Seeing that the original version was my #6 ranked song for last year, I had show love to the “Bold And Arrogant (remix)”. Emilio Rojas gets The Ghost & Asher to ride shotgun this time. That beat is still crazy.

Download: Emilio Rojas feat. Styles P & Asher Roth – “Bold And Arrogant (remix)”
Bonus: Emilio Rojas – “Bold And Arrogant”

It’s been almost a year since we did the article on XXL’s “The 10 Freshmen”. The XXL magazine cover featuring their picks for “Hip-Hop’s Class Of ‘09” gave the new blood the much-needed light, caused widespread debates, and may have forever linked the careers of all the rappers involved. What have been the fates and progress of the “The 10 Freshmen” since then? Here, we look at the progress of each rapper, look at the album released, and give them a grade based on their success (As well as get King Jerm’s take). Class is in session….

Wale
Even though Wale already had a buzz in 2007 (That year he was featured on the cover of URB and released the mixtape 100 Miles & Running), the XXL cover helped elevate his game. While his debut album Attention: Deficit has been pushed back a few times and has yet to be released, Wale still made waves by having his first single feature Lady GaGa, releasing another good mixtape (Back To The Feature), signing/touring with Jay-Z, and being the official house band for the 2009 MTV VMA’s along side UCB.
Albums Then: 0
Albums Now: 0
Grade: B
*King Jerm Says: “Dude got some good exposure since he made the list..now all we need is the album.”

B.o.B.
Bobby Ray (As he goes by now) probably had the most artistic evolution on the list. His steady touring and mixtape releases steadily grew his fan base and made his reach beyond you standard Hip-Hop listeners. But rumor has it that the hold up on B.o.B.’s debut album, The Adventures of B.o.B., is due to label drama with Atlantic Records. Is this the reason for the name change and retirement talk? You can always download Should Have BeenThe First Album.
Albums Then: 0
Albums Now: 0
Grade: C
*King Jerm Says: “This cat retired (you need a career to do that) then he came out of retirement…I think he should have stayed retired.”

Asher Roth
Out of all the rappers on the list, I think a lot of people pegged Asher as the safest best as far as Hip-Hop stardom goes; He had a hit single (“I Love College”), he could rap, and of course, he was white. While Asleep In The Bread Aisle got mostly positive reviews and did marginally well selling around 60,000 and placing #5 on the charts, he got more noise for making a controversial nappy headed hoes joke during a Rutgers University event via Twitter.
Albums Then: 0
Albums Now: 1 = Asleep In The Bread Aisle
Grade: C
*King Jerm Says: “He WAS the Great White Hope until Eminem came back out…now Asher is nowhere to be found.”

Charles Hamilton
Poor Charles. After releasing mixtape after mixtape during 2008/2009, Hamilton hit a few bumps (Or huge potholes) in his career. Here’s just a few: He reportedly stole a beat from Black Spade, got punched in the face by his onetime girl on video, and he listed a deceased J-Dilla as executive producer on his (Now shelved) digital only The Perfect Life album (Whom he never met). This supposedly led to him being dropped by his label, Interscope Records. Other than a few leaked tracks here and there, Charles has been quiet on the Hip-Hop front.
Albums Then: 0
Albums Now: 2 = The Pink Lavalamp (Digital); The Perfect Life (Shelved)
Grade: F
*King Jerm Says: “This cat took more losses than Nas.”

Cory Gunz
Other than releaseing overlooked mixtapes, kicking freestyles, and contributing a verse to a scrapped version of “A Milli” for Lil’ Wayne’s Tha Carter 3 album, Cory is probably in the same position he was when he graced the XXL cover. It’s no question of his lyrical ability, but with no certified street bangers or official album in sight, you have to question his future a little. He did recently a mixtape hosted by DJ Drama, Heir To The Throne. That’s something right?
Albums Then: 0
Albums Now: 0
Grade: D
*King Jerm Says: “Who is this guy? Peter “Uptown Baby” Gunz son?”

Blu
When the XXL cover was shot, Blu was the only one who actually had a critically acclaimed album under his belt (Below The Heaven w/Exile). Since then, he has went unconventional and continued to put out joint albums (The Piece Talks & Johnson&Jonson). Still no word on the official full solo album but he seems content with his position in the game.
Albums Then: 1 = Below The Heavens w/Exile
Albums Now: 3 = The Piece Talks as C.R.A.C. Knuckles, w/ Ta’Raach & Johnson&Jonson as Johnson&Jonson, w/ Mainframe
Grade: C-
*King Jerm Says: “Who is this guy again?”

