in your dentist’s office killing time, on your lunch break, or if you’re taking a shit. You can turn up the volume on those earbuds and bob your head as you read along. My colleagues and I have dropped a few of these lists. Check them out:
In the Mood: Take Cover (a list of cover songs)
I wanted to take a crack at curating my own list of essential rap songs for a Standard Issue: Hip-Hop. The tricky thing about this undertaking is that hip-hop is a massive genre. It’s impossible to distill this genre down to ten songs that I think best represent it. I had to break this project up into smaller volumes, so here we are with Volume 1. From 1992 to 1996, I was in my pre-teen/middle school stretch. Fifth grade to freshman year in high school. These are critical years for development in a young person’s life, and the things we fall in love with then tend to resonate throughout the years. I know there’s research on this because one time I heard something about it, but I’m not citing any sources. This is Far From Professional. The songs I chose for this list are from this era of my life, when I fell in love with rap music until the end of middle school, right before 2Pac was murdered.
When I was brainstorming songs from this era for this article, most of these songs jumped out to me, and it all came together from there. The list is already well-balanced. There’s an even mix of East and West Coast artists—or NYC and L.A. rappers—and I threw in a Midwest act and a duo from the Dirty South. It’s light on indie artists, but I didn’t start digging under below the surface of major labels until high school. The Pharcyde is the only alternative rap act on this list, and they earned their spot because they were the soundtrack to an iconic Transworld Skateboarding video part that I was obsessed with at the time. Nostalgia is powerful. All of these artists brought their unique slang, style, and sound to hip-hop, which is at the core of how a song even makes it onto a Standard Issue list.
Here's the rundown, in order of their vibe:
1.
Artist: Bone Thugs-N-Harmony
Song: “East 1999”
Album: E. 1999 Eternal (1995)
“Cleveland is the city where we come from, so run, run, run.”
Bone Thugs-N-Harmony is probably best-known for their Grammy-winning ode to Eazy-E “Tha Crossroads,” but I first heard “Thuggish Ruggish Bone” on MTV back in 1994. It sounded like it was home cooked in Compton, but these dudes were from Cleveland. Legend has it that Bone flew out west to L.A. to meet Eazy-E, give him their demo, and maybe even perform a song for him. They came back to Cleveland with the Real Motherfuckin’ G himself and filmed the video for “Thuggish Ruggish Bone”, the first single off of their Ruthless Records debut. It’s a dope track that tells you all you need to know about Bone, but I prefer the violent braggadocio of “East 1999”.
The lead song from their second studio album, E. 1999 Eternal, is menacing. These dudes are letting you know that the ride you’re about to go on is going to take you to a dark place. Violence and the occult are common themes in a Bone Thugs track. The swaying of that pendulum with “Tha Crossroads” might have contributed to that song’s success, but I prefer the Bone Thugs tracks that lean into the darkness. “East 1999” is signature Bone Thugs-N-Harmony.
Kenny McCloud and DJ U-Neek produced a hard-thumping bass line with all the ambiance of graveyard under a full moon on Halloween. It seemed like the proper song to kick off the playlist with. BUT, the next track was a strong contender for the leadoff spot.
2.
Artist: Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg
Song: “Nuthin’ But A ‘G’ Thang”
Album: The Chronic (1992)
“One, two, three, and to the fo’. Snoop Doggy Dogg and Dr. Dre is at the do’.”
Dr. Dre is an ace producer, and The Chronic, his debut solo album, is a G-Funk masterpiece. There are a lot of bangers on it, but “Nuthin’ But A ‘G’ Thang” is the signature track. It’s not a debate. This was the first single off The Chronic, and it charted as high as #2 on the Billboard Top 100 and went platinum. We the people decided that it was the definitive G-Funk anthem. It’s as L.A. as sunshine and lowriders. That Leon Haywood sample is bulletproof. Thump the bass up a bit, and add a little synthesizer for seasoning. Got damn!
This song was my gateway drug to serious rap music. That real hip-hop (hip-hop). If I could only listen to one hip-hop track for the rest of my life, it would be “Nuthin’ But A ‘G’ Thang”.
3.
