MTV News: Hottest MCs In The Game

[Elevz]

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

You can... Just a bad one though

[Meho]

50 Cent
Rank: 8

Why He's Hot
Just a few weeks ago, a lot of people were calling 50 a hot mess, not a hot MC. He had put out two singles from his forthcoming album Curtis, "Fully Loaded Clip" and "Amusement Park" — as well as the leaked street track "Straight to the Bank" — to underwhelming feedback. 50 himself said he didn't like the reaction, so he regrouped and recorded eight new songs, causing Curtis to be delayed from June 26 to September 11. Then there was that performance at the BET Awards, where he walked through the crowd instead of rapping the first verse of "Amusement Park." And we're not even going to talk about the performance of the last three albums from his G-Unit label.

So why does 50 make our list despite all of this? Well, as we've found out over the years, you can never count out Curtis Jackson. He'll find a way to come out on top. As far as the 'hood goes, even the cats who were cursing 50's name a few weeks ago can't front with his new record, "I Get Money." It's the most rugged joint in the streets right now: a relentless loop of classic hip-hop lyrics by Audio Two, a grizzly bassline and believably brash lyrics said in a harmonic flow. Speaking of getting money, while a lot of rappers need ringtones and club dates to eat, 50 became millions and millions richer with the sale of Glaceau Vitamin Water. He owned a stake in the company and even had a flavor named after him.

While the Southside Queens, New York, native stayed in the forefront of his business, he also kept on top of battling. When Cam'ron tried to son him on New York radio station Hot 97, 50 responded with not just a dis record, but a low-budget video that went straight to YouTube. Others like Cam himself and Scott Storch followed the trend. When Killa Cam responded and dissed with his hilarious "Courtesy Curtis" campaign, 50 turned that into a marketing strategy for his album, hoping he'll be able to laugh straight to the bank again. Cam hasn't been heard from since he went back on YouTube threatening to get at 50 again on June 1 — that was in May.

And don't forget: 50 is still one of the biggest names out there — not just in rap, but in entertainment in general. Just about everything he does or says is a major headline — like having a topless Ciara fondle his bare muscles in her video. There aren't too many rappers these days who can draw crowds all over the world, let alone bring out Sue Storm herself — Jessica Alba — onstage with them (yes: the footage is all over the Net).

Co-Signer: Common
"50's definitely got his own style. His voice — I like that he's got some type of swagger and humor to what he does and he still rhymes raw. He has cleverness to what he does. He's what you call a good song maker too. Not only do you feel like 50 loves to rap, but you feel like this dude is making good songs. His hooks are catchy. For me, that was one of the things I had to develop. You could be a dope MC, [but] if your songs ain't coming out to the level that people want, they not gonna pay attention to you."

Blistering Ballistics
"I took quarter water, sold it in bottles for 2 bucks/ Coca-Cola came and bought it for billions, what the f---?/ Have a baby by me, baby, be a millionaire/ I write the check before the baby comes, who the f--- cares/ I'm stanky rich!" ("I Get Money")

Hot Streak

* Albums

Curtis (due September 11)

* Selected Mixtapes

N/A

* Singles

"She Wants It" (featuring Justin Timberlake)

* Street Bangers

"I Get Money," "Funeral Music"

[Soulful]

http://videos.onsmash.com/v/beqGsyY9ABu1tGNl

[K.Dub]

Lol at 50

[Bay Area Jat]

http://videos.onsmash.com/v/beqGsyY9ABu1tGNl

i agree wit everything saigon said in that interview about jeezy

[westkoastanostra]

LOL @ Jim Jones being a hot mc...

[weedhead]

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

Hip Hop might be fuckin dead

[Lunatic]

lol glad to see 50 all the way at 8

[Meho]

Jay-Z
Rank: 7

Why He's Hot
He's laughing straight to the bank — oh, wait, that's one of the other big-name rappers who made the Forbes list of highest-paid entertainers! Still, the Big Homie continues to be the poster man for hip-hop moguling: Jay made $83 million last year alone according to Forbes, netting him the #9 spot on its list — one above Steven Spielberg! Yes, the numbers don't lie. Maybe that's why we didn't hear Jay jump into battle mode as passionately with Jim Jones and Cam'ron as he did in the past with Nas or even Mase; he feels the Harlem, New York, hot boys are not on his level artistically or financially.