Mickey Factz
Even though he released the song “Incredible” to some buzz and was featured in a Honda commercial, the biggest thing Mickey may be known for this year is being by Joe Budden’s side when Joe got snuffed. Factz still makes music and released mixtapes since being named a “Freshman” but he is nowhere near making a impact higher than the XXL cover.
Albums Then: 0
Albums Now: 0
Grade: D
*King Jerm Says: “Is this the same guy from the Honda commercials? Hold up..he raps? Didn’t know that!”

Ace Hood
When Ace appeared on the XXL cover, Ace had the most going for him; he was signed and backed by Def Jam and DJ Khaled. Didn’t really matter. While he had notable rappers and producers featured on singles and his albums, both releases from Ace Hood, Gutta & Ruthless, didn’t garner the attention of a Def Jam album and are mostly considered fails. I don’t see a third try in his future. On the upside, he was featured along side Julez Santana, Jadakiss, & Fabolous in a BET Hip-Hop Cyper.
Albums Then: 1 = Gutta
Albums Now: 2 = Ruthless
Grade: D+
*King Jerm Says: “One of the few cats from the class that actually released an album. I can’t knock Ace’s hustle at all.”

Curren$y
After leaving Lil’ Wayne’s Young Money label, most rapper’s career would have majorly staled. Not Curren$y. He went the mixtape route a dropped eight mixtapes before going the digital route with Amalgam and releasing two albums. And even though each album hasn’t gained much attention as in sales, the Internet buzz on Spitta is high. He best days may be in front of him.
Albums Then: 0
Albums Now: 2 = This Is Not A Mixtape & The Jet Files
Grade: C+
*King Jerm Says: “He is always releasing something..too bad no one wants to hear it.”

Kid Cudi
Even though Cudi was placed last on the XXL cover, he did well for his self this year. Lead by his hit single “Day ‘n’ Nite”, Kid Cudi’s debut album Man On The Moon: The End Of Day went on to sell over 100,000 units in the first week placing #4 on the charts as well as receiving critical praise. He also got a guest spot on Jay-Z’s Blueprint 3 album and is rumored to have the lead role in the upcoming comedy series called How To Make It In America produced by Mark Wahlberg. It’s been a good year for Cudi and so far he’s head of this class.
Albums Then: 0
Albums Now: 1 = Man On The Moon: The End Of Day
Grade: B+
*King Jerm Says: “I wouldn’t know this guy if he was singing his song on stage with a Kid Cudi shirt on!…Wait..wasn’t he at the VMA’s?”

Deeper Than Rap did what most expected and debuted on the top of the charts. He sold over 150,000 copies in his first week. I’m not gonna get too heavy into the chart performance of Ricky’s new album since i already covered it in a previous post (Where you can even vote if it’s a commercial failure or not).

What I will talk about is Asleep In The Bread Aisle. Asher Roth’s debut came in at #5 and sold over 60,000 albums. That’s not bad, but I think people saying that he had a chance of outselling Ricky Ross may have raised expectations a little high. Still not bad for a debut.

Also debuting this week is Chester French with their debut album Love The Future. I usually don’t mention any artists here if their not Hip-Hop or R&B but they did release the Jacques Jams Vol. 1 mixtape with Clinton Sparks (“Nerd Girl” is my shit!). The album got off to a slow start at #77 and moved around 6,000 units.

Lastly at #186 is West Coast Hip-Hop vets The Grouch & Eligh with the album Say G&E!. I’d be lying if I said I knew anything about this album besides the Living Legends connection.

