The Year 2015 in Review
Author: Matt Jost

I can't help myself, I like intelligent rap music. Just don't count on me to help create any kind of division within hip-hop in that direction. In accordance with its competitive spirit I can laugh with rappers laughing at other rappers, I may also speak up when I catch them saying something stupid, but you will never see me engage in the malicious, ignorant degradation of individual rap artists.

Other publications sometimes give critical praise where you wouldn't expect it, saying incredibly intelligent things about rap releases that seemingly don't lend themselves to that kind of interpretation. I appreciate that approach, even if it sometimes feels like over-intellectualization. At RapReviews.com we don't try to read anything into the music that any other educated listener couldn't get from it. Because we hold on to the notion that rap speaks mostly for itself and may require critical listening but not close reading. But we're well aware of rap's inherent intellectual quality and will gladly point it out to a general public who may be oblivious to it.

If my hunger for hip-hop is best stilled by insightful songs and albums, I also fulfill a certain rap stereotype. As alluded above I have certain strategies to not fall fully prey to it. But sometimes the course of history can make you feel vindicated in your convictions and preferences, bidding you to stand by them, not in an arrogant but simply a positive way. For me the most defining feature of American rap music in 2015 were rappers who I believe wanted to give us something to think about and at the same time make some sense of the times for themselves.

And it wasn't just a couple of trailblazers, pausing to think was a general trend in rap this year, affecting even big names with commercial obligations. West Coast rap registered the most significant brain gain with full-lengths from the likes of Kendrick Lamar, Vince Staples, Earl Sweatshirt and The Game, but many others nationwide put an extra effort into it, proving that instead of dumbing it down, rap is smartening up. I couldn't really rate these albums based on only one vague criteria, but I can express my gratitude to all the rap acts who gave their music a little bit of thought.

Originally posted: December 22, 2015
source: RapReviews.com