Artist: Mobb Deep
Song: “Shook Ones, Pt. II”
Album: Infamous (1995)
“Cause ain’t no such thing as halfway crooks. Scared to death, scared to look, they shook.”
“Shook Ones, Pt. II” thumped like a supervillain’s anthem. Nothing against the Queensbridge public housing development in Queens, New York. It’s the home to a few rappers that I love, but according to them, it definitely sounds like a place a super villain would come from. That’s Mobb Deep’s whole style. Like Death Row and West Coast gangsta rap, “Shook Ones, Pt. II” is on some fuck around and find out shit, but it sounds more sinister than its peers. The first fifteen seconds are a ticking bomb about to go off—the hi-hat and clap ticking down to the inevitable explosion once the bass line drops. In the video, it mimics the sound of a natural gas stove top burner clicking on before the Mobb presumably cooks crack (or boils some hot dogs).
“Shook Ones, Pt. II” is a relentless and unwavering flurry of death threats and flexing. Havoc’s production is the edgier spiritual cousin to the G-Funk sound Dr. Dre was laying down in L.A. It’s bad ass. It was so fire that B-Rabbit used it to body Papa Doc in 8 Mile. Prodigy (rest in peace) and Havoc treat us to one of the greatest hooks in rap sing-along.
4.
Artist: The Pharcyde
Song: “Runnin’”
Album: Labcabincalifornia (1995)
“There comes a time in every man’s life when he’s got to handle shit up on his own.”
Do you remember the first crush you ever had? The way that person stuck in your head. Transworld Skateboarding Magazine’s official first skate video, Uno, was like that. I had been skateboarding for a few months and had seen some issues of 411 Video Magazine (shoutout to Lance Mountain and Sol), but Uno hit different. Transworld videos became events, and it started with Uno. Long story short, Chad Muska’s part became the thing of lore, even though it’s kind of mid by modern skateboarding standards, the song he skated to was “Runnin’” by The Pharcyde.
After all of the exposure I had to hardcore rap, “Runnin’”, was an alternative rap breath of fresh air. Everyone had heard “Passin’ Me By” (shoutout Quincy Jones). It was all over the radio back in the day. That’s jam, but “Runnin’” paired well with skateboarding. It’s also one of my favorite J Dilla beats.
5.
Artist: Nas, AZ, & Olu Dara
Song: “Life’s a Bitch”
Album: Illmatic (1994)
“Dipped to the projects, flashin’ my quick cash, and got my first piece of ass smokin’ blunts with hash.”
The 90s was an incredible decade for hip-hop music, and 1994 may have been one of its best years. A lot of great work dropped in ’94, including legendary debut albums from Biggie, OutKast, Method Man, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, Warren G, and the man on the clock right now, Nas.
Illmatic was a game-changing album that, along with Ready to Die, pulled attention away from Death Row and West Coast G-Funk. It’s a streamlined depiction of the rapper’s experience surviving in Queensbridge, and Nas is a gifted writer. With this album, Nas and his production team brought different sounds together to compose the soundtrack to Nas’s story. DJ and producer L.E.S. handled the work on “Life’s a Bitch,” and he seamlessly wove The Gap Band’s “Yearning for Your Love” into a laidback grove that Nas and AZ attacked with a duet of smooth flows. Their lyrics emphasize the importance of enjoying your life while you can because you never know when you’re gonna go.
6.
Artist: OutKast
Song: “ATLiens”
Album: ATLiens (1996)
“Now throw your hands in the air, and wave ‘em like you just don’t care. And If you like fish and grits, and all that pimp shit, everybody let me hear you say, ‘O-Yea-yer’.”
I didn’t know anything about OutKast when I first heard the lead single off their sophomore album, ATLiens. I had never heard anything off their debut album, Southernplayalisticcadillacmuzik. But, on one Saturday in September, I was at Sam Goody (do you old fucks remember that place?) with my mom. I had a little cash in my pocket, and I saw the comic book style cover art for ATLiens. I grabbed a copy of this CD off the rack and checked out the album’s song list. “Elevators” was the only song I knew. I had seen the video on Rap City. I liked it, so I took a chance on ATLiens. It ended up being one of my favorite albums of all time, and André 3000 ended up being my favorite rapper.
