BEST RAP ALBUM
Her Loss
DRAKE & 21 SAVAGE
The most beloved song on Drake’s sixth solo album — 2022’s dancethemed Honestly, Nevermind, designed to court another audience after the sluggish reception to the prior year’s Certified Lover Boy — turned out to be its rappity-rap collaboration, “Jimmy Cooks,” with 21 Savage. The bestselling rapper of all time took the hint and, months later, dropped a full-length project with 21. Her Loss delivered in all of the ways great Drake projects do: pop hits, memorable bars that could pull double duty as Instagram captions and, of course, beautiful meme fodder (see the intro to this year’s twicenominated “Rich Flex”).
MICHAEL KILLER MIKE
Mike has lived many lives: OutKast understudy, T.I. labelmate, successful solo artist, one-half of indie duo Run the Jewels and even well-regarded political pundit. To break down how, exactly, the Atlanta native born Michael Render could contain these multitudes, Mike tapped No I.D. to oversee the production of a sonically rich, expertly rapped album that operates, in his words, as an origin story. In the hands of a lesser rapper, a set spanning this many topics and situations might’ve felt disjointed or, worse, dispirited. But Mike holds it all together. It feels like the album he was born to make.
Heroes & Villains METRO BOOMIN
Are rap superproducers a thing of the past? Not according to Metro. For his second studio album, Metro called on some of his favorite collaborators — who just happen to be the hottest names in rap and R&B today — to create an ambitious album where every song feels like a swing for the fences. With Heroes & Villains, Metro crafted a seemingly endless string of bangers that perfectly complement the artists using them, who include Future, The Weeknd, Young Thug, Travis Scott, Gunna and 21 Savage. It doesn’t get more super than that.
King’s Disease III NAS
On their fourth collaborative album in just over two years — since followed by two more — Nas and producer Hit-Boy seem more comfortable together. The 50-year-old rap legend hits on a wistful but boastful lyrical groove that works perfectly for him, while Hit-Boy, at the height of his powers, chops samples for a set of luxuriant beats. The highs may not reach those on King’s Disease I and II, and it doesn’t feel as tightly wound and jewel-like as its immediate predecessor, Magic, but King’s Disease III captures an MC taking a well-deserved victory lap and a producer finally getting recognized as one of his generation’s best.
Utopia TRAVIS SCOTT
Scott’s first album since 2018’s watershed pop sensation Astroworld — and the tragic events at his 2021 music festival of the same name that left 10 people dead — doesn’t fully reflect the drama and tension of the five years between projects. But Utopia’s star-studded guest list, which includes Drake, Playboi Carti, Bad Bunny and SZA, and extravagant production cement Scott’s status as one of the game’s leading auteurs. Very few artists have the temerity to make an album that contains everything from soul-chopped gangster rap to slick house music. Scott does — and he makes it seem effortless.