#1 Rick Ross/Deeper Than Rap (Last Week: NA) – 158,027; Total: NA [Debut]
#5 Asher Roth/Asleep In The Bread Aisle (Last Week: NA) – 61,987; Total: NA [Debut]
#8 Day26/Forever In A Day (Last Week: #2) – 36,982; Total: 150,296 [2 Weeks]
#10 Jadakiss/The Last Kiss (Last Week: #6) – 30,412; Total: 210,118 [3 Weeks]
#14 Keri Hilson/In A Perfect World… (Last Week: #13) – 23,089; Total: 213,696 [5 Weeks]
#19 Prince/Lotus Flow3r (Last Week: #15) – 20,500; Total: 277,700 [4 Weeks]
#20 Beyonce/I Am Sasha Fierce (Last Week: #22) – 20,000; Total: 2,112,400 (2x Platinum) [24 Weeks]
#24 The-Dream/Love Vs. Money (Last Week: #20) – 17,000; Total: 331,500 [7 Weeks]
#25 Flo Rida/R.O.O.T.S. (Last Week: #21) – 16,800; Total: 122,600 [4 Weeks]
#27 Jamie Foxx/Intuition (Last Week: #25) – 15,700; Total: 862,800 (Gold) [19 Weeks]
#30 T.I./Paper Trail (Last Week: #32) – 11,600; Total: 1,902,300 (Platinum) [30 Weeks]
#43 UGK/UGK 4 Life (Last Week: #28) – 10,741; Total: 128,215 [4 Weeks]
#77 Chester French/Love The Future (Last Week: NA) – 6,342; Total: NA [Debut]
#186 The Grouch & Eligh/Say G&E! (Last Week: NA) – 2,865; Total: NA [Debut]

Okay, so finally both albums by Asher Roth and Rick Ross have officially been released. And both album couldn’t be any more different. We at nappyafro have also released our reviews for both albums: King Jerm’s review of Deeper Than Rap & B-Easy’s review of Asleep In The Bread Aisle. You’ve seen the ratings and we’ve seen the comments/emails. Why not put it to a vote which is best? So, cast you vote to see who has the better album: Asher Roth or Rick Ross? Don’t be scared… (Update: Poll closed on Friday. Ross by a nose!)

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Straight outta the suburbs of Morrisville, Pennsylvania comes Asher Paul Roth. A great white hype? Naw, we already got Marshall Mathers for that title. Not to say that Asher Roth doesn’t owe Eminem some thanks. He’s been a called a less psychopathic and safer version of Slim Shady. Backed by a hit single (“I Love College”) and industry buzz (The DJ Drama co-signed mixtape The Greenhouse Effect & an XXL cover), Asher Roth may be positioning to Hip-Hop’s next big …uh, white thing. Let’s see if his debut, Asleep In The Bread Aisle, lives up to expectations.

1. Lark On My Go-Cart
Produced by Oren Yoel & David Appelton
Asher starts the album off strong. The beat is kinda quirky but it works very well and like what first tracks off debut albums should do, it introduces the artist to the listeners. Asher doesn’t get out shined by the beats though; he does his thing too: “Poor metaphor, pedicure, get you feet fixed/Walk in my shoes for a few you gone need it.”

2. Blunt Crusin’
Produced by Oren Yoel
The title accurately describes the subject matter; it’s Asher and company riding around and smoking out. The track’s tempo and Roth’s lyrical style are slower than the previous and almost throws you off. The song is okay. It may appeal more if you listening and doing the same as it states. I’m so-so about this one.

3. I Love College
Produced by Mike Caren & Ben Allen
Yeah, this is the one most people have heard. The song may be about smoking weed, keg stands, and double bagging it, but you can’t deny how appealing it is. From the sing-along hook to the call & response of “Do something crazy! Do something crazy”, this song was made to be a college party anthem. The collegiate theme didn’t stop rappers like Jim Jones, Chamillionaire, and Bun-B from jumping on their own versions of “I Love College”. I’m still wondering did I like it better with the Weezer sample as it had on the original version.

4. La Di Da
Produced by Don Cannon
Cannon! I’ll admit when I saw Don Cannon was producing this track, I was expecting him to provide something for Asher to go hard on (Pause). But this is nice also. Instead we get Asher rapping about persevering in the face of adversity and his rise to rap stardom (Including when he auditioned for Jay-Z). The message is good, the beat is cool, but it does sometimes come off as after school special. Still a good listen.

5. Be By Myself
Featuring Cee-Lo; Produced by Oren Yoel
I can immediately tell why Cee-Lo was featured on this song; this song reminds me of something that would have been on Gnarls Barkley’s last album. The whole song has Asher rapping about how he doesn’t really want nor need a girlfriend at this time in his life. The track is well produced and Cee-Lo does his thing on the hook, but Asher doesn’t deliver any bars worth mentioning. It’s an average track.

6. She Don’t Wanna Man
Featuring Keri Hilson; Produced by Oren Yoel
Who idea was it to put Asher Roth and Keri Hilson together? To me it just doesn’t fit. I guess this the flip side of “Be By Myself”; this time the girl doesn’t want a relationship. You can tell they went for club/radio play here. That’s works sometimes just not here.

