1. K-OS
Joyful Rebellion (EMI)
"After sub-par albums from the Roots, Mos Def, Talib Kweli and N.E.R.D, K-OS saves face for the more mainstream conscientious' hip-hop artists with his brilliant sophomore release. Fantastic from start to finish." Shawn Despres, Ancaster ON
"I like the lack of bitch slapping and gun toting. A nice change." Jesse Ladret, Victoria BC
"Hip-hop in Canada is growing up and this man is a nice part of the scene. In a couple of years those MuchMusic listening kids listening to more Canadian hip-hop than American because local artists like K-OS are great. Hip-hop in the future will be less concerned with materialism and samples. It will be more organic. Hallelujah. K-OS is doing this already. He plays and sings on his albums not just samples and raps about ice. David Payumo, Toronto ON
"Many moves busted; in the kitchen, in the hallway, out the door..." Catherine Woodcock, Ottawa ON
"An all-over great album in the tradition of Japanese musical stylists laying down non-sequential tracks, jumping from style to style." Brad Choma, Toronto ON
"He's a great role model for up and comers in the industry, speaking about something important than $$$ and cars." Allan Bjornaa, Sault Ste. Marie ON
"K-OS is brilliant. He has the ability to maintain integrity and intelligence while still being able to create catchy, danceable tracks." Peg Britton, Halifax NS
"It seems like K-OS has always been a hip-hop political icon. What would MuchMusic's debates be without him? What would my Saturday night be without Crabbuckit'? These are unanswerable questions." Amanda Judd, Waterford ON
2. MADVILLAIN
Madvillainy (Stones Throw)
"I don't think I've encountered a rap album this listenable since the mid-'90s; every track is a winner, and I say that without the slightest bit of exaggeration. Every time I listen, one of Doom's lines catches me off-guard and Madlib's beats guarantee head nodding every time. Pure hip-hop bliss." Allan Lorde, Winnipeg MB
"Madlib did a great job with the production. Awesome head nodding beats!" Octavio Santos, Mississauga ON
"Makes me wanna put on my mask." Dave Brass, Regina SK
"There is no way anyone in their right mind can disagree with this choice. Untouchable minimalist hip-hop that forces you to get down. Raid' is the throw down of the year." David Laino, Toronto ON
"Doom's drunken drawl matched by Madlib's choice of jazzy samples is golden!" Kevin Turcot, Toronto ON
"This is an underground hip-hop fan's wet dream with two of the best in the game, MF Doom and Madlib. Not only this pairing but also the flow of this album is what makes it so great. It changes up so often that it leaves no room for you to get bored. And the samples used are off the wall!!" Jeff Purmalis, Stoney Creek ON
"Hip-hop is so in trouble, it's a miracle that stuff like this can be released. You get MF Doom too. This is what every little thug should be listening to." Andrew Iliadis, Richmond Hill ON
"Everyone knew this album was going to be special, but when it dropped is was listening magic. Madlib's beats prove why he is the still the most interesting person to watch in hip-hop, and Doom still rhymes like no other. Everybody is all over the Kanye album, but what he takes a whole 80 minutes to accomplish, Madvillian does it in half the time with twice the flavour. Not to mention all the other projects that Madlib had his hands on this year!" Derek Nawrot, Whitby ON
3. KANYE WEST
The College Dropout (Roc-A-Fella)
"Highly acclaimed producer finally gave us an incredibly solid album. Sweet flows, good vibes and a great album as a whole. It's highly musical, it's smart and it's deeply moving. Kanye West gave a lesson to all rappers wannabes and I hope they took some notes." Luc Nicole-Labrie, Quebec QC
"Finally, a mainstream rapper that is talking about real issues." Craig Abbott, Summerside PEI
"The first hip-hop since Miseducation to have a consistently timeless sound to it, College Dropout has more than just a bunch of hits. Not afraid to talk religion, not afraid to point out school's still a sham, Kanye is in charge now." Paul Gagnon, Toronto ON
