MTV News: Hottest MCs In The Game

[Meho]

Jim Jones
Rank: 10

Why He's Hot
The Dipset capo may not have raw skills like some of the other MCs on this list, but what he lacks in a traditional category like lyrical ability, he more than compensates with his overall passion and swagger for the game. Jimmy has come a long way from being Cam'ron's hypeman back in the day. Single-handedly, he launched the whole rock-star-in-the-'hood movement: From his skull-and-bones look down to his chained wallet, Jones has more clones on the block than an old zombie flick.

But it ain't just Jones' True Religion jeans that helped him make the cut. Check last year's Hustler's P.O.M.E. (Product of My Environment) and you'll find more than enough proof that Jimmy has fully come into his own as one of the top voices of the streets. From a vulnerable joint like "Emotionless" to the full-on rumble of "Reppin' Time," he's expanding his subject matter and developing more than ever as an artist.

But the main reason why he's hot shouldn't be much of a surprise, and it comes down to one word: "Baaaaallin'!" Jones' "We Fly High" ad-lib and the hoop-shot dance from the video became an unlikely pop-culture phenomenon. Just about anywhere you went — from Cali to Coney Island — you heard the song and saw someone doing the dance. Even the New York Giants adopted the move as a ritual after a big play, solidifying Jones' status as a true rap star.

Jimmy returned the love, putting together a Giants remix of the song, which became the first of a ton of remixes he's done in the past year. His phone blew up with calls from DJ Unk, Rich Boy and Game, making him one of the most-requested MCs. The calls kept coming as Jimmy went on tour with Jeezy in the spring, but soon setbacks and tragedy popped up when he went public with his feud with Cam'ron, and his close friend and Byrd Gang member Stack Bundles was murdered in June. With another close friend home from prison in Max B. and a Byrd Gang album on the way, hopefully things will improve for Jones.

Co-Signer: T.I.
"Jim got his swag together this year. He really popped himself off. He's [a hustler] like Jeezy — when people first started hearing about Jeezy, it wasn't for rapping. I think Jim gets the same ... that goes with street cred. Street cred and swagger. That's why I feel he should be high up on the list. I mean, he had a hit record: A no-brainer, an unadulterated hit record, not just something that some people liked and it got drilled into your head so much you got forced to like it. You gotta give credit when credit is due."

Blistering Ballistics
"The young and the restless live life reckless (Harlem!)/ House money on the necklace, the pigs want him arrested/ 'Cause I'm obsessed with the guns and the vests (I love them)/ 'Cause when you getting cake, the candles come with a death wish/ The rock star living (What else?), the hot cars and women (Lavish life)/ Let God forgive him, hope the cop cars don't get 'em (Squalie!)/ This is for them n---as that, at the club throwing stacks (Baalllin'!)/ It's 'Star Wars,' they threw two, I threw four back/ And I'm back, it's Mr. New York City/ My hat to the back, I stay flyer than a Frisbee" ("Reppin' Time")

Hot Streak
Album: Hustler's P.O.M.E. (Product of My Environment) (2006)

Selected Mixtapes
Jim Jones Presents: M.O.B. (Members of Byrdgang), DJ Drama & Jim Jones: The Seven Day Theory

Singles
"We Fly High," "Emotionless"

Street Bangers
"We Fly High" remix (featuring Diddy, T.I., Juelz Santana, Birdman and Young Dro); "We Fly High" beef mix with Jay-Z verse (featuring Juelz Santana); "Reppin' Time"; "Weatherman" (featuring Lil Wayne and Stack Bundles)

Key Guest Appearances
DJ Unk's "Walk It Out" and "2 Step" remixes, Rich Boy's "Throw Some D's" remix, Shop Boyz's "Party Like a Rockstar" remix, Game's "It's Okay (One Blood)" remix, Lil' Flip's "I Get Money," Pitbull's "Sticky Icky"

Business Ventures
Launching Nostic Apparel clothing line, CEO of Byrdgang record label, co-CEO of Diplomats Records, co-CEO of Sizzurp liquor, director of A&R for Warner Music Group.