“ATLiens” is an extraterrestrial, timeless anthem.
7.
Artist: Notorious B.I.G.
Song: “Juicy”
Album: Ready to Die (1994)
“I let my tape rock ‘til my tape popped. Smokin’ weed in Bambu, sippin’ on Private Stock.”
Biggie’s dream of making it big in the rap game was realized on September 13, 1994, when Ready to Die dropped. His star would burn brightly for only a short amount of time, but in that time Biggie (and Bad Boy Records) left an enduring mark on hip-hop culture.
If “Nuthin’ But a ‘G’ Thang” is my #1, then “Juicy” is my #1A. Sean Combs had the Midas touch with producing rap and R&B hits for most of the 90s, and there wasn’t a beat that Biggie couldn’t murder. Mtume was the right call by Diddy. Biggie rocked the mic, and “Juicy” became the lead single off Ready to Die. “Big Poppa” was the most notable track on that album. It outperformed “Juicy” and “One More Chance” on every chart and earned Biggie a Grammy nomination, but “Juicy” can be appreciated by anyone striving to make something happen for themselves.
8.
Artist: 2Pac
Song: “So Many Tears”
Album: Me Against The World (1995)
“Is there a heaven for a G? Remember me. So many homies in the cemetery, shed so many tears.”
2Pac is best known for rowdy bangers like “California Love” and “2 Of Amerikaz Most Wanted” or his vitriolic roast of the Notorious B.I.G. and Bad Boy Records on “Hit ‘Em Up”, but I like it when the tough guys get spiritual and speak on their vulnerabilities, their fears, and their regrets. 2Pac was passionate about rap, and he conveyed his emotions on wax like few could. Rappers like Eminem and Kendrick Lamar can pull off a similar effect. That’s a high level of skill.
On “So Many Tears”, 2Pac brings us into the paranoia, the pain, and the regret he feels living the life he has. This was before he went to prison and became the gangster rapper that the world fell in love with upon his release and relationship with Suge Knight. He was a thug, but he was still a revolutionary. Yeah, the gangster shit was cool, but the 2Pac we got on Me Against The World was a better version of the artist.
9.
Artist: Wu-Tang Clan
Song: “C.R.E.A.M.”
Album: Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) (1993)
“Cash rules everything around me. C.R.E.A.M. Get the money. Dollar, dollar bill, ya’ll.”
RZA flipped the piano intro from “As Long as I’ve Got You” by The Charmels into the unmistakable loop from Wu-Tang’s “C.R.E.A.M.”. Even though this song only features one third of the hip-hop group, it’s the Wu’s signature track. One thing you should know about them is that they fucking love turning words into acronyms. For example, “Witty Unpredictable Talent And Natural Game” is W.U.T.A.N.G. “I Self Lord And Master” is I.S.L.A.M. There’s a list of them to add to the Wu-centric slang the Clan seasoned their cuts with, but give Wu-Tang affiliate and frequent Method Man shoutout Raider Ruckus credit for coming up with one of rap’s greatest hooks.
I first heard this song on Yo! MTV Raps in 1993. That’s two shoutouts for that show in this article. They played the video, and I didn’t pay much attention to it. Three years later, I’m skateboarding in my driveway, and my friend puts Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) in the tape deck and lets it rip. When we got to “C.R.E.A.M.”, I stopped skating, so I could listen to the song. It hit different in that moment, and it pulled me into the world of Shaolin.
10.
Artist: Ice Cube
Song: “It Was a Good Day”
Album: The Predator (1992)
“Just wakin’ up in the mornin’, gotta thank God. I don’t know but today feels kinda odd.”
1992 was a good year for L.A. rap with two former members of N.W.A., Dr. Dre and Ice Cubem dropping back-to-back sledgehammers. There must be something about the weather, the women, and the weed that alters the DNA of the rappers from the City of Angels. Ice Cube is a godfather of gangster rap, but on “It Was a Good Day”, he traded his usual aggressive and violent lyrics for a laidback ditty about a day when everything fell into place for him.
This song is smooth as fuck. DJ Pooh gave the Isley Brothers a bit of the West Coast gangster rap treatment, and Ice Cube rode that beat slow and low, making this song a commercial hit and a certified hip-hop classic.