"A wonderful debut from a very talented artist and producer." Leyla Polat, Surrey BC
"Although at this point having overexposed himself a tad, rewind one year ago and I couldn't get enough of Kanye. The hype around him was monumental as people were hoping that he'd help shift hip-hop back to its more conscious, heartfelt lyricism and inject some balance into the mainstream game. He definitely did that, and the industry may not have followed suit as much but as an individual he had an incredible impact on the genre. The return to sampling was one of the best things about it in my opinion, that Pete Rock soul classic feel brought a smile to my face. He dared to be different. And that is the true aesthetic of hip-hop." Patrick Whittemore, Toronto ON
4. THE STREETS
A Grand Don't Come For Free (Vice)
"Though the beats didn't blow me away like the Streets debut, Mike Skinner is quickly becoming a master storyteller. His flow constantly verges on falling apart, but yet the words come together more beautifully than any other MC in hip-hop today." Trell Huether, Toronto ON
"Why is everything funnier when the Brits do it?" Esther Whang, Vancouver BC
"How can a song about returning a DVD or fixing a television be so damn cool?" Thomas Wong, Vancouver BC
"The best hip-hop album of the year was 1) by a British guy, who 2) less raps than does stream-of-consciousness spoken word bits, on 3) a concept album about losing some money. And it had a Choose Your Own Adventure-style ending. If anyone doubts that British hip-hop is just as distinctive as any other subgenre, this was the album that should erase those doubts." Matthew Pollesel, Ottawa ON
"A concept album that travels through the mundane day to day world of the UK's most ingenious MC." Bryan Carver, Ottawa ON
5. EMINEM
Encore (Aftermath)
"Eminem is always the greatest!" Aleksandra Koleva, Montreal QC
"Eminem rocks." Varun Sharma, Mississauga ON
"Not at satisfying as his two previous CDs, but has some solid songs" Nik Gupta, Toronto ON
"Serious and funny..." Oleksandr Solomonyuk, Montreal QC
"This CD is okay." Brittany Cook, Brunswick, GA
Joyful Rebellion (EMI)
"After sub-par albums from the Roots, Mos Def, Talib Kweli and N.E.R.D, K-OS saves face for the more mainstream conscientious' hip-hop artists with his brilliant sophomore release. Fantastic from start to finish." Shawn Despres, Ancaster ON
"I like the lack of bitch slapping and gun toting. A nice change." Jesse Ladret, Victoria BC
"Hip-hop in Canada is growing up and this man is a nice part of the scene. In a couple of years those MuchMusic listening kids listening to more Canadian hip-hop than American because local artists like K-OS are great. Hip-hop in the future will be less concerned with materialism and samples. It will be more organic. Hallelujah. K-OS is doing this already. He plays and sings on his albums not just samples and raps about ice. David Payumo, Toronto ON
"Many moves busted; in the kitchen, in the hallway, out the door..." Catherine Woodcock, Ottawa ON
"An all-over great album in the tradition of Japanese musical stylists laying down non-sequential tracks, jumping from style to style." Brad Choma, Toronto ON
"He's a great role model for up and comers in the industry, speaking about something important than $$$ and cars." Allan Bjornaa, Sault Ste. Marie ON
"K-OS is brilliant. He has the ability to maintain integrity and intelligence while still being able to create catchy, danceable tracks." Peg Britton, Halifax NS
"It seems like K-OS has always been a hip-hop political icon. What would MuchMusic's debates be without him? What would my Saturday night be without Crabbuckit'? These are unanswerable questions." Amanda Judd, Waterford ON
2. MADVILLAIN
Madvillainy (Stones Throw)
"I don't think I've encountered a rap album this listenable since the mid-'90s; every track is a winner, and I say that without the slightest bit of exaggeration. Every time I listen, one of Doom's lines catches me off-guard and Madlib's beats guarantee head nodding every time. Pure hip-hop bliss." Allan Lorde, Winnipeg MB
"Madlib did a great job with the production. Awesome head nodding beats!" Octavio Santos, Mississauga ON
