Snoop Dogg & The Top 20 MC's of All-Time Debate

In June '09, I was asked by one of my industry pals (that sounds so douchey) to come up with a list of the best 20 mc's of all-time. Now, I'm an 80's baby so my knowledge on older mc's like Grandmaster Caz & Melle Mel is limited so it wouldn't be fair to include them on my list. I keeps it real! Being a true lover of hip-hop, it was a diffucult challenge at the time. I played with the list more than I'll ever admit.

Fast forward to 2011. After having Dr. Dre's 'Kush' in heavy rotation, I started thinking about Snoop's place in history. Originally, I didn't have him on the list, but why the hell not? Sure, he isn't the most skilled lyricist out there but there's a lot more to being great than just being a lyricist. It's the same reason mc's that only focus on lyrics tend to be boring. Flow, charisma... these things matter. They also happen to be two of Snoop's biggest strengths and reasons he continues to be relevant nearly 20 years after he first graced the scene. Factor in that longevity & the fact he's has a classic album in his catalog & he has a good case for being on there.

Here's the original list I presented a year & a 1/2 ago (in no particular order):

Jay-Z
Notorious B.I.G.
KRS-One
Slick Rick
Eminem
Nas
Rakim
Ice Cube
Black Thought
Redman
2 Pac
LL Cool J
Big Pun
Ghostface
Kool G Rap
Scarface
Common
Lauryn Hill
Andre 3000
Prodigy

I've mentioned Snoop as someone who probably deserves a spot on there. Kanye has made a huge case since then w/ his latest album. DMX had one of the greatest runs in hip-hop history when he first came out. Shit, the fact that I don't have Kane on there would make some people not take this list seriously.

The only one on the original list I'd feel comfortable swapping out is Ghostface & even that's not easy. For now, let's do that & put Snoop in his place. However, if Kanye keeps this up, he's bound for a spot on there sometime in the near future (bye bye, Prodigy?) And thus the list is ever-changing. We'll re-visit this topic in another 18 months when I'm sure my list will look completely different.