What do you guys think makes a classic rap album?

[Guvnor]

Good points have already been mentioned. What's really important to me is skip tracks, a truly perfect album will have none and I have yet to hear an album where there isn't at least one skip track. The Chronic comes closest - I only skip The $20 Sack Pyramid and The Doctor's Office () but they're skits not songs.

So although nothing's perfect there's plenty of legendary albums.

Another important point is I don't go by rep, for me to consider something a classic I have to enjoy it. I don't particularly like Amerikkka's Most Wanted by Ice Cube for example, even though for many people that is one of the all time great albums, I just don't fukk with it so I don't consider it a classic

What? How you don't fukk with Amerikkka's most Wanted. That shyt is classic man, you bugging out lol.

 

[Sukairain]

What? How you don't fukk with Amerikkka's most Wanted. That shyt is classic man, you bugging out lol.

Not a fan of the Bombsquad type beats. Weird because I thought the beats for Public Enemy were really good

 

[Guvnor]

Not a fan of the Bombsquad type beats. Weird because I thought the beats for Public Enemy were really good

Dang, I love the beats on there too but to each their own as they say.

 

[BmoreGorilla]

To me its something that I can listen to front to back and never gets old

 

[Inspect Her Deck]

To me its something that I can listen to front to back and never gets old

But wouldn't that be a "personal" classic then? Does such a thing exist? What if you really loved GZA's Beneath the Surface (totally random example) and you could play it front to back. Is that a classic album?

 

[BmoreGorilla]

But wouldn't that be a "personal" classic then? Does such a thing exist? What if you really loved GZA's Beneath the Surface (totally random example) and you could play it front to back. Is that a classic album?

I should've worded it different. I should've said if the majority of fans can listen to it from front to back and it never get old. In response to your original post I feel like there's really no time frame that it takes for something to be considered classic. We knew when we first heard albums like Ready to Die that it was a classic. Classics just tend to sound different

 

[Inspect Her Deck]

I should've worded it different. I should've said if the majority of fans can listen to it from front to back and it never get old. In response to your original post I feel like there's really no time frame that it takes for something to be considered classic. We knew when we first heard albums like Ready to Die that it was a classic. Classics just tend to sound different

But that's why I'm wary of this trap of feeling something may be a classic. I think in more modern times, people are feeling that with TPAB to an extent. But I can sort of already see the aura around the album fading a little. That's why time is important to me...because then we get to see how albums like TPAB are celebrated in 10 or so years.

But you aren't wrong. You have certain albums where you just KNOW it's gonna be classic. It has something about it. I know what you mean. I just think the word 'classic' naturally implies that a period of time is involved.