7. Sour Patch Kids
Produced by Oren Yoel
Here Asher tackles serious issues such as poverty and the environment. I feel his message but here Asher shows some weaknesses in his flow; it gets dull (“Donate your dollars, raise a dollar, help a mother, save a father”). Sometimes it’s not what you say it but how you say it. He sounded better talking about bongs.

8. As I Em
Featuring Chester French; Produced by Oren Yoel & David Appleton
Hey, you gotta applaud Asher Roth for attacking this issue head on. He does sound a lot like Eminem. But Roth does break down the issue and admits that the two rappers do have “similar voice inflection” as well the high bar than Eminem has set for white rappers. It’s a well thought out song that help gets Asher’s point across.

9. Lion’s Roar
Featuring Busta Rhymes & New Kingdom; Produced by Oren Yoel
Asher gets Busta to talk about sexual prowess while Oren Yoel comes through once again and drops another good production. The song as a whole is good and Busta kills the cameo with the fast flow. That’s all I really have for this track. Side note: New Kindom is Orel Yoel’s band.

10. Bad Day
Featuring Jazze Pha; Produced by Oren Yoel & David Appleton
I was so happy when I found out that Jazze Pha didn’t produced this track; that would have been horrible. This song shows Asher’s strength in storytelling and he tells a tale about what else, a bad day. It’s not Slick Rick but it’s funny. Oh yea, he sounds a lot like a young Eminem on this song.

11. His Dream
Featuring Miguel; Produced by Oren Yoel
This is another track that has Asher storytelling. Then again, I don’t know if this song is about his father or some random 56 year old man. (*Listens to it again*) Okay, I’m now sure it’s about his father. For some reasons this song reminds me of Lupe Fiasco’s “He Say, She Say”. It’s also a heartfelt dedication to his father.

12. Fallin’
Produced by Nottz & Novel
Powered by a Ben Kweller sample, this track has Asher explaining his relationship with Hip-Hop and how it came to be. It’s not a bad song, just another average one. The use of the sample here can get boring though.

13. Perfectionist
Featuring Beanie Sigel & Rock City; Produced by Oren Yoel
I already talked about this track previously here. It probably should have been a regular instead of a bonus track.

Bottom Line:
Okay, let’s just attack the elephant in the room. Asher does in fact sound a lot like Eminem. It’s really no getting around it (Asher even admits it himself). It will take a lot for people to put that to the side and look at him without the comparisons. If they do that, they’ll find a fun and well put together album. The production on the album didn’t feel out of place and all the tracks fit together nicely. While it is Asher Roth’s debut, it’s also a coming out party for producer Oren Yoel. But I also feel like Asher may have been rushed. Like, he needed time to grow before making an album. In all honestly, I’ll probably keep 4 tracks off the album. Not because the rest of it is not good, just not memorable (Or maybe just not for me). But hey, that’s not saying I’m not looking forward to more music by Asher; dude still can rhyme.

nappyPicks: “Lark On My Go-Cart”, “I Love College”, “La Di Da”, & “Perfectionist”

Download: Asher Roth – “La Di Da”

Bonus: Asher Roth feat. Slick Rick – “Y.O.U.” (UK Bonus Track)

Wow. It’s been a while since I did an iPod Hustle. The last time I did one of these it was 2008 and it featured…Norah Jones? Okay, let’s make this one good then. For the newcomers (And there are some of you), iPod Hustle is where I look on my iPod and see what I’ve been listening to lately. Sometimes it’s new, sometimes it’s old; whatever. This edition we have sorta new songs (Released in the last month or less): Asher Roth links up with the “Broad Street Bully”, Fat Joe flips a Hendrix sample, and Crooked I jacks some beats. Let’s go…

Download: Asher Roth feat. Beanie Siegel & Rock City – “Perfectionist”

Asher’s debut album, Asleep In The Bread Aisle, is dropping April 20th and the tracks that I have heard so far, I mostly like (The jury is still out on that Cee-Lo joint though). I didn’t expect to see him on a song with Beanie Sigel, but I ain’t mad neither. The song is hot. Plus, Sigel uses lines from the freestyle he did at Max B’s house (Which was also hot). I think everybody is wondering what kinda reception Asher’s album gonna get (You know, with all the Eminem comparisons and what not). I know I’m checking this one out; the kid can flow.