Dis records like "Brooklyn High" and "Dig a Hole" left more of a sour taste in the mouths of fans than in the mouths of those he was aiming barbs at. (The records weren't devastatingly disrespectful.) The streets questioned how Jay could not only lyrically leave the Diplomats standing, but also leave the door open for Jim Jones to come back with a rebuttal and use Jay's vocals on his record. But Jay is in a way different place now; there's nothing else for him to prove. When you think of the biggest name in rap right now, there's not a performer out there who leapfrogs Jay. Your favorite rapper would love to be where he is.


His spot on this list is another victory lap for Hov — we've already crowned him the greatest MC of all time. He makes big hit records with the hottest chick in the game, who happens to be the same lady he's seen kissing in pictures from exotic island vacations. Despite the talk of how Kingdom Come didn't live up to the hype, if Jay said he was going to drop a new album today or tomorrow, you'd go buy it without having to hear a single song. That, my friends, is the epitome of being hot: when your name alone commands attention everywhere in the world.

Who else but Hov could have generated that much interest by releasing a hip-hop LP? On Kingdom Come, he rapped over a handful of Dr. Dre beats, sprinkled with a little Just Blaze, a last-minute pinch of Pharrell Williams and guest vocals from Chris Martin, Beyoncé, Ne-Yo and John Legend. When Hewlett-Packard, Budweiser, Cherry Coke, Verizon and GMC all wanted to throw millions of dollars his way before the album even came out, expectations for the biggest hip-hop album ever abounded. He started off right, too — with a world tour that promoted awareness of the world's water crisis, a jet-fueled U.S. tour that hit seven cities in 28 hours, and more than 600,000 units of Kingdom Come sold in its first week of release. The album has scanned over 2 million copies with just two singles, one of which — "Lost One" — strayed from many of Jay's club-friendly singles.

And while he may have sacrificed a few million more in sales by not watering down his music or lyrics, he made the album he wanted to make — an LP of grown-up topics and soundscapes that didn't pander to a teen-dance craze or some nonsensical here-today-gone-tomorrow catchphrase.

Co-Signer: Young Jeezy "I think the MC thing is more for the passion — you could make hot records and not be relevant, so you have to stay relevant. You take Ludacris, Jay-Z: They're relevant. They stay poppin'. To me that's what makes a great MC. But I respect the businessman aspect of it, too. To make a good record is cool, but we all know it ain't just about that anymore. I ain't saying it's a money thing, but you got to know where you're going, who you're making it for. You gotta make sure you're up to par. Jay-Z, dude got love for music. So it's like, when you one of the best at it, you might just feel like ain't nobody out there doin' it the right way, so he had to sneak back."

Blistering Ballistics
"Comin' up, though, we thought slingin' raw was the end-all be-all of being rich, didn't we?/ Little did I know, my mo' potent delivery would deliver me/ Kingpin of the ink pen, monster of the double entendre/ Coke is still my sponsor/ Heh, the cola, yeah Hova still gettin' it in with soda/ Diet, no sir, I ain't lose no weight/ Started from the crates, now I'm sittin' on a whole case/ Since they got you sittin' on that old case/ Our dreams is on hold like Tivo." ("Do U Wanna Ride")

Hot Streak

    * Albums

      Kingdom Come (2006)

    * Selected Mixtapes

      N/A

    * Singles

      "Show Me What You Got," "Lost One," "30 Something"

    * Street Bangers

      "Kingdom Come," "Brooklyn High," "Minority Report"

    * Key Guest Appearances

      Rihanna's "Umbrella," Freeway's "Big Spender," Fabolous' "Brooklyn," Nas' "Black Republican," Amy Winehouse's "Rehab" remix, T.I.'s "Watch What You Say," Ne-Yo's "Crazy," Beyoncé's "Deja Vu" and "Upgrade U"

    * Business Ventures

      President and CEO of Def Jam Records, CEO of Roc-A-Fella Records, endorsement deals with Budweiser and Hewlett-Packard, partnerships with Cherry Coke and GMC, sold Rocawear clothing for a reported $204 million (still oversees operations and marketing), has a part ownership with the New Jersey Nets)

    * Tours

      Water for Life (September 2006), Hangar Tour (November 2006)

[Lunatic]

Damn I wonder who will be 1-6...Only 1s i can think of guaranteed are luda, t.i., wayne, chamillionaire

[Meho]

Jeezy is 6th. Then Wayne, T.I., Cham, Luda and Kanye will be there imo. South still running rap.

[Lunatic]

Jeezy is 6th. Then Wayne, T.I., Cham, Luda and Kanye will be there imo. South still running rap.

they haven't revealed 6 yet thogh?

[Elevz]

Nah, it's MTV, of course they've got to include Eminem, and maybe Snoop.

[Sweet & Tender Hooligan]

If Weezy aint numero uno, the list is a joke.

[Meho]

Young Jeezy
Rank: 6

Why He's Hot
It could have been a very cold winter for the Snowman in late 2006, but the ATL trap star continued his run as one of rap's true thriving forces. Everybody was eagerly awaiting the arrival of his Gangsta Grillz special-edition mixtape, I Am the Street Dream, but it just didn't bring the 'hood tremors that his groundbreaking Trap or Die had caused in 2006. To pile on, some people were saying that the double-platinum status of his Def Jam debut, Let's Get It: Thug Motivation 101, was a fluke and that the kids were just hopping on the bandwagon of the hot new thing.


But Jeezy had the last laugh — "haaaaah, haaaaah!" — when The Inspiration debuted at #1 on the Billboard albums chart in December, selling more than 350,000 copies and almost doubling the first-week sales of 101. The project showed he still had the most swagger of any MC on the mic. (We'll probably never get tired of "That'ssss riiiiiight!" and "Yeaaahhhhh!") The great motivator was inspired by all the doubters who said he couldn't rap, stepping up his lyrics and range of material. "Go Getta" (featuring R. Kelly) boosted his radio play and became one of the most commercially successful hip-hop records this year, while tracks like "Hypnotize" made him arguably the most street-credible act on this list. Some say going gold is the new platinum — nah, Jeezy's numbers still topped a million in this climate of lackluster sales.

In the spring, he headlined a tour of 'round-the-way head-bussas (which featured Fat Joe, Lil Wayne, Rich Boy and Jim Jones) and introduced his new group, USDA, with Cold Summer. While they're far from household names, USDA members Slick Pulla and Blood Raw got good in the 'hood, riding alongside Jeezy on records like "White Girl" and "Corporate Thuggin'."

Meanwhile, Jeezy has continued to be one of the busiest guest collaborators in the game, obliging requests from Kanye West, Game, Ludacris and DJ Khaled.

Co-Signer: Fabolous
"I saw Jeezy and respected his talent from one of the first times I heard him. Certain people don't always [catch my ear from the beginning]. It takes some type of stamping or backing, or you might have to work a little harder. But when I heard Jeezy, I said, 'His style is different.' I felt his style and energy because it was so different from what was going on. I reached out to him to work on a song, and from there we've been airtight. [We've] always been homies. It's good to see him doing his thing; he's in his own lane, he wears his hat well. I'm rooting for him."

Blistering Ballistics
"I got the streets on lock, Atlanta on my back/ I do it for the 'hood, you got a problem with that?/ Real n---a, so this rap sh-- easy/ When I speak, these n---as believe me/ 'Cause b---h I'm Jeezy." — "Streets on Lock"

Hot Streak

    * Albums

      The Inspiration (2006), Young Jeezy Presents USDA: Cold Summer (2007)

    * Selected Mixtapes

      I Am the Street Dream

    * Singles

      "I Love It," "Go Getta" (featuring R. Kelly), "Dreamin' " (featuring Keyshia Cole), USDA's "White Girl"

    * Street Bangers

      "Corporate Thuggin'," "Bury Me a G," "Mr. 17.5," USDA's "Get It Up" and "White Girl" remix

    * Key Guest Appearances

      Ludacris' "Grew Up a Screw Up," DJ Drama's "Feds Takin' Pictures," T.I.'s "Top Back" remix, B.G.'s "Hustle," DJ Khaled's "Brown Paper Bag" and "We Takin' Over" remix, Kanye West's "Can't Tell Me Nothing" (sampled ad-libs only!)

    * Business Ventures

      Launching 8732 clothing line, CEO of Corporate Thugz Entertainment label

    * Tours

      Headlined I Am the Street Dream tour (spring 2007).