"Makes me wanna put on my mask." Dave Brass, Regina SK
"There is no way anyone in their right mind can disagree with this choice. Untouchable minimalist hip-hop that forces you to get down. Raid' is the throw down of the year." David Laino, Toronto ON
"Doom's drunken drawl matched by Madlib's choice of jazzy samples is golden!" Kevin Turcot, Toronto ON
"This is an underground hip-hop fan's wet dream with two of the best in the game, MF Doom and Madlib. Not only this pairing but also the flow of this album is what makes it so great. It changes up so often that it leaves no room for you to get bored. And the samples used are off the wall!!" Jeff Purmalis, Stoney Creek ON
"Hip-hop is so in trouble, it's a miracle that stuff like this can be released. You get MF Doom too. This is what every little thug should be listening to." Andrew Iliadis, Richmond Hill ON
"Everyone knew this album was going to be special, but when it dropped is was listening magic. Madlib's beats prove why he is the still the most interesting person to watch in hip-hop, and Doom still rhymes like no other. Everybody is all over the Kanye album, but what he takes a whole 80 minutes to accomplish, Madvillian does it in half the time with twice the flavour. Not to mention all the other projects that Madlib had his hands on this year!" Derek Nawrot, Whitby ON
3. KANYE WEST
The College Dropout (Roc-A-Fella)
"Highly acclaimed producer finally gave us an incredibly solid album. Sweet flows, good vibes and a great album as a whole. It's highly musical, it's smart and it's deeply moving. Kanye West gave a lesson to all rappers wannabes and I hope they took some notes." Luc Nicole-Labrie, Quebec QC
"Finally, a mainstream rapper that is talking about real issues." Craig Abbott, Summerside PEI
"The first hip-hop since Miseducation to have a consistently timeless sound to it, College Dropout has more than just a bunch of hits. Not afraid to talk religion, not afraid to point out school's still a sham, Kanye is in charge now." Paul Gagnon, Toronto ON
"A wonderful debut from a very talented artist and producer." Leyla Polat, Surrey BC
"Although at this point having overexposed himself a tad, rewind one year ago and I couldn't get enough of Kanye. The hype around him was monumental as people were hoping that he'd help shift hip-hop back to its more conscious, heartfelt lyricism and inject some balance into the mainstream game. He definitely did that, and the industry may not have followed suit as much but as an individual he had an incredible impact on the genre. The return to sampling was one of the best things about it in my opinion, that Pete Rock soul classic feel brought a smile to my face. He dared to be different. And that is the true aesthetic of hip-hop." Patrick Whittemore, Toronto ON
4. THE STREETS
A Grand Don't Come For Free (Vice)
"Though the beats didn't blow me away like the Streets debut, Mike Skinner is quickly becoming a master storyteller. His flow constantly verges on falling apart, but yet the words come together more beautifully than any other MC in hip-hop today." Trell Huether, Toronto ON
"Why is everything funnier when the Brits do it?" Esther Whang, Vancouver BC
"How can a song about returning a DVD or fixing a television be so damn cool?" Thomas Wong, Vancouver BC
"The best hip-hop album of the year was 1) by a British guy, who 2) less raps than does stream-of-consciousness spoken word bits, on 3) a concept album about losing some money. And it had a Choose Your Own Adventure-style ending. If anyone doubts that British hip-hop is just as distinctive as any other subgenre, this was the album that should erase those doubts." Matthew Pollesel, Ottawa ON
"A concept album that travels through the mundane day to day world of the UK's most ingenious MC." Bryan Carver, Ottawa ON
5. EMINEM
Encore (Aftermath)
"Eminem is always the greatest!" Aleksandra Koleva, Montreal QC
"Eminem rocks." Varun Sharma, Mississauga ON
"Not at satisfying as his two previous CDs, but has some solid songs" Nik Gupta, Toronto ON
"Serious and funny..." Oleksandr Solomonyuk, Montreal QC
"This CD is okay." Brittany Cook, Brunswick, GA