Download: Fat Joe – “Hey Joe”

At this point, to me, Fat Joe is hit or miss. He still makes songs for the radio, but most of the time, I’m not feeling those song. The Elephant In The Room was okay, but I really liked “Preacher on a Sunday Morning”. On “Hey Joe”, this is the Fat Joe we need. Not that “Let’s do a song with whoever R&B’er is hot right now”. Producer Infamous flips a Jimi Hendrix’s sample and Joey goes in. This reminds me of “Victim”. Jealous Ones Still Envy 2 drops on May 19th.

Download: Crooked I – “Jackin’ For Beats 2009″

I’ll admit it, it took me a while to give Crooked I a closer listen. I respected his Hip-Hop Weekly series and mixtapes, but sadly if it wasn’t for Slaughterhouse, I never would have known how dope he really was. Plus, I’m a sucker for “Jackin’ For Beats” type songs: Biggie, 50 Cent, shit, I even thought Sticky Fingaz’s version was hot. Crooked hooks up with Portland’s own DJ West to make a banger here.

Today I finally saw the covers for December’s XXL, and you know what? They aren’t bad at all (Way better than last year’s “Leaders Of The New School”). It features Wale, B.o.B., Asher Roth, Charles Hamilton, Cory Gunz, Blu, Mickey Factz, Ace Hood, Curren$y, & Kid Cudi. Now, let’s look at this list again: I fucks with Wale, B.o.B., & Asher Roth. I’m happy for Curren$y since everyone counted him out when he left Lil’ Wayne’s crew. I listened to Below The Heavens, but other than that I haven’t really listened to much of Blu’s music. I’m still kinda up in the air about Charles Hamilton. Mickey Factz & Cory Gunz got skills, but I need to listen to them more (Even though they have tons of music out). The same goes for Kid Cudi (I’ve only really heard a few tracks). Oh, and as for Ace Hood? Really? Did XXL owe DJ Khaled a favor? But all in all, the cover/covers (It seems to be a foldout) are kinda dope; you can only put Lil’ Wayne on the covers so many times. What do you all think? Did they missed anybody or should they have left off anybody? (Full Covers Below)

First of all, let it be known that we fucks with Tha Carter Cartel. We’re friends with a lot of other sites, but we FUCKS with Tha Carter Cartel. When Derek hit us up and slid this Asher Roth interview our way, you know we had to show love. Check out this excerpt and find out about SRC Records and Steve Rifkind’s newest sensation…then head over and read the rest.

Tha Carter Cartel: What’s good Asher? How you livin’ these days?
Asher Roth: I’m good man, it’s been cool in Atlanta but I’m still kinda bummed out cause it’s the worst month to be in here with the mosquitoes and the heat. So you know, being a fair skinned-white kid I spend most of my time indoors man, but it’s all good.

TCC: (Laughing) That’s what’s up. We understand you just moved your life “Entourage” style to the ATL and have been hanging out with the likes of Ludacris and OutKast. How’s that been, and how you like the ATL besides those fucking mosquitoes?
AR: It’s been cool, the main reason I moved to Atlanta was for networking, and you know it’s kind of the epicenter of what’s going on right now. It was a no brainer to move out of PA and get myself down to Atlanta for a little bit, so it’s cool getting to link up with some of these people you see on TV all the time. It’s been incredible man, but I mean it just started, you know, the journey is just beginning.

TCC: So you just signed to SRC Records and Steve Rifkind, what kind of shit have you guys been getting into?
AR: (Laughs) We’re working on the LP right now but we’re always doing different projects. It’s obviously a very visual world we live in, so I’m always doing different videos and stuff like that as well. I pretty much film everything too. Something that happened is that I’m comfortable within my own skin so I have no problems when the cameras are on and the lights are on. I’m not putting on an act and I think that’s what’s important about the music as well; this is very authentic, organic music. With this world that we live in with YouTube, and this and that, I mean I said let’s just throw the camera on and let people into my world, you know, not only can they experience the music but they’ll be able to experience the video as well.

TCC: That’s real man, that’s how you gotta do it in this new era. So listen, we noticed you’ve been in the studio with Nottz, can you tell us anything about that?
AR: Yeah man I just got back from Virginia working with Nottz, he is an absolute beast, and we did some crazy, crazy stuff. I’m always trying to out [due] my last record cause I think that’s kind of the competition I hold with myself; if I wrote a dope song, the next song I want it to be doper than that. So I went out to Virginia with Nottz and we did some really interesting and different stuff that I’m really excited about. We’re talking about featuring some people, I’m gonna keep it a surprise though. But uh we got a really dope record with a really dope artist that’s gonna surprise you guys, I’m excited.