Tours
Young Jeezy's I Am the Street Dream tour (spring 2007)

Source:http://www.mtv.com/bands/h/hip_hop_week/2007/hottest/
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Common
Rank: 9

Why He's Hot
Battle-tested. A regional pioneer. And time-weathered. Common's resume already reads like one of the most accomplished rappers of the past 10 years. But in 2005, the Windy City MC resurrected his career following the underwhelming Electric Circus by joining forces with Kanye West for Be, his sixth studio album, which not only featured Com's usual razor-sharp wit but also brought a much-welcomed return to the rapper's street-hardened sound, which had been missing since his earlier records.


Tracks like "Chi-City" and "The Food" brought out the best in the gifted lyricist, as he proved to be both boastful and sincere — satisfying his expanding fanbase, whether it's block huggers or those coffee-shop chicks — over West's neck-snapping drums and kicks. Be earned plenty of accolades, from classic ratings in rap mags to four Grammy nods, including Best Rap Album. Com even snagged his second gold record in the process, along with a Gap campaign and a few movie roles. His follow-up, the Kanye-helmed Finding Forever, drops July 31, and the first two tracks, "The Game" and "The People," are a good sign for any fans of the Nag Champa champ. Over Preemo's scratched chorus on "The Game," Com sounds hungrier than a young MJ gunning for his first Larry O'Brien trophy: "Punch lines are like jab pits to rappers/ Whose careers are now ashes/ It's too many slashes in his name/ Came in the game as gun clappers/ From weak rhymes to clothing lines to an actress."

The rest of the year should see Com guesting on other artists' records, and Finding Forever should bolster his credentials even further as tracks like the monster "Southside" become available to the masses. He's not as frivolous with material as other MCs, so there aren't many mixtapes to choose from. In fact, his albums rarely have many tracks — but what Common lacks in quantity he more than makes up for with a quality that only a few of his peers in the game — now and ever — could match.

Co-Signer: Ja Rule
"Common is like wine — he's getting better with time. He's getting better at what he does with the records, and he's starting to sell more records as well. His whole last album was crazy! I don't know if it's those beats, but he just keeps improving. He's a hot MC."

Blistering Ballistics
"The broads, the cards, the half moons, the stars/ I'm like Jeff Fort, the way I get behind bars/ Burn CDs with no regards for the stars/ Come to the crib with conflict diamonds and they ours/ Back in '94 they called me Chi-town's Nas/ Now them n---as know I'm one of Chi-town's gods/ We eating Joe, you still talking no carbs/ A conscious n---a with mack like Steve Jobs." ("Southside")

Hot Streak

* Albums
Finding Forever (due July 31)

* Selected Mixtapes
Tracks from Kanye West's Can't Tell Me Nothing

* Singles
"The People"

* Street Bangers
"The Game"

* Key Guest Appearances
Joss Stone's "Tell Me What We're Gonna Do Now"

* Business Ventures
Launching Soji hat line

* Tours
TBD, but expect him to pop up with Kanye this fall.


Source: http://www.mtv.com/bands/h/hip_hop_w...t/index3.jhtml

[Layeth THe Smacketh Down]

Jim Jones is hot because he had 1 hit almost a year ago?  Wow.

[Lunatic]

this feature is cool...instead of battling who's greatest ever, lets talk about right now

[The King Of L.A]

shit is going to be gay ......... fuck mtv ...

[K.Dub]

Where's the rest ?

[Lunatic]

Where's the rest ?

it's 1 a day

[Adam Donnelly]

Jim Jones One Of The Hottest MC's In the game

Hip Hop might be fuckin dead

[G. Sean Peters]

I hardly think i will take what MTV says are the hottest mcs in the game any consideration.

[KURUPTION-81]

I hardly think i will take what MTV says are the hottest mcs in the game any consideration.

[K.Dub]

Jim Jones One Of The Hottest MC's In the game

Hip Hop might be fuckin dead

"Hottest" ain't equal "best"

[WC Iz Active]

Jimmy is the hottest out

[big mat]

jimmy is not a rapper, you can't call somebody who can't sing for shit a singer.. right?

[Bay Area Jat]

baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaallllllllllllllllllllllllllliiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinnnnnnnnnnnnn

[Lunatic]

Jimmy is the hottest out

how is the hottest out right now? MANY artists are "hotter" right now

Jeezy
T.I.
Wayne
Andre 3000
Rich Boi

and so on are all hotter than jimmy right now

[Sanford - V. President of the Dangerous Crew Movement]

LOL at MTV thinking they know how to rank "MC's in the Game."