TCC: Damn man we can’t wait for that shit. So somehow before all this started you realized you could rap, when was that, how’d it happen?
AR: I mean I wasn’t raised on hip-hop; hip-hop was the last genre to really be introduced to my family. My older sister listened to the pop sensations like New Kids on the Block and shit; my middle sister she was into like punk rock and indie rock; my dad was Dire Straits and Bruce Springsteen and the classic rock; and then my mom was more about the Temptations and the jazz and the soul music. So there was no hip-hop in my house, but by the time I reached 13 or 14-years-old, you know I kinda picked up on it, which was like 1998, so I got into hip-hop really, really late. I mean the first [hip-hop] CD I bought was Jay-Z’s Vol. II, and when that Annie anthem came out I was like damn this shit is like a Broadway play, and he flipped it and that was real wild for me. Then when I was about 16-years-old I linked up with my buddy Brian Sellers and I used to beat-box and rap a little bit, and finally I was like, “yo, I think I can rap”. I just hung out in my room with like a tape recorder and shit, I mean I think every suburban kid does it you know, they just hang out and they rap, and I just happened to be good at it, so I ran with it. Senior year we ended up putting out a makeshift CD, recorded on our computer with a fucking $10 microphone, and we sold 250 copies in two days. And then in college I stuck with it and did the same thing in my dorm room. I won a talent show and shit, and whatever, I was never trying to get a deal, it wasn’t like “I wanna be a rapper,” it was just how I liked to spend my spare time, and something I really thoroughly enjoy to do.

Interview by Quincy Moore

In light of that, I’ve decided to do a “Part II”. In this version, I’m going to review the artists that I think I slept on. Most likely, I’m going to sleep on a couple more young artists. But hey, I’m only human, and that means there will be an even better “Part III”, if need be.

Let explain how I choose the “KING”. The King of Hip-hop has to have three things: Skill, Popularity, and Longevity. Look at Biggie or Tupac; they have all three of those. That’s what I’m looking for. If you’ve got the hottest skills but people don’t know who you are, you’ve got no chance at being respected as the King (Lupe Fiasco – CRAZY, but is finally getting noticed). Likewise; if you’re popular but have no skills, people in the game are going to hate you (Soulja Boy – Annoying as HELL, but you know him)! You feel me?

Another thing: a lot of dudes were flippin’ out when I said Bow Wow would become the new King of Hip-hop, tied with Romeo, when Bow Wow is 21 and Weezy is 25. People were like: “You tellin’ me BOW WOW is gonna beat WEEZY for KING??!?!”. Because of that, I’m going to put some estimates on where I think some of the most popular acts will be in 10 years also. There! That way, no one will get mad because their favorite rapper didn’t mentioned. Cool? Let’s do it!

Huey: This was the guy that everyone said I slept on, and to that I plead guilty. If he was the last list, Huey woulda been the King for sure, even though I wasn’t diggin’ “Pop, Lock, & Drop It” (Bow Wow dropped a nice verse on the remix of that too, fellas!). Huey definitely has some skills, but again like Romeo from last list, I don’t think he has the fan base. His album has been out for a year, but is only halfway to Gold. If he sticks with and and starts to sell some records, he’s a got a good chance in my eyes.

Webbie: He’s probably the one of the closest in my opinion, but he’s still sort of new in the game: sure, he’s been recording on a lower level, but this is his second major musical album that came out this year. For a southern rapper, he’s good as a rapper, much better than a lot of the rappers I put on my last list, and I really liked Savage Life 2. Like Huey, he could do it if he stuck with it, but I see a bigger chance with Webbie only because he’s slightly more popular: his debut album went Gold I think, but that was before bootlegging got as bad as it is now.

Blu: Ok…how do I say this?? Blu is amazing as a rapper, but he’s really underground. I mean, I didn’t even know who he was until last year when I read a review on nappyafro (I had liked that one). Then again, I’m just a teenager right? Well, Blu’s gotta get his name out there! He really could rap circles around any of the guys on this list, or on the last list, but if you’ve got no fan base, you’ve got no chance. But if it helps, I’m really pulling for him. I bought his album!

Dolla: For a second, as I was typing this, I was wondering who the fuck is Dolla?? But then I remembered: he was on that song “Who the Fuck is That” with T-Pain and that mediocre rapper Tay Dizm. Yeah he’s young enough, but why request him?? He’s pretty bad, doesn’t have an album out to my knowledge, and is on a mediocre song with the same formula we’ve seen a billion times: Get T-Pain to do the hook. That time it didn’t even work! The song peaked at #82 on the Hot 100! Dolla on this list represents pretty much everyone on the last list: NO CHANCE!!!

Aster Roth: Eh…I liked what I saw, but I don’t see a future here to be honest. But hey, I could be wrong. But he is SO underground! I don’t think he has a chance to be honest, but he does have skill.

Lloyd Banks: Compared to everyone else on this list, you might as well crown Banks right now. 2 albums out, 1 gold, the other platinum. Signed to G-unit, and has great lyrical ability, while being well known to many in the rap game: you think of him when you think of G-Unit, like it or not. Still though, when you look at a list like this, of course Lloyd Banks has got the top spot. If Weezy isn’t recording, he’ll be king.

T-Pain: Somebody said: “Wait!! Where’s T-Pain?? He’s only 23!”. Well, here he is. To be honest, I really don’t see T-Pain as a solo artist. He does have hot singles, but as a solo artist, he’s ok. Epiphany was alright…just alright. I kind of get tired of him and his Auto-Tune thing, but it’s not his fault exactly: its just we all hear him too often singing the same similar hook over and over again on some single. Usually the rapper who’s song he’s on is bad, but T-Pain makes his money anyway. He’ll be in the game as long as he can, but I don’t see him as king. I do agree that he is “The Ringleader” though.

OK, Now I’m gonna talk about the other rappers we know and love, and where I think they might be in 10 years.

Jay-Z: In 10 years, Jay will have become a Billionaire no doubt. He’ll most likely have stopped rapping, and will just concentrate on working with Roc Nation, which, by the way, will become the next Def Jam.

Lil’ Wayne: You know he’s never going to stop. I see Weezy going straight for the throat lyrically at this point, but if his albums don’t sell like they used to, expect him to be killing the Mixtape game, I don’t care what he says about mixtape DJs. If he’s still in the game, he’s the king, hands down.

The Game: Retired.

50 Cent: Retired as soon as Before I Self-Destruct comes out: people will be tired of his bullshit by then. Just playin’, but for real, I don’t see 50 still in the game 10 years from now.

Eminem: Retired: King Mathers will be out, at this rate, in 2010, and then he’ll try to make another album, but it’ll turn into the Detox.

Dr. Dre: Still producing: Detox finally came out, and was amazing, just like everyone knew it would be.

T.I.:  An early retirement: he goes the way of Ice Cube and becomes an actor when he hits his mid-30s, only he’s in better movies (T.I. already said he will stop rapping when he hits his mid-30s)

Kanye: Still Producing. I can’t really say whether he’ll still be rapping. Only time will tell.

Snoop Dogg: Still rapping! I don’t think Snoop Dogg will ever stop. Why? Because he can.

Nas:  Still putting it down. Nas will be one of those rappers that consistently brings us that heat every other album. He’ll still be telling the truth about what’s going on in the world.

Outkast: Long retired, but still classic.

Conclusion: Well, I say we still need some newer, younger acts that can spit, but I mean I don’t think the future is all bad. We still got cats who can spit and really put it down like Blu and Banks. If I had to crown a king right now out of who we have, I’d say Banks, only because he has the popularity and the skill. But if Weezy is still in the game and selling records, he’s got it.

My Top Three (If Wayne is still successful)
1. Lil Wayne
2. Lloyd Banks
3. Blu

Honorable Mentions: Huey, Webbie, T-Pain

This week I decided to switch it up a bit, instead of doing an audio, I decided to do a video! This is the newest sensation on the net right now Asher Roth! He is making big noise with his mixtape the DJ Drama & Don Cannon hosted The Greenhouse Effect, and like many people, King Jerm is late on the bandwagon. He reminds you of somebody, I just can’t put my finger on it. I’ll let you figure out who you think it is! Check out the video, it’s hot, fresh, and new. Don’t forget where you got this from! Oh yeah, if you want to download the mixtape, you know we got you!

Download: Asher Roth – The Greenhouse Effect

Released